Summary
XXXX Uganda works with severely disadvantaged Deaf children and young people in the most impoverished regions of the country. Deafness is little understood by society and Deaf people face extreme stigma and discrimination. Isolated and living on the margins of society, misconceptions surrounding deafness can lead to violence and abuse against Deaf people, which lead to mental health issues. Extreme poor health/mental health and other disabilities, plus HIV infection, puts the beneficiaries we support amongst the world’s most disadvantaged.
Our Uganda project ensures Deaf children receive the best possible education and vital sign language skills. Having set up the first pre-school for Deaf children in the country, it is proving a huge success in vastly improving welfare and educational attainment for Deaf children. The aim is that this successful pre-school model will continue to develop, and the concept will roll out to other Deaf schools across Uganda.
In addition, with no secondary school provision for Deaf teenagers available, we aim to develop vocational skills training so that Deaf adolescents are able to attain a practical skill to support themselves and their families in the future and become useful and valued members of society.
The Problem
The World Health Organisation estimates that of Uganda’s 2.5 million people with disabilities, 30% are Deaf. (Deafness in children is genetic or results from common childhood illnesses e.g., malaria, measles and meningitis often left untreated in disadvantaged areas).
The government of Uganda has legislation on the protection of rights for people with disabilities, but many Deaf people living in poverty are unaware of what their rights are because of communication difficulties. Society’s lack of understanding contributes to prejudice and even violence against Deaf children.
Link Uganda note that Deaf people “are disenfranchised, victimized and suffer from discrimination stemming from stigma, misconceptions and deep-seated cultural taboos that devalue them.” In tribal languages, in impoverished regions, the word for “deaf” is “kasiru”, which translates as “lazy” or “stupid”.
The focus areas of the project are around Kampala and Masaka district in Central Uganda – some of the most disadvantaged areas for Deaf people. Masaka is a major transport hub with a high transient population and large rural, inaccessible and impoverished areas. These impoverished regions bring with them the risk of increased, gender and disability inequalities, isolation and superstition. HIV/AIDS in these districts has impacted upon the entire social structure creating a generation of orphans and vulnerable children.
Deaf people in these areas remain the poorest of the poor and are marginalised within their communities. A survey carried out by XXXXXX Uganda in Masaka found that 49% of respondents believed in a supernatural cause to deafness, believing, as a ‘hidden’ disability, it is caused by witchcraft or the devil, and view Deaf people as less than human. As a result of these negative perceptions, Deaf people are among the most vulnerable in Ugandan society, coping with their disability, violence and abuse, as well as lack of opportunity and prejudice within communities where they are seen as a burden. Deaf girls are doubly disadvantaged both by their disability and by their gender: e.g., at higher risk of abuse; restricted from accessing education.
Education has been shown to be one of the key factors in poverty reduction, but it is estimated that more than 65% of Deaf children do not attend school. As well as not receiving a basic education, many Deaf children are not taught signing skills – a language they can understand and they are therefore unable to communicate with or understand the world around them. Suffering discrimination, isolation, victimisation and frequently abuse, Deaf children are left unable to communicate with the outside world, and ostracised by their communities.
How We Help
In 2009 XXXXXX Uganda established a specialist pre-school for Deaf children, aged 3-5 years, in Kampala (the first in the country) to enable them to gain the vital signing skills to be able to communicate with the world and progress into primary education. The positive impact and improvement this are having on the lives of Deaf children is dramatic and our expectations have been surpassed. We now aim to roll-out this model teaching facility to further Deaf schools throughout Uganda, reaching 120 more vulnerable Deaf children, giving them the chance to benefit from an education, so that one day they may become independent and valued members of their communities.
In 2017, to build on our pre-school education programme for young Deaf children and in the absence of accessible secondary school provision, XXXXXX Uganda has planned a programme of vocational skills training for Deaf teenagers to teach them useful, profitable skills. Skills such as tailoring, dress-making, knitting, leather work, carpentry, food production (chicken/pig rearing and egg production) and hairdressing will ensure Deaf children will have the means to support themselves in the future.
A programme has already been successfully piloted at one school in Masaka and we aim to replicate this model to other Deaf schools. In the pilot, Deaf girls are already learning tailoring and have been able to make school uniforms for sale. Eggs and other produce are being sold at the local market. With this valuable training, Deaf children are developing vital self-esteem, confidence and will have the means to earn an income to support themselves so that one day they may become independent and valued members of their communities. This project will start by supplying the tools, equipment and skills training to five Deaf schools where we already have strong relationships. In the first instance the aim is that the project will reach 150 Deaf teenagers, the majority of whom are either orphaned or abandoned at the schools.
Deaf awareness courses raise awareness of the true causes of deafness, dispelling myths and misconceptions. Families of Deaf children are given the opportunity to communicate, ensuring greater parental and family awareness of the care, rights and needs of Deaf children.
Our outreach team find ‘hidden’ children in remote and inaccessible areas, who have been neglected by and isolated from society, and teaches them and their families to communicate in sign language; to care, support and protect their Deaf children and to allow them to attend school so that they will benefit from the vital education needed for a more promising future.
Aims and Outcomes of the Project
The overall aim is to provide an education and help Deaf children gain the communication skills required to cope and engage with everyday life, and develop vocational skills for future independence. In addition: –
-
- Greater parental and family awareness of the care, rights and needs of Deaf children
- Increased skills and capacity of teachers to better meet the needs of pre-school Deaf children
- Improved access to services for the wider Deaf population
- Increased access to medical assessment and therapy for Deaf children
- Greater acceptance of Deaf children within the family and community and removal of stigma
- To address negative cultural values and attitudes for future generations
Case Study: Edward and Molly
Monitoring and Evaluation
Baseline surveys are conducted and qualitative/quantitative data collected throughout the project. The data is evaluated through monthly reporting. Issues/improvements are assessed and improvements fed back into project activities to ensure best practice and that the work has the most effective impact.
Programme Management
Sign Health Uganda is a registered NGO in Uganda. Paul Senteza, the Development Manager, has 15 years extensive knowledge and experience of development work in Uganda and is an expert in the area of disability, health (including HIV/AIDS), gender and children’s rights. Paul has a team of five staff, three of whom are Deaf – all are fluent in sign language. There is a board of nine trustees. All have been selected because they are specialists in Deafness, medical professionals and educational professionals. All are experienced in programmes targeting the Deaf community in Uganda.
