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United Families Make Fruitful Fields: How AVSI makes refugees “protagonists” of their own development in Uganda

At AVSI we say that we want to make people “protagonists” of their own development. Here I saw a real example. These people, with all of their intersecting vulnerabilities, anxieties, scars and poverties, found a place where they could come together and be seen. This relationship, offered in a peaceful place, unlocked their learning potential. They were empowered to reconsider their preconceptions, and not to stop at reconsidering, but to actually apply their learning to their own families and relationships.

“Transitioning from Graduation to Resilience” Virtual Learning Event

The USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance funded Graduating to Resilience Activity held a two-hour virtual learning event on the 13th of April 2023: “Transitioning from Graduation to Resilience.” The event was part of USAID’s Agency Learning and Evidence Month, where the 7-year livelihoods program presented learnings from its first cohort of implementation to an audience of about 160+ virtual participants following invitations to a wider cross-section of partners in the Uganda Government, nonprofit, multilateral, and private sectors.

Peace Besime and Nsanze Sepiria: A couple’s story of resilience in Kamwenge, Uganda

We share a couple’s story of resilience. Peace Besime and Nsanze Sepiria were struggling after years of failed farming ventures, they could barely pay for their basic needs (medical expenses, school dues for their five children, and the construction of a decent shelter). Thankfully, they were introduced to the Graduating to Resilience Activity funded by USAID (led by AVSI Foundation, in partnership with American Institute for Research and Trickle Up). Peace and Nsanze were empowered with practical tools: goal setting, business coaching, good agronomic practices, and even more; finally, their voyage to self-reliance began!

The story of Florence: Coaching and livelihood trainings help families in Southwestern Uganda achieve their goals

We tell the story of Florence, 42 years old and the mother of nine children, just one of the 6,824 households actively involved in the USAID-funded Graduating to Resilience Activity in Kamwenge District, Southwestern Uganda.

Florence’s children had no access to quality education, and in and out of their school since she had no money to pay for their fees. Worse, the family couldn’t afford to feed the children with nutritious meals and their health was in disarray. Florence’s hopes of guiding her children to a bright future appeared dim.

AVSI-USA to host Graduating to Resilience Learning Summit

AVSI-USA is excited to bring together key global players to celebrate the power of the Graduation Approach to transform lives. What makes this approach so successful is the holistic services offered, for they not only provide new skills, but confidence to the targeted ultra-poor households (HH), as well as improve their security to diversify income, protect against shocks, and sustain well-being.

Preparing vulnerable children in Lebanon, Ecuador and Uganda to go back to school

As the pandemic keeps raging around the world, it has become more and more evident that access to distance learning is uneven, with huge disparities based on income and geography. Globally, parents struggle to fill the gap, and there is a well-founded fear that the most vulnerable children will not catch up with their learning goals. At the beginning of the Summer, AVSI-USA launched the campaign “Let’s go Back to School.” The main goal was to help our partners in Uganda, Lebanon, and Ecuador prepare vulnerable children to go back to school after almost two years of online learning. To address these and other challenges created by the pandemic, AVSI and partners have planned customized responses together with families and communities. As part of our global campaign, our donors helped us reach the following results.

USAID Mission Director’s visit to Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement, Uganda

AVSI looks forward to starting this work with a new group of participants who, after 30 months, will be as resilient as Charlotte and her family. AVSI Foundation and its partners Trickle Up and IMPAQ International are grateful to the Mission Director for his visit to the project that is creating change in Kamwenge by helping participants move out of poverty and remain resilient.

Sports as an inspiration for young adults with disability

What do Paralympics athletes Becca Meyers, Michael Roeger, and Ambra Sabatini have in common with Congolese refugees Bruno Kyasiimire and Habamungu Kahunda? They never let their disability stop them from achieving their dreams. Born with only one arm and one leg due to a congenital limb defect, Bruno, who lives in the Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement in Uganda, had to deal with mobility challenges and prejudice, even among his peers, since he was young.