By Hellen Nyamweru:The Kabale slum dwellers federation will soon start the enumeration and mapping exercise in line with the Cities Alliance and World Bank program (TSUPU)- Transforming Settlements of the Urban Poor in Uganda.TSUPU is a partnership undertaken by the Government of Uganda and its support partners to align urban development efforts at the national,local government and community level. According to the many interactions between the Kabale municipality,its local council leaders,focal persons and academia this activity is very much welcome in this town for planning purposes so as to  prevent problems associated with unplanned cities such as urban decay.These exercises will be very useful in collecting relevant information on Kabale city.It will also carve out the available services in the area and thus be very instrumental in identifying what lacks as a service.The information will in this way help open doors  to many forums and provide a platform where the residents of Kabale will demand  essential services lacking in their area.The development of Kabale will in the long run create  regional hubs which  are envisaged to help ease the pressure on Kampala,the capital city of Uganda by supporting it in from many angles.

Kabale city is one of the youngest towns under the TSUPU program located in the southwestern part of Uganda,bordering Rwanda through the Katuna border.It also has another road continuing westwards to Kisoro where one can either  access the Democratic Republic of Congo or the Rwandan town of Ruhengeri.That said,Kabale has the potential to grow into a large border town if it well planned to prepare for the future imminent population.

According to the population census 2002,Kabale had 41,344 people which means that the projected population should be much higher owing to the high fertility rate of 6.5 children per woman in Kabale.Kabale is growing at a very fast pace  but the growth is not planned.It is haphazard meaning that several businesses,structures,hotels keep coming up everyday without a clear plan.Anecdotal data suggests that there is no development plan for Kabale city at the moment and this is very worrying.The population grows every day and planning for this will take the concerted efforts of all residents of Kabale.The informal sector in Kabale is large and has a lot of potential that needs to be tapped.Human capital makes up 85% of any development venture and therefore the commitment of Kabale residents in these activities on mapping and enumerations is a plus.The community demonstrated a lot of the positive energy and are looking forward to the the commencement of these activities.

The Kabale federation is also rife,it is conducting daily mobilization exercises to create awareness of what these activities entail in order to arrest any resistance or snag on the ground.The area's authorities have also been informed  through a number of interactive meetings .The most interesting thing about Kabale is that it is a young town which has embraced the aforementioned activities and seen them as an opportunity given to the inhabitants to crafting their own development.It might not have many slums but has many informal settlements mushrooming at an alarming rate.This is what needs to be addressed.Planning resources and strategies are needed to address problems of slum development.Lessons from Kabale can also be replicated to other young towns of Uganda and steer them towards urbanization,a reality we cannot escape from.The time to do this is now!!

There is hope at the end of the tunnel,Nagawa's life story……

By Hellen Nyamweru: Nagawa is a young single mother ,a frail woman whose beauty hides behind her somewhat tired eyes.She calls herself a 'veteran' of one of the biggest slum of Kampala,having practically lived here all her life.She was born and raised here in Kisenyi III.Born in a polygamous family,Nagawa had to drop out of school at age 15 after the untimely demise of her father,the sole bread-winner of the large family.There were no finances for the family leave alone continue paying for her school fees.Soon after Nagawa was whisked into marriage,herself barely an adult at the age of 15.Marital bliss was short-lived as Nagawa's husband passed away 4 years into the marriage making her a widow at the age of 19 with two children in tow,a boy and a girl.

Life became unbearable because she had no job having not completed school yet had to take care of two children.She started doing manual jobs at Owino market,the biggest market in Kampala city.She would wait on tables and serve food but the money could not sustain her and her children.Technically things went from bad to worse because she had to pay rent,provide food,settle medical bills,clothe herself and children all on her own.

She was always late in paying rent.Many are the times she would get threat evictions,different padlocks on her door and even actual evictions late in the night at a time she had no clue on where to go or to turn to.She moved from one rent holding to  another in the slum, most being  in very bad condition.The discomfort and inadequacy of their temporary accommodation notwithstanding,the stormy life was not only scarring to  the children both emotionally but also  physically because of the loss of their father and the constant moving from one house to the next.Nagawa decided to relocate to the village.Life was not any easier and she decided to come back to Kampala in 2005 leaving her two children with her mother.

She started by doing manual jobs yet again,got some income to start a second hand clothing business.In 2009,Nagawa joined the Uganda Slum Dwellers Federation because of the good stories she would hear about the federation as well as witness.The Kisenyi sanitation unit now towering over Kisenyi slum is a clear evidence of joint slum dwellers efforts.The sanitation unit provides clean water at a reduced cost to the slum residents.It also provides toilet and bathroom facilities that are well maintained by federation members.The unit provides shelter to a number of beneficiaries.

On further interaction,Nagawa learnt the members save about UGX 100 every day which they let accumulate and can withdraw on convinience,having accumulated to meaningful sum.

At the moment,Nagawa stays in a rent holding which she  can afford.She has since been able to bring her children back to Kampala and they have been tremendous company for the young widow.She takes them to school which she solely pay from her savings with the federation.She saves for three months or so and then withdraws to pay the schoolfees.She also saves with 'Suubi'',the Urban Poor Fund which is a permanent kind of saving.Funds remitted are  not withdrawn,rather they earn interest for bigger developmental projects such as the construction of houses,looking forward to a secure new home for herself someday. 

Since she joined the federation,her saving culture has greatly improved and she has been able to accomplish a lot aside from educating her children.Her second hand clothing business is running successfully.

Nagawa is slowly forming new attachments;getting to know many federation members,she has been given responsiblity as a collector for the daily savings.She is also very much involved in the current project on enumeration of Kampala slums as well as mapping.She was a team leader in the recent completed enumerations in Kisenyi and is very informed on how that information will help the federation lobby and negotiate for better lives for the slum dwellers.

Single motherhood is accompanied with vigorous strife  for survival and prosperity but Nagawa hopes to beat the odds and provide a life for her two children.She has deftly adapted to the circumstances that surround her and a positive attitude toward life is what she carries with her nowadays.In her own words Nagawa says ''Life has tested me many times before but I will work with the slum dwellers to achieve many of my dream''.With a woman who has been short-changed by life on so many occassions,one cannot help but admire Nagawa.There is a position for Nagawa to start rebuilding her universe and that of her two little children with the aegies of Uganda Slum Dwellers Federation.Beyond the litany of social problems that blight the Kisenyi neighbourhood,there is a woman with hope and dreams to achieve.