I'm thrilled to announce that the partnership between The Ayin Project and Ndejje University’s Water Research & Development Center in Uganda was officially solidified on April 25, 2023. This partnership has been received by both parties with eager anticipation. The Ayin Project first proposed this partnership possibility to the University on October 16th, 2022. Since then, we have been collaboratively working through expectations of what this partnership could look like. This diligent work has successfully landed a partnership that both parties agree has the potential to bring further change to the water accessibility issues Uganda faces.
On Tuesday, March 21st, I (Josh) had the privilege of sitting down with Ndejje University’s leadership team to discuss moving forward with our partnership. We were all mutually encouraged by the hope and vision for what this partnership could entail, and the ways in which we believe it will impact water issues going forward. For me, a noteworthy moment was when the Vice Chancellor,
Rev. Olivia Nassaka Banja PhD, shared her gender-equity concerns, and her desire to see women being included in this work. She believes, with such considerations being made, the research projects will have the potential to go out into the communities to bring a positive impact. Rev. Olivia was adamant she wanted to see research move beyond the institutional walls of the University and go out into surrounding communities/villages. This is a mindset that The Ayin Project shares and it aligns beautifully with our mission and vision.
Water accessibility in Uganda is a great need with only 18.7% of the population having access to Safely Managed Water Systems compared to 97.3% of the population in the United States (JMP et al., 2022). In order to bring positive change, it will require collaborative efforts of like-minded people. We at The Ayin Project are grateful to now be co-laborers with Ndejje University’s Water Research and Development Center to be a catalyst for change.
As a result of this partnership, this month field assessments have already begun in different Ugandan communities and project proposals are currently being developed by the team on the ground. There are now four full-time personnel at the Water Research and Development Center who are actively researching and developing action plans to address water-related issues in identified project areas. We are excited to see the impact our collaborative work will produce over the coming months and years. We will give further detail and updates on these project developments in the near future.
If you or someone you may know wants to be an active part of supporting this partnership - click on the Donate button below. Or if you’d like to help with the research and development side, please feel free to contact us at wrdc@theayinproject.org
We’d love for you to be a part of this important in-depth work to bring change to this societal issue of water accessibility impacting so many people in Uganda, East Africa and so many other parts of our world. We need people who believe in this work to be active participants in bringing change. Thank you for your support!
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