exploring the jungle of LUGADA

I began work this morning cautiously and somewhat apprehensively. I am working for LUGADA, a community-based group that organizes activities aimed at poverty-reduction and empowerment of economically vulnerable people, specifically women and HIV+ victims. The objectives of LUGADA are clear and the organization boasts a constitution that I suspect was borrowed from the United Nations: the document stipulates that the General Assembly must meet completely once a year, a certain quorum must be present at each meeting, the Secretariat has certain powers, a simple majority is needed to overcome amendments but a 2/3 majority is needed for election…it is impressive, but somewhat odd for a grassroots NGO in Nyendo, Uganda!

My supervisor is the president and chairwoman, Florence. She is gracious, welcoming and full of ideas for LUGADA. She wants to expand a child sponsorship program and redevelop a revolving loan fund that began earlier in the ear. She bubbles with praise for her previous intern, a Canadian named Colleen. I’ve tracked down Colleen’s email and I’m planning on stalking her as soon as possible: the months when Colleen was here are the only months that are accounted for in any way! I spent the morning and part of the afternoon combing through the enormous binders Florence provided for me, authoritatively labeled “OFFICIAL CORRESPONDANCE.” The binders are full of emails and receipts, random budget reviews and audits, ranging from 1996 until about a year ago. A beacon of light shines through the muddle during Colleen’s six-month tenure: she organized several workshops concerning microlending and included every detail, response and survey she could find! There are even midterm reflections and a catalogue of obstacles.
But then it ends. Silence. Nothing has been entered since October.
There is a six month gap between the last intern\s documentation and anything recent…no budget account, no receipts of loans, no information on the child sponsorship program…I asked Florence to show me anything more recent, so she willingly brought me to an internet café to show me some documentation. But then she got distracted by chain letters, random correspondence and naturally we ran out of time!
Shrug. As Corrine says, TIA! TIA (This Is Africa!). have to adapt to Africa Time.

The Daughters of Africa in Canada are great sponsors of LUGADA and thought it would be beneficial to provide a computer and a printer to the office. Florence agreed and acquired first an office (LUGADA doesn’t actually have a staff and only recently opened an office), then the technology. I don’t think the computer has ever been used for real purposes!

The last hour of the day, I typed up several minutes from recent LUGADA meetings, began files on the children who are currently in the sponsorship program and sorted through mission statements and files that will hopefully go on the website I’d like to make. I believe Florence is delighted to have an intern because it means someone else is commited: she has told me that other people are so occupied with their work that they do not pay her attention, or give LUGADA the time of day.

Out of disorder…there is less disorder.