A Story of Thriving Experiences In The Lives of 3 Blind Children from Kijjumbula Village, Lwamba Parish, Kirumba Sub-county, Kyotera District

 Empowered parents, teachers, community health volunteers, leaders and well-wishers can support children with disabilities to enjoy the full benefits of life such as education qualifications, access to medical care, essentials such as housing, food security and enjoyment of family experiences.

In Kijjumbula Village there is a family headed by a blind mother living with her 3 blind children abandoned by their father. The family is now thriving and getting support from community members including teachers, well-wishers and the government of Uganda.

The support comes in form of an existing house which they own and there is no fear that they will be evicted by anyone. This house was constructed by Kitovu Mobile and the children regained sight through the support of an American by the names of Amos in 2017. This family got so popular after I visited them and published the story in the Monitor Publication titled “Blind mother struggles to raise visually impaired children” of Friday, March 10, 2017.

There is so much we learn from this story. Parental roles, value empowerment and companionship given to children with disabilities are important for their growth and development. This shows that there is so much we can do to change community perceptions about disabilities in children.  These children have the right to be provided opportunities to grow and develop.

Long before people were sensitized about HIV and AIDS, the spread was high and those who had acquired the virus thought it was end of life. Today we are seeing people actively engaged in gainful commercial activities and employment without fear and anxiety.

This same attitude to reach out to the disabled persons is what is needed in society to address stigma and discrimination.  Visually impaired children need to be allowed to attend school, provided opportunities to engage in play leisure time, allowed to go through growth and development milestones like the other children. The visually impaired children deserve to be recognised and they have to benefit from the right to belong to families.

I came across this family when children had never attended school because of this impairment, I thought to myself, something can be done to reverse this trend.

I first of all empowered community para-social workers to become advocates for this family, the mother was counselled. She got assurance that the situation can be better. She gained hope. We worked as a team and were able to achieve opportunities for the family to be a thriving space. The community is now empowered and it took over. They share roles and take turns to care for the family.

At the moment even when I am not in this community I am sure they are able to take care of this family. The different parents, community members, teachers and others ensure the wellbeing of this family. Currently, all children are in school. Two boys are in Primary four (4) and the girl is in Primary three (3).  We are sharing the pictures with you.

In Rakai and Kyotera there are many children who are differently abled. Many need this intervention. But communities need to devise mechanisms bringing resources together to change the plight of this population. Real Hope Foundation has enrolled 232 Household in Lwamagwa and Kibanda sub counties who are in this category. We are using story writing to raise interest in those who can support these families.  

These families need our support to improve their welfare. We are aware that behind every bad story there is a good story, we call upon community members, well -wishers and the public as a whole to do something within our means to bless someone out there

God bless you.