Project trip: With Save the Children in Uganda

After a two-year break due to Corona, the time had finally come again at the end of March - some of our "sharies" were able to travel to Uganda with our project partner Save the Children and get an impression of the situation and, above all, of the social impact that we have created together. But how exactly does such a trip work? Who do we meet and what do we as a company take away from such a trip for our work? We would like to describe at least a small part of our impressive experiences to you here.

Where does our help go?

We want to make the world a little fairer. That's why each of our products contains a social donation that goes directly to our project partners and thus does good. And we want to see this for ourselves at regular intervals. Three to four times a year we plan project trips to the various partner organizations, talk to the project management and other representatives on site as well as to the people who receive the help. In this way, we want to strengthen our relationships with the partner organizations and work even more closely together, but above all to see where our help has arrived and what other challenges the people on site are facing.

The effect for us personally? Clearly: an extra dose of motivation. Talking to people on site, seeing what moves them and the changes we have achieved together makes us incredibly proud and strengthens our belief that we can make a real social impact together. Transparency is also incredibly important for our work. Because we want to show you how much good you are really doing by buying share products.

Hygiene services for people in Uganda

Since 2020, we have been working with Save the Children on a project in Uganda - more precisely in the southwest of the country on the border with Congo. At that time, Ebola was a huge problem here, which was increasingly exacerbated by the refugee movement. Hygiene measures help to contain this dangerous infectious disease and prevent further infections. That is why Save the Children's project on site ensures that hygiene kits are distributed and training courses are held in which people learn how to make soap themselves, for example, and how to protect themselves from germs in the long term.

Just as Ebola was on the decline, the next crisis was announced with the spread of Covid-19. Here, too, the focus was on hygiene measures to protect people - very similar to Ebola. Currently, Save the Children's work in Uganda is primarily focused on schools and health centers. After the long lockdowns, hygiene concepts must be introduced and adhered to so that these facilities can continue to be used safely. Save the Children supports with hygiene kits that contain masks, disinfectants and menstrual products, for example, and with training courses in which knowledge is passed on and information is provided about infectious diseases.

Much more than washing your hands

The districts in which Save the Children is active in Uganda are huge and our schedule is tight. We want to see as much as possible and visit four locations in two days - schools, health centers and community groups. We talk to teachers and children on site and are incredibly impressed: hygiene clubs have been set up in the schools, where children pass on the knowledge they have learned and make soaps themselves. They enjoy the complex process; they add colors to the lye and create soaps that not only protect them from infectious diseases but also look colorful and inviting.

We are experiencing something similar in the health centers and community groups, which have significantly improved their hygiene measures and are now working to pass on their knowledge and raise awareness among as many people in Uganda as possible. Above all, this also creates new trust. Because in the centers where people avoided consultations and stays for fear of contracting Covid three years ago, a lot has changed. Everything now smells clean, everything shines and the staff wear masks - and that is bringing people back to the health centers, as we were able to experience for ourselves. During our stay, the first baby was born on a newly equipped ward - a small miracle that we were able to be part of.

Successes and challenges become visible

It is really impressive and touching to see how much we have been able to achieve together. The help has already reached the schools and centers, and the local people have acquired a lot of knowledge that they are now applying and passing on themselves. The communities are becoming more resilient and know how to deal with recurring crises and diseases - a step towards a fairer world. At the same time, however, we also notice that even when hygiene measures are well implemented, not all basic needs are covered. Many schools do not have sufficiently functioning latrines or get water from contaminated sources. It is also clear that the hygiene project needs to be rolled out much more widely - and the government must also be involved here. So there is still a long way to go. But we want and must continue on it, together with your help.