Women Community Activities in Ugandan Context
Ms.NAMANDE Grace (Uganda)
Women engage themselves in both productive and reproductive activities. Productive
activities constitute to the community and national development/national income, theseinclude economic activities like, fishing, stone quarreling, charcoal selling, shop and bar
attendants, crop growing, animal husbandry, and poultry keeping. They also include thework of civil servants like women accountants, women doctor, women lawyers, personalsecretaries, teachers, traditional healers, house maids, musicians, community workers,religious activities and many more.
Women’s reproductive activities in Uganda involve taking care of a community’swelfare for by producing children; breast-feeding; raising and nurturing of children,
cooking, fetching water and firewood, cleaning, and taking care of homes, washing andironing clothes, washing home utensils and looking after their husbands. Unfortunately
this kind of work is not appreciated by men and the community at large.
Economically women in Ugandan community are good traders. Some of the trading
activities include chicken, beef, potato and cassava roasting along roadsides mainly onhighways; selling of 2nd hand garments to local market (butale bwa mubuulo); charcoal
selling though it is the men who do the clearing and burning; banana selling and otherfood stuffs, local juice processing. From this business, women have been able tosupplement on men’s income to meet some of the basic needs like paying children’s
school fees, feeding and clothing. This has raised women’s position in families since theyalso contribute to families’ welfare thus avoiding their marginalization.
Women participate in communal work. For example, cleaning and sweeping streets,roads, markets. Some do it voluntarily, while others earn a living from this. This avoids
them from being redundant. Previously, this kind of work was meant to be for men. This
has improved the general cleanliness of trading centers and markets, thus promoting
proper hygiene and sanitation.
Women engage in religious activities. These range from preaching and ushering inseveral religious places. Many women are ordained as priests, reverends, canons andsisters. In many Catholic churches, sisters help fathers in serving the Eucharist while
in some others religion, women preach the gospel to their convents. Some prominentwomen pastors include Pastor Namutebi Imelda and First Lady Janet Museveni.
Women carry out counseling of their clients. This ranges from conflicts involving
married couples and families; victims of HIV/AIDS scourge; traumatized children in
war torn areas and those who have lost their jobs. This helps in rehabilitating theirthinking and to cope with prevailing circumstances. Women have proved to be great
counselors because of the empathy and sympathy they have.
Women have gone a step further by treating people’s problems. These are done bytraditional women doctors for example Maama Fina who is the president of traditional
healers in Uganda. She solves people’s problems like job seekers, barren women,
impotent men and bringing back lost love. From this she has been in position to earn aliving, solve people’s problems and reputations. This responsibility shifted from men
originally to women.
Women carry out circle gift receiving (Nigina) that are geared towards economic andwelfare development. This has promoted unity, togetherness and hardworking infamilies. From this women get home utensils from fellow members and invited guests.
These ranges from cups, plates, mattresses, blankets, fridges, sofa sets.
Formation of women local clubs on village levels which are aimed at imparting skills
in women for income generating activities like crafts, tailoring, music, dance, forexample, drama and counseling. In addition, these women receive life skill training, tomanage conflicts in homes and basic skills in home management. This has promoted
women to identify their problems and find possible solutions. It has also promoted social
cohesion, creativity and innovativeness.
Women are involved in agricultural activities like animal husbandry, crop growing,fish farming, hot culture, and growing of flowers. The products from this are sold andthe surplus is consumed. Such women have been in position to habilitate their homes,
pay school fees for their children and improve theirnutrition. This in turn has complemented men’s income
and the general development of the area.
Photo: Women gather for Gift Receiving Circle called Nigina.