Most women in rural Uganda have hard lives. Seen as inferior to men, they are often denied education and encouraged to marry in their teens. Thus begins a life of hard domestic labor in remote areas where obtaining food and water can take all day, back-to-back pregnancies without quality health care or family planning resources, and in too many cases, tolerating domestic violence in order to not abandon their children.
Many of these women are hardworking, smart, creative, and resourceful, but their culture and circumstances keep them and their daughters locked in a negative cycle of ignorance and poverty. A group of women in the Rwenzori region have been working since 1989 to reverse this trend, but they need help.
The Roots of Hope Foundation was started in 2007 by a woman from the Rwenzori region who completed her own education with support from the women’s activism groups there. She went on to achieve a university education, a rarity among women from her region, and is now giving back to the community that raised her.
The foundation assists women and girls in the Rwenzori region of Uganda as they work to empower each other through access to education, vocational skills training, income generating opportunities, and advocacy for women’s rights. Read on for highlights from our projects, or see them all here.
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Latest News From Uganda
Graduating class of May 2019
May 2019: Roots of Hope announces graduation of our latest vocational education class, in which 15 vulnerable girls and young women received training in income-generating skills of tailoring and hairdressing. Read the course report here.
2019: Roots of Hope is grateful to UK-based Ark Charitable Trust for a successful fundraising drive which yielded nearly £2000 in donations. Funds were used from July - December 2019 to train another 21 students in tailoring and hairdressing, and to provide sewing machines, financial literacy training, and reproductive health education to the students who graduated from the program in May 2019. Read the announcement here and the program report here.
Girls’ Education Fund
This fund helps girls stay in school despite financial hardship, early marriage and pregnancy, and a culture that does not historically value their education.
Vocational Skills Training
We’ve helped over 150 women learn income-generating skills like tailoring, knitting, basket weaving, hairdressing, and jewelry making, so they can pay for education and nutritious food.
Economic Empowerment
We distributed chickens to 50 families and trained them in poultry keeping. The number of chickens doubled within a year and money earned from eggs helped pay for education.
Donate or Volunteer
A small donation goes a long way toward improving the lives of these women and girls. We also welcome volunteers, both onsite in Uganda and remotely online, who would like to contribute their skills to our projects.
A Word From the Founder
"I am lucky to have been born to parents who knew how important it was to educate girls. Otherwise I wouldn’t be who I am today. I derive my energy from the love I have for the girls of Kyarumba. They have cried for education, but few people have come to their rescue.'
- Jessica Batsemaghe
Our Mission
We are a non-governmental organization working with the women of the Rwenzori Mountains to address issues affecting their livelihoods, health, and quality of life.
Our Vision
We strive for a community of empowered women living with respect and dignity.
Our Core Values
We believe in mutual respect, equality, justice, honesty and transparency. We stand in solidarity with poor women and girls.