11. Uganda - Monday 12th October

Today we set off early to Kampala, a journey that took us only two hours during the night when we arrived, but nearly three hours in the busier morning traffic today. We visited the DFID (Department for International Development) which is the British Government organisation that allocates the aid and development budget for certain countries that have a high level of poverty. It's not just about the poverty though; there are other factors that decide whether the country gets on the list for help, such as its historical and current relationship with Britain. This year Uganda gets £100 million out of a total budget of £1 billion which is less than 1% of UK spending. We were given a very interesting presentation and then the pupils went into discussion groups and gave their suggestions. It was a really good exercise to highlight how complicated it is to tackle poverty; how to prioritise and how to get past government corruption. As a bonus the building was air conditioned and coffee and biscuits were provided! One of the pleasant young civil servants who gave us the talk looked at my brightly patterned trousers and asked "I see that you been to the market!" which I thought was very funny because I bought them in Tesco in Rutherglen!

Then came the highlight of the day (for the pupils!) which was our eagerly awaited visit to Nandos, or as the pupils call it "A cheeky wee Nandos" Gabriel brought us to a fast food restaurant which he told us used to have a sign which said Nandos, although today the sign was gone and there was no mention of Nandos on the menu either. This didn't bother any of us at all as we tucked into very nice burgers and pizzas. There were 28 of us including all of us Scots, Gabriel, Robert, and ten Ugandan pupils, so the staff set us up a long trestle table outside at the front. Luckily it was also under a balcony because it started raining very heavily but we were nicely sheltered. Needless to say it was still very warm! In the trees opposite the building there were birds so large that until I saw them moving and flapping their wings, I honestly thought that they were inflatables put there as art or advertisements.This caused a great deal of amusement to George and Gabriel. It turned out that they were huge storks, one of which was sitting on its nest. When the others flew off they looked like pterodactyls. 

Next stop was shopping - we went to a craft market which consisted of about 30 little shops. We all had a fine old time buying souvenirs and comparing what we bought - the prices were already very cheap but Robert advised us that we were expected to haggle. I suspect that this probably just got us to what the shopkeepers wanted to charge us anyway! Less exciting for me was a subsequent visit to a sports shop to buy football strips, but the pupils loved it and assured me that they had got great bargains.

The traffic was even more congested on the way back to Luwero; we set off at 6.30 p.m. into traffic that was almost stationary, and this time the trip took four hours! However what with the chatting and the singing and the drumming (yes some of the boys had bought drums at the craft market!) and the sights of Ugandan townships and countryside as darkness fell - it was a surreal and pleasant experience.