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Street children in Kampala Click the picture to find our Guest Speaker Presentation Where is RYDA? See for yourself if you like, but you will learn a lot more from our Guest Speaker. Google Maps hasn't quite captured the detail of Uganda as yet, but the RYDA Centre address is: 8 Miles off Kampala-Mityana Road, near Buloba Teachers' College and this Google Maps link shows both Kampala and Mityana. See if you can get closer using the map or satellite photos.

July 2010 Donations Continue to Flow A few photos and a few words. That's all it takes. A five minute presentation to any congregation or group about the RYDA Child Labour Project and hearts are touched; action results. How do we know? Because in mid-June St. John's Uniting Church in Cowes asked for the presentation above. Many parishioners reported afterwards that they were inspired - not by what was said, but by what RYDA has achieved since 1992 and what they are still achieving today. All RYDA's work needs support and prayer, but at the moment, hearts, minds and purses are responding to the project that is taking children out of child labour and preventing others from being ensnared by it. Thank you generous people of St. John's. You gave $730 towards the $US6000 RYDA needs to complete its local contribution. And a member of Ringwood North has added a further $100 to the amount that congregation has given since they listened to the presentation in May. Thank you. Thanks also to two St. Margaret's families that each donated $500 around the end of June. Giving is a gift of the Spirit and it is the Spirit who brings the pieces together into a meaningful whole. A consequence of this prayerful giving is that St. Margaret's Uniting Church, was able to transfer $US3000 to the RYDA account at the end of June. Added to amounts transferred in January and other funds RYDA has raised, it means the local contribution RYDA must make to the United Nations International Labour Organisation funding is two thirds covered after only 4 months of a 22 month project. Please help the Spirit continue to move. Give your congregation or group the opportunity to hear the story. Contact Doug. Williams as above. Support From Within RYDA is critically dependent on first world funding, but wherever possible it is supported in many ways by the Ugandan government. This email from Geoffrey Steven Kyeyune, Executive Director, which was received on June 18th, describes another blessing that can be counted in the last month. Yesterday I received a telephone call to go to the Ministry to pick training materials and equipment/tools worth over 9 million Uganda shillings, which is approximately 4,500 US dollars. This will go a long way in boosting the RYDA skills training especially in those two departments of Hairdressing and the Electrical department. What a relief after a lot of struggle to equip the two highly demanded programme activities. Geoffrey also asks if anyone has access to two particular texts to support the work in the Motor Vehicle training department. They are: Motor Vehicle Technology and Practical Work, J. A Dolan, March 1978 Fundamental Motor Vehicle Technology for Mechanics, P. P. J Read and V.C. Reid from a series titled "Motivates"

Every Little Parcel Helps
A small parcel arrived at RYDA in the last month from Australia. It contained a few tennis balls, some scissors that could be used in the Tailoring department and some highlighter pens. This gift means as much as any other and Geoffrey has emailed as follows:

I write to send sincere appreciation to the this wonderful donor.

In the hope that the unknown person will read this message.

Day of the African Child
This celebration day was held recently at Entebbe and RYDA children played a big part assisted by their wonderful staff.

Children from the SNAP Project, who attend Kalambi Junior School, rehearsing with Joanita Nabasumba, RYDA Programme Co-ordinator, before their presentation. SNAP = Support National Action Programme to eliminate child labour. Also on 4 August at the RYDA Vocation Skills Training Centre in Buloba the children will be having their house Music, Dance & Drama competitions. Their houses are Australia, Jamaica and Colombia.

After Geoffrey's speech at this function, he was approached by the WBS television crew for an interview. The interview was centered on vocational skills training and child labour.	These children are a group representing former child labourers.
This banner the children carried in the parade displayed messages to the invited guests in commemoration of the day of African child.	A discussion between Ms Akky de Kort Chief Technical Adviser of ILO/IPEC Uganda and the chief Scream Trainer.

• ILO/IPEC = International Labour Organisation/ International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour
  
• SCREAM = Support Child Rights Education through Art and Media

First Quarter Report
The first quarter report of the RYDA Child Labour Project has been written and submitted to the ILO. It is 14 pages of extensive detail and if you would like a copy please contact Doug. Williams as above. Some of the main achievements have been:

• Identification of districts and villages most likely to contribute to child labour.
• Sensitization programs in these areas to introduce citizens to the project.
• Community discussions to develop criteria to identify and support child labourers and those who might become child labourers.
• Identification of particular children to be prevented from entering child labour, or to be removed from it.
• 288 and 167 children, both boys and girls, have so far been identified for prevention and removal respectively
• Provision of scholastic material to identified schools in some areas to strengthen their curriculum.
• Extending the training of RYDA staff to support them to be even more competent in child labour issues.
• Addition of staff to the RYDA team.

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