2025

First trip in spring

In March, just in time for the start of spring, three members of the association set off on another trip to Uganda. Due to baggage restrictions imposed by EU-based airlines, which did not allow us to carry certain tools, we had to choose a different route this time, flying with Turkish Airlines. Fortunately, the luggage arrived safely and intact, as did the three travellers.

The trainees who took their final exams at the end of 2024 have not yet received their certificates, which is due to considerable organisational difficulties at the state examination office. Nevertheless, all of them have already been able to start their careers as car mechanics.

The new trainees of the 2025 class, whom we got to know on our last trip, are now fully integrated into the training programme. They clearly enjoy mastering the challenges, both theoretical and practical. In personal conversations, we gained valuable insights into their everyday lives, which enable us to participate in the daily training activities.

We learned that a routine schedule had been introduced. This consists of a morning briefing, task allocation, fixed times for theoretical instruction and lunch.  The trainers Charles and Patrick are very committed to this.

The trainees show initiative in everything they do and actively promote good communication. They appointed a spokesperson from their group. That's great!

We are considering appointing a permanent contact person for the trainees in future, as this person could offer them a lot of support outside of the day-to-day training, especially with questions that go beyond the actual training. This would significantly improve their training and living situation.

In preparation for our construction project to house homeless trainees, we started building latrines, which we were able to complete successfully during our stay. This is because even in Uganda, we are not allowed to start construction work without a ‘portable toilet’.

At the end of the work, for hygienic reasons, we applied an epoxy resin coating to the floor and, in some cases, to the walls as well, to make it much easier to keep clean later on.

We have already clarified the first steps for the future construction of a storage building on the leased land with civil engineer Kilama, whom we know from previous collaborations. Without a storage building, we would have no chance of preventing the theft of building materials for the caretaker's house and the trainee house.

Thanks to the support of our member Rudi, who is an architect, we were able to submit the plans for the warehouse. (Thanks again, Rudi!). We also determined the exact location of the warehouse by measuring and fixing the corner points on the site so that the first construction phase (foundation) can begin once the financing is in place.

A consultation with a local lawyer was also held to discuss current and future measures and to clarify complicated legal issues. 

In connection with our search for logistical support and funding, we have received and continue to receive a great deal of encouragement for our project from all sides.

However, our efforts to obtain funding in Germany or through the German Embassy in Kampala via the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development – and the companies and foundations it has engaged – have not been successful. This is because support for construction measures to house homeless young people during their training cannot be provided due to regulations in the funding programmes that we do not (cannot) meet.

In this respect, there is a striking discrepancy between the well-meaning sentiment publicly promoted by various funding programmes and the reality. That is why donations are now more necessary than ever in order to move forward.

After contacting the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), we now have GIZ staff in Kampala and Gulu to advise us. This is because we also have to register as a non-profit organisation with regard to our plans in Uganda...

We are currently preparing for the next trip, which is scheduled to take place in November 2025. Some suitcases are already packed.

Travel report November/December 2025

This time, the four of us (Christian, Matthias, Markus and Ulla) not only had our suitcases packed to the brim, but also our diaries. 

In order to complete all the planned tasks, it was essential to schedule at least three weeks for the trip to Uganda. Unfortunately, two of us were unable to stay for the entire duration due to a lack of holiday days. They had to leave after only two weeks. 

To reduce travel costs, we were forced to find alternative accommodation for the duration of the trip. At our usual hotel, where we had felt very comfortable and well looked after for over 10 years, the costs had unfortunately risen steadily over time to a level that made it impossible for us to stay there. We therefore looked for an alternative and decided to rent an apartment. There, we catered for ourselves. We would like to consider this option again in the future.

Unfortunately, the bus journey from Kampala to Gulu took considerably longer again, as a section of the road was impassable and we had to take a detour. This meant that the journey took nine hours instead of the usual seven. However, after arriving in the evening, we started the full programme the next day.

We visited the construction site for the first phase of our storage shed to check the newly surveyed corner points and clarify further details, as agreed, before giving   our civil engineer (Mr Kilama) the go-ahead for further construction. We were delighted to see that all the building materials were ready and the foundation trenches had already been dug.           

Registration

We decided to register our association through the administrative channels and drove to the CDO (Council District Officer) on the same day.

However, we still needed a written statement from the responsible LC1 (Land Councillor Level 1) confirming our sincere intentions and stating that, in his opinion, there was nothing to prevent us from achieving our statutory association goals. After a brief telephone call, he was standing in front of us 30 minutes later with the coveted document.

We paid the expected, unofficial and, of course, unquittanceable expense allowance fee and were then able to take this document to the next higher administrative office (CDO).

Weeks before our departure, Christian had already dealt intensively with the applicable legal situation and the prescribed administrative steps. These were also recorded in detail in writing by the official authorities and could be read. To be on the safe side, we had copies of all documents with us. We had already filled out all the necessary forms in full. We therefore believed we were well prepared. Registration seemed to us to be a mere formality – or so we thought.

We entered the office reverently. Our turn came quickly. As we stood in front of the desk, the lady moved some papers aside. In doing so, she also pushed her tablet to one side. Rather casually – but perhaps not entirely by chance – she found a large banknote in the local currency left behind by the previous customer. With astonishing dexterity, this "piece of paper" disappeared. Now she could devote her undivided attention to us.

We explained our request to register our association in Uganda and immediately handed over our well-prepared documents. With astonishing disregard for our request, the lady turned to us and explained, among other things, that we absolutely had to open an account. However, as foreigners, we would only have limited access to this account, and at least three Ugandan nationals would have to be co-owners of the account. We tried to explain that this requirement was not mentioned anywhere in the instructions, guidelines or laws, and that we did not need it for our association's work. This did not seem negotiable, so in order to avoid any further surprises, we asked her to make a list of the things that were not mentioned anywhere but were necessary for registration. She did so, and we left the building without having achieved anything.

Visibly irritated, we stood in the car park and discussed how to proceed. We decided to approach the next higher authority (RCC) in the administrative hierarchy and present our case. Thanks to Peter's extensive knowledge and connections, we drove to the RCC's administrative building. Although it was during his office hours, he was not there. So we waited on the advice of his receptionist, as she said it would only be a few minutes before he returned.

After about an hour, the few minutes had passed and a polite man greeted us in his office. We repeated our request, handed over the stack of completed forms and described our experience. He immediately contacted the lady (CDO) by telephone and asked her to explain her position on the matter. After this telephone call, he took a closer look at our completed forms and was visibly surprised that we had not only answered every question, but could even substantiate our answers with the relevant administrative regulations and laws. After some back and forth, he initially commented on the account, saying that it was not so important to open an account for the registration process. We could talk about that again later. The conversation was quite positive. 

Deep down inside, a small seed of hope sprouted in us that things would now proceed without any problems. However, this was crushed again in the next moment when the RCC asked us to describe exactly what we wanted on a single A4 page. We refrained from pointing out once again that this was precisely what was stated in the pages of forms and applications. Filling out these often difficult-to-understand questions took us hours in Germany, almost days. We then decided to write this letter in the evening and hand it over to him the next day. He promised to get back to us in the next few days. We waited in vain. When we inquired, we were told, if at all, that "things are already in progress." That is the situation to this day.

Trainees

During our visit to Charles' workshop, we welcomed not only the six apprentices for 2025, but also the four new apprentices for 2026. We presented them with their personal work items, which were gratefully accepted. After a short speech, we wished them every success for the coming year of training. We also presented the training bonuses (socket and ring spanner sets, etc.) for 2025 to Charles and Patrik, which, as agreed, were to be distributed to the trainees after they had passed their exams.  

On this day, the exam date for the 2025 trainees was also announced, which fortunately was still within the period of our presence. Unfortunately, this did not happen. The date was postponed at very short notice (on the day of the scheduled exam) to an indefinite date, possibly at the beginning of 2026. This prompted us to visit the local institute that administers the exam and express our displeasure.

We made it very clear that this is unacceptable behaviour and that it seriously jeopardises our association's training programme. In particular, the additional financial support required until the delayed examination takes place will lead to an incalculable and unsustainable additional burden in the future. We were assured that this was an exception due to the restructuring and centralisation of the vocational training department in Kampala. Now we have to consider how we can meet such challenges in the future. At present, the only option is to reduce the number of trainees for the following year.

Construction site

Over the next few days, however, we had to devote ourselves intensively to the construction work. To this end, we visited the construction site several times a day. In between, we had to keep bringing in materials and tools, even though our civil engineer and his staff did an exemplary job. But there are just a few things that Germans do differently on construction sites... and if that's how they want it, then they have to take care of it themselves. This includes a minimum level of safety precautions, e.g. providing a sturdy aluminium ladder instead of a homemade bamboo scaffold.

We also built a sturdy shelf for our rented storage room so that we could now sort everything neatly and keep it within easy reach, giving us an overview of the tools we had available. Unfortunately, we forget a lot of things during our absence. Before each trip, we regularly ask ourselves whether we already have something there or whether we still need to bring it with us.

On the last day, we were delighted to see that the first phase of construction had been completed as planned for this trip and that all that remained was to ensure that the screed was watered over the next few days. It was the dry season under the scorching sun with temperatures reaching 40°C. 

Kilama, our site manager, promised to take care of this so that we could begin our return journey with peace of mind.