A Good African Story

 

      This is the first English book I finished reading since I came to Uganda. The title of this book is "A good African Story : how a small company built a global coffee brand" written by Andrew Rugasira, who is an entrepreneur founded an Ugandan company called Good African Coffee. He was born in Uganda and studied in UK. After finished master degree in University of Oxford, he came back to Uganda and started his business. From his study, he had some doubt about development aid. For the past fifty years, the World Bank, UN and other birateral organizations have granted and lent huge amout of money but it hasn't worked well. In that view point, he started to think to embark a business which is related to local people aiming at a trade with a fair price. As a result of his effort as well as his colleagues, he finally started retail business in UK after S. Africa. His coffee business bloomed, finally.  Then, he also started a retail business in the U.S though he struggled some hard situations.

     After finishing to read this book, I understood how hard to embark a business in Africa and how hard to make the businness, especially when it comes to compete in the capitalism. As he pointed out through the book, of course capital is importnat but perseverance is more importantly than the capital. He never gave up to keep pushing up his business. I think that perseverance was the key to success in his business. Because of he and his team's effort, coffee famers got  a certain amount of  money by selling coffee (it should have given them). Lastly, as he told the reader that poverty is not only a lack of money but also a lack of oppertunity. From this view point, I could understand why he made SACOO for famers.

     The Andrew's way of thinking to help people in the village is very logical and well estimated.

Since I can even  find his coffee in the supermarket in Jinja, I am going to buy the coffee not only to enjoy the taste but also to help the poeple in Kasese, where their Arabica coffee is from.

 

Kenya @ Jinja

  

Student Teachers







 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      Student teachers has come since this week. This is a program for them to become a teacher as we did in Japan. I was surprised to hear that student teachers they teach during the daytime, starting from 8:30a.m to 4:00p.m. Since school has to keep their time to teach, I had no lesson during the daytime. Even though I have to teach math for P6, I decided to teach in early morning and late evening.

     From last Tuesday, I started go to school at 7:00a.m and taught them if there is no teachers to teach. We, the teahcers made a timetable but I told pupils like this;

 

"I come at 7:00a.m. every moring for the lessons and started to teach from 5:30p.m to 6:30p.m."

 

Whether they understand my reason or not, I much come to teach them, otherwise I won't finish all topics of P6 within the term.

In addition, I have just started to teach on Saturdays.

What I concern is that I'm not sure if they come on time. Like today, I came to school at 8:00a.m as I told them last evening, but no one was there. The first pupil came at 8:10am, then, one third of the class came up to 9:30. That is why, I started my lesson at 9:30. I didn't have enough time to teach today, but I think it is importnat to try encourage them to attend the lesson.

 

Though those student teachers will come for the next three weeks I hope I will find out what I should do during the daytime and keep teaching during those two durations of a day.

 

Kenya @ Jinja  

 

Uganda VS Ghana

    

     Last Saturday, I went to Nambole studium (located in Kampala) to watch the football match between Uganda and Ghana. This is the match for the World Cup qualifier in 2018, Russia and this is the important match for both teams. Because in Africa there is only one team will go to the world cup in each league. There are four teams in each league. Uganda is same as Ghana, Egypt and Congo brazzaville. Leading by the Egypt, Uganda comes next before Ghana. However, in oder to be qualified for the World Cup. Uganda must win this match same as Ghana.

Though the Cranes, the nickname of the national team of Uganda was tryed to get a score, they didn't get it. Ghana, the black star, also didn't get a score. As a result of the match, it was drew. Both team had some chances to get a score but it didn't. At the last part of the match, I though Ghana scored after the keeper of Uganda stroke the ball. But it was off-side. Though there was some doubt about the judge, we survived. The score was 0-0 and the dream going to the World Cup as a first time has disapper.

I hope someday that Japan and Ghana will hold a match in the World Cup!!

Kenya @ Jinja