Uganda Development Services (Uganda) operates from a business centre and community library in Kamuli town and provides outreach services into the surrounding districts. The original UK charity, Uganda Development Services, which started UDS (Uganda) has handed over its UK activity to Afrinspire during 2016-17.

Afrinspire has supported one UDS project in the Kamuli District, which aims to tackle “the gender digital divide,” by teaching women and girls the computer skills. They learnt learnt about a variety of technologies from social media platforms like Whatsapp and Facebook, to video conferencing and holding a radio talk show. They learnt how to use mobile banking, saving using mobile phones and accessing business information. This experience with ICT provides the women with greater access to jobs, and greater training to start their own business.

Another project supported by Afrinspire is the Farmers Training that the UDS deliver from their Kamuli Centre. The training aims to improve household incomes, food security, nutrition and hygiene in three parishes in the Kagulu sub-county of Buyende District.

Participants undergo a comprehensive programme of training, introducing new knowledge and skills to farmers and homesteads. Demonstration gardens allow the farmers to practice new organic farming skills over the growing seasons, with new banana, pineapple and vegetable crops. Women have engaged keenly with the gardens, and their new skills should help to improve household incomes. In the current stage, 90 model farmers will be identified and taken on exposure visits to see new things outside their area, to allow them to take these ideas back home. Others can then learn from the model farmers. Participants are also learning how to identify more weather-resistant seeds and how to access these seeds with the aim of increasing productivity.