Things in the slums have changed quite a bit since we have been in the UK for the last 6 weeks. Walking around today in Kinawataka there were shops where there used to be houses. Houses where there used to be space and rubble where there used to be shops. All very disorienting for me, let alone all the children and families that live there.
So, why the big changes? It would take a while to explain so read this for the ins and outs, but basically the railway wanted their land back thank you very much and so people had to get off it. This meant that loads of homes and shops had to be demolished to make way for a 'safe zone' (oh, very droll) of 30 metres next to the railway. This is all for progress of course - Kampala will soon have its very own fully-functioning, shiny passenger railway. Not sure whether I should get excited or not though.
All this eviction and demolishing has changed the face of two slums in particular and it clearly sends home the message that housing insecurity in slum communities is just part of life and a very disruptive one.
Amongst the rubble and shops displaced from their natural sites like an erratic rock dumped by a glacier (had to come in handy one day), there are some signs of hope and growth. While away, some of the team had been tasked to teach groups about growing vegetables in containers on their roofs or any space close to their homes.
I went today for the 'transplanting session', where all the tomatoes, kale and cabbage seedlings were moved (ok, transplanted) into the containers. It was great to see the excitement and joy on the women's faces as they lovingly guided their seedlings in place. As they left with their containers I sent a little prayer up that this would be a new start in their lives, a time to see opportunities and growth.
We've also now found a good supply of large bottles to act as containers from one of the local plastic recyclers. At 12p a pop, I'd say that's a pretty sustainable, locally resourced project.
Now all we need is to see some nice red tomatoes!
