Courses
ATU Students & Staff Volunteer in Uganda
For the third year running, students and staff from Atlantic Technological University St Angelas campus travelled to Uganda to work in various humanitarian and community engagement projects in the Entebbe region.
For the third year running, students and staff from Atlantic Technological University (ATU) St Angela’s campus travelled to Uganda to work in various humanitarian and community engagement projects in the Entebbe region. The two-week programme visits schools including Noah’s Ark Disability School and Ebenezer Primary School and Nursery where health assessments were delivered to prioritised children at risk, particularly at Noah’s Ark who receive no government funding and are reliant on donors and visiting groups such as ATU.
Donations including medical and education supplies were brought over thanks to the generosity of the university’s stakeholders as well as items donated by family and friends of this year’s team. Uganda Programme Co-ordinator, Seán Kelly describes the reality for the children at Noah’s Ark; “Disability of any kind remains a stigma in Ugandan society and we’ve seen firsthand how these children, babies in some cases, are neglected and often abandoned on the street”. “It’s difficult for us to accept this but you soon realise that pity isn’t what’s needed – it’s practical action which is agreed with through our Erasmus+ partner, Bright Kids Uganda (BKU)”.
In 2023, the university established a formal agreement with BKU and its Founding Director, Dr Victoria Nalongo Namusisi. Recipient of the African Humanitarian Award, Victoria’s guidance is essential to ensure funding and supports go exactly where it’s needed on the ground. Each year, the team drive various fundraising events with donations going directly towards the projects identified which include supporting two full-time nurses and additional care workers or “nannies”, restocking clinics, clothing, meal plans, bedding, mosquito nets and much more.
Previous donations have gone into structural improvements such as replacing a fallen pit-latrine floors and installing a solar pump system for Ebenezer Primary School and Nursery. In addition, the team also delivered free vision assessment and community health clinics on Nsazi Island as well as on the mainland. Over 570 people were seen to, with each person given the time, care and some form of simple measure to help improve their daily lives, be that through a pair of donated eyeglasses or wound care.
ATU’s Erasmus Co-ordinator, Stephanie Alridge, explains the importance of supporting unique initiatives such as this: “The Erasmus+ partnership has shown our students and staff that humanitarian work extends far beyond the classroom – it equips them with the skills, empathy, and cultural understanding needed to create meaningful change. Through this Erasmus+ programme mobility to Uganda, our students and staff experience first-hand the European principles of solidarity, inclusion, and intercultural understanding. This work in Uganda not only fosters active citizenship and professional growth, but also ensures that the support provided is ethical, sustainable, and responsive to the real needs of the communities we serve.”
