The plight of children I had a chance of visiting a women’s group in the outskirts ofkapchorwa, northen uganda. Together with my fellow Bugema universitystudents from development studies department, arrived to a warmwelcome. As we got out of the bus, I realized that the children wereas many as adults or even more at the meeting place. However,teenagers were not present. The happy children trailed our bus andthey eventually got my attention. When I got out, I was terrified bythe state of these children. It’s totally unexplainable to have suchchildren living a horrible life. The children who have the desire andthe need to live but have no ability to do so. The children inKapchorwa are living in very bad conditions, they are poor and thereis less healthy care available. In a country well governed, poverty issomething we should 3be ashamed of.

(a child looks on as students arrive)

Hunger, poverty, disease, ignorance, lack of opportunity, insecurity ,inequality, hopelessness are the terms that could be well defined, theliving conditions of these children in kapchorwa. The total failure

of our endeavors to achieve the basic and essential objective ofsupplying our children with enough food to develop their

potentialities for enjoying a full life is today more evident thanever. Malnutrition and hunger must be considered by the majority of

our people as a secular, permanent condition of their precarious life.For them, the hypothetical high growth of our economy has almost no

meaning, since it has not been able to prevent or reduce thepresence of hunger and under-nourishment. For the hungry and unhealthy

children living in this country today, hunger, poverty, andmalnutrition are not mere conceptual references, but rather tragicdaily experiences, disgraceful reality. I could tell that these

children are sick, they have a common infection I can not explain.

(a vulnerable child with soars that are common among the children)

They all had wounds on their bodies and legs.

(children sitting)

The truth is that, despite all the utterances and promises toeradicate it, absolute poverty persists and tends to increase in thiscountry and today. There are still many people, especially children,in this country who each day cannot meet the basic needs necessary fora decent human life. But as i have repeatedly stated to many politicaland educational gatherings of African universities, it is a strictduty of justice and truth not to allow fundamental needs to remainunsatisfied. Economic justice requires that, each individual has

adequate resources to survive, to develop and thrive, and to give backin service to the community. A society which values its future affordsthe highest priority to providing food and adequate healthcare for allits children. Whatever efforts are made today to protect them, toprevent their death and illness, to provide them with food, housing,medicine, clothing and education, will shape the basic human qualitiesof that decisive percentage of the future population of our country.And yet, in view of the present trends, what sort of country will wehandover to those children? What sort of life lies ahead for thesechildren who will struggle for a decent life, worth at least of humancondition? What will their quality of life be like? This should leadus to establish a dignified fraternal way of life together as humanbeings and to construct a just and fair human society.

Squalor, disease and lack of healthcare are other basic aspects -together with hunger - characterizing the dramatic situation I saw inthese children of kapchorwa.

(this child in the fore middle scratched his back for the entire time)

As long as food and health fail to be considered as a fundamentalright of every child and a duty of the community; as long as theresponsibility of the state and of society in regard to healthcare andpoverty alleviation fail to be recognized; as long as inequalities inthe distribution of health resources and food fail to disappear; aslong as poverty, hunger, ignorance and squalor fail to be directlyfought against, little will be achieved in improving the lives of ourpeople particularly the young generation naïve of what is going on orwhat is going to be . This is first and foremost a political fact, apolitical issue. A comprehensive approach is required to fight thissituation and to struggle for diminishing or eradicating poverty,hunger and child morbidity and mortality. The existence of suchhungry, malnourished and diseased children in this countryconstitutes an affront to all of us. A stable, permanent solution mustbe found for this serious problem. Someone must take responsibility.Children are the most valuable citizens and assets in any society andthe greatest of our treasures. Children must no longer be tortured bythe pangs of hunger or ravaged by disease or threatened with thescourge of ignorance.

(a contemplative child looks in the camera)

It is said that there can be no keener revelation of a society's soulthan the way in which it treats, looks after its children. The truecharacter of a society is revealed in how it looks after its children.Improving healthcare for children is extremely important. We thereforehave no sensible alternative to waging a war, without respite, povertyand poor health services to children. We should not forget thatpoverty is impoverishment, we should condemn as anti-evangelical theextreme poverty of these children that affects a large population inUganda.

Poverty eradication among children must be a priority for PresidentMuseveni and his government. If they fail to make progress on thisscore, everything else they are doing will be of very little value,especially if our target is sustainable development.

(children look on, one has soars going up to the eyes)

The auther

bwite Lukama was born on 28th june 1989. He is the fifth born in the family of eight of Mr and Mrs Lukama of Solwezi in the north western province of Zambia.

He attended his primary school at kangwena Basic school still in solwezi town of Zambia. He then went to kasempa Boys Boarding Secondary school and spent five years of his secondary education. Bwite lukama then joined Bugema university in 2009 as a regular student of barchelor of arts in development studies.

Bwite lukama was privileged to serve in leadership roles at both secondary and university level. He became the school debate chairperson and the the entertainment prefect of kasempa boys in 2006. He was also the drama chairperson at the same school. At Bugema university, he became the member of parliament in the students government of 2011 to 2012.

Bwite lukama also worked with the electoral commission of Zambia during the presidential elections of Zambia in 2008. He then worked with lions club internation Uganda in 2011. He has also worked with Uganda red cross as a first aid worker and facilitator.Bwite lukama also worked with UNICEF and UNFPA Uganda.

He is also a qualified human rights activist who is affiliated to Uganda human rights commission. Above all, he is a public speaker.

Contact: bwitelukama@gmail.com, bwitelukama@yahoo.com

PHOTOS BY: lukama bwite.