In Kamwenge, South Western Uganda, to own digital devices as smartphone is uncommon among refugee, host communities and women too.
For women this means not being able to make quick financial transitions or access to the available online services, useful for the entire family.
Since February 2021, Trickle Up and AVSI Foundation Uganda have been implementing the World Bank EQUALS digital literacy pilot project to support the development of women's digital skills
The Nkoma-Katalyeba Women United group (“Nkoma-Katalyeba Bakyara Tukwatanise”) is active in 12 village, selected to take part to trainings on the use of smartphone.
Through the trainings, women learn the basic smartphone operations, the use of mobile money services and the livelihoods applications.
The project model uses animation videos - translated into the local languages of the audiences - embedded onto the smartphones. The women watch and learn from these thematic videos and try their abilities through practice. The 14-member women’s group received smartphones from the project and will continue to receive supervisory support from the program trainers for two weeks and subsequently continue with self-tutorial sessions for another four weeks before the end line information is collected.
Now I can search for a provider of seeds and fertilizers by my phone. I am so happy that I can swipe and have this information right from my garden.
Jovia Mbambu.
The evaluation of the animation model will be also made by testing five other groups in Kamwenge District.
The main result expected from this pilot project is the increase of digital literacy among the rural host and refugee communities.