Supporting Rose to find her passion

Rose is a 33-year-old single mother with three children. She lives in the Adjumani district of Northern Uganda. 

At the age of seven, Rose acquired her physical disability when a nurse injured a nerve during a routine immunisation. Rose was bullied at school because of her disability and dropped out of formal education at a young age. So, she turned to selling in the market instead to make a living. 

Unfortunately, when she became pregnant with her third child, she lost her job as a market vendor. Around the same time, her husband abandoned her and her children.

Misconceptions around disability

Without access to an income, Rose struggled to take care of herself and her children. She could not call on her family for support due to misconceptions about disability. They did not understand how to support her disability and rejected her appeals for financial aid. 

A lack of understanding about disability in the local community also meant employers were reluctant to hire Rose. She had to beg for food from her neighbours to feed her children. 

After three years of unemployment, Rose heard about Leonard Cheshire’s livelihoods project for young women with disabilities on Aulogo FM radio station. She applied for the project and was accepted.

The support she recieved

The project, delivered in partnership with Cheshire Services Uganda, aimed to build the confidence of young women with disabilities in the Adjumani district. Through skills training, the project supported women to gain essential skills that could increase their livelihoods opportunities and help them gain an income. 

Rose decided to pick tailoring and garment cutting among all the courses offered to young women. It stood out to her, especially because it was something she was already passionate about.

Through the project, Rose received six months of tailoring training at Tito Ouma Memorial artisan training centre in 2018. She also received a start-up kit to help get her business going once she completed the course. Rose received a sewing machine, threads, a pair of scissors, bobbin rings, elastic, buttons, zippers and lubricant oil.

As well as gaining essential tailor skills, Rose also learnt other core skills to help run her business. This included marketing, customer retention, record keeping, design, cutting, and sewing.

Building her dream business

Following the training, Rose set up her tailoring business and started earning a living.

“For a long time, I felt that I couldn’t achieve anything in life because of my disability. But when Leonard Cheshire came in the picture, I came to realise that disability is not inability,” said Rose. 

Rose now earns a steady leaving. With her income, she can support her children’s education and feed and clothe them. She also saves money every week in the Kangidru Community Savings group, a local Savings and Credit Cooperative Society (SACCO) that was formed to help women like Rose be able to save.

Hailing from a society that values animals such as cows and goats as symbols of wealth and prestige, Rose has now set her eyes firmly on purchasing some cows and goats for her family.