Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL)

Qui sommes-nous

Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL) is a non-profit making organization that was founded by a group of professionals in 1993. UYDEL targets hard-to-reach young people (10-24 years) living in the streets and slums, including commercial sex workers, drug users, abused children orphans and teenage mothers in Kampala city (Kawempe and Rubaga Divisions), Wakiso, Mukono, Busia and Kalangala Districts.
UYDEL provides services for youth in the areas of Youth Friendly Reproductive Health Services, Drug abuse prevention, HIV/AIDS prevention, child protection and psychosocial support to orphans, trafficked children and other vulnerable children. These services are community based and are implemented with support and involvement of the police, local leaders, peer providers (Youth), bar and lodge owners, local entrepreneurs (artisans) and parents.

Goal: To enhance human capital development among the disadvantaged youth in Uganda

Vision: "A transformed society where young people live a good quality of life free from exploitation"

Mission: To enhance socioeconomic transformation of disadvantaged young people through skills development for self-reliance.

Programmes:
• Child protection: Child protection; Child labour; Child trafficking; Commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSES)
• Alcohol, drug and substance abuse: UYDEL focuses on prevention strategies in terms of community outreaches, seminars, drama and film shows, counseling, psychosocial support, sports and recreation and vocational livelihood skills training.
• Adolescent sexual reproductive health: UYDEL established 4 youth friendly drop in centres and 12 mobile clinical outreach posts in the communities with the support from African Youth Alliance (AYA)/Pathfinder International/UNFPA; which provided Adolescent Sexual Reproductive Health (ASRH) information, family planning counselling and STI treatment to 1,800 Adolescent Commercial Sex Workers (ACSWs) and 600 street/slum adolescents.
• HIV/AIDS prevention care and support: The HIV and AIDS Prevention Programme aims at contributing: to the increased accessibility and utilization of client-friendly HIV and AIDS services for out of school street and slum young people aged between 10 to 24 years infected and affected by HIV and AIDS; and the reduction of HIV and AIDS related vulnerability by among MARPS and street and slum young people through community mobilization and empowerment of young people with livelihood and life skills.
• DREAMS Project: Dreams is an ambitious partnership aimed at reducing HIV infection rates among adolescent girls and young women in 10 Sub Saharan African Countries. UYDeL is partnering with other stake holders to meet the goal of developing girls into Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored and Safe women.
• Rehabilitation and livelihood skills: In regard to rehabilitation, UYDEL conducts field visits to communities, child work sites, referral by community members and use of former child/youth beneficiaries are used as strategies to reach out to victims. - The Jewel Girls art therapy is implemented as part of the psycho-social support activities for girls who have gone through various traumatic situations and challenges including sexual exploitation and abuse, trafficking and HIV/AIDS. - Vocational skills training is aimed at achieving skill levels sufficient for the vulnerable young people to find either employment in the competitive market conditions or to start gainful self-employment.

Rogers Kasirye is the Executive Director of Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL).

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