The Uganda Scouts Association is the national

Scouting Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth Social movement, movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hik ...

organization of

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...

. The Association became a member of the

World Organization of the Scout Movement The World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM ) is the largest international Scouting organization. WOSM has 173 members. These members are recognized national Scout organizations, which collectively have around 43 million participants. WOSM ...

in 1964. It serves 116,465 members (as of 2011).

History

was founded in British protectorate of

in 1915. Church

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

Rev. Canon H.M. Grace was sent to

Ankole Ankole ( Runyankore: ''Nkore''), was a traditional Bantu kingdom in Uganda and lasted from the 15th century until 1967. The kingdom was located in south-western Uganda, east of Lake Edward. History Ankole Kingdom is located in the South-West ...

in western Uganda to start

Mbarara High School Mbarara High School (MHS), is a boys-only boarding middle and high school located in the city of Mbarara, in Mbarara District in Western Uganda. Location The school is located in the Western Ugandan city of Mbarara, approximately , by road, sou ...

. He also started the first troop in Uganda. The movement took time to spread over the country during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, as the public thought Scouting was too military. In 1918, the Rev. Grace was transferred to

Namirembe Namirembe is a hill in Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city. It is also a common name given to girls in several Baganda clans. Namirembe comes from the Luganda word "mirembe" meaning ''peace''. Namirembe loosely translates into ''Full of ...

, where he started a second troop of Scouts. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Scouts served their community by working in

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional se ...

s sorting mail, directing

traffic Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...

and other meaningful duties. Until 1971, Scouting grew very popular in Uganda and membership was spread all over the country. This all came to a halt between 1971 and 1981, due to the political situation in Uganda. Scouting suffered again in 1985 due to the wars and instability in the country. In 1986, Scouting resurfaced, and the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

formally became the overseer of the Uganda Scouts Association. Although Scouting is a non-governmental organization, the Ugandan government has taken a keen interest in the movement. Unlike other countries, the Ugandan government has appointed a full-time worker in every district, called district executive commissioners, to co-ordinate activities of the Scouts, in recognition of the immense contribution the movement makes and can make towards the education of the youth education outside the classroom. A few years later, probably due to economic pressures the Government withdrew its funding for the paid District Executive Commissioners and they became volunteer posts. Formed in 1994 the UK Uganda Network originally called the UNITE Network produced close relationships between Scouts in the UK and those in Uganda. This resulted in many joint projects and visits.

Mottos

the cub scout motto is " do your best" The Junior Scout Motto is "Be Prepared"; the Venture Scout Motto is "Look wide"; and the Rover Scout Motto is "Service". The

Scout Motto The Scout Motto of the Scout movement is, in English, "Be Prepared", with most international branches of the group using a close translation of that phrase. These mottoes have been used by millions of Scouts around the world since 1907. Most of t ...

is ''Uwe Tayari'', ''Be Prepared'' in Swahili.

Emblem

The Scout emblem of the Uganda Scouts Association features a grey crowned crane, a symbol in use since Uganda was a colonial branch of British Scouting.

UK Uganda Scout Network

The UK Uganda Scout Network is a forum where members of

The Scout Association The Scout Association is the largest Scouting organisation in the United Kingdom and is the World Organization of the Scout Movement's recognised member for the United Kingdom. Following the origin of Scouting in 1907, the association was fo ...

who are interested in promoting International Scouting and in particular with a specific interest in building friendships with the people of Uganda. Its aim is to bring together like-minded members of the Scout Association who have an interest in Africa, particularly Uganda, who wish to gain knowledge, exchange ideas and share experiences with each other. The UK Uganda Scout Network provides an opportunity to expand International Scouting by raising awareness and promoting activities to support ideas and projects in the UK for members of the Uganda Scout Association and their communities. So far, Scouts have built a new training centre at the National Campsite,

Kaazi Kaazi, Uganda is home to a training ground for The Uganda Scouts Association The Uganda Scouts Association is the national Scouting organization of Uganda. The Association became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement in 1964 ...

. Venture Scouts have undertaken a ten-year project to develop a plot of land at

Buwenda Buwenda is a small village in Uganda located in the Bugiri district, close to the town of Jinja, Uganda, Jinja. References

Populated places in Uganda {{Uganda-geo-stub ...

, with the building of a training centre and camp site, known as the

Baden-Powell Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, ( ; (Commonly pronounced by others as ) 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941) was a British Army officer, writer, founder and first Chief Scout of the worl ...

Training Centre and Campsite,

Buwenda Buwenda is a small village in Uganda located in the Bugiri district, close to the town of Jinja, Uganda, Jinja. References

Populated places in Uganda {{Uganda-geo-stub ...

, near Jinja. British Scouts have adopted a school in the

slum A slum is a highly populated urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are primarily ...

area of

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and R ...

, Bwaise, providing permanent classrooms and funding for child education. Scouts collected and transported a container full of educational resources enabling a library to be set up in a school in

Iganga Iganga is a town in the Eastern Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial center of Iganga District. Location Iganga is located in Uganda's Busoga sub-region. It lies approximately , by road, northeast of the c ...

. A group of Explorer Scouts from

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire ...

built, in collaboration with local Scouts, two protected springs in the Busia district, repeat visits of this sort are planned.

References

External links