For Parents: The Kampala Project
Given the US State Department's Travel Alert regarding political instability in Kampala and surrounding areas and out of an abundance of caution for the safety of students, we have decided not to offer the Kampala Project this year.We will be using this hiatus as an opportunity to assess the project in order to enhance the educational outcomes of the experience and the sustainability of the program. Barring unforeseen circumstances, such as the recent violence, we will plan to offer the program again in 2010-2011.
Students interested in global service opportunities for next summer can check out the continuing Zanzibar Project and the new Ecuador Project.
Thank you so much,
OACS Staff
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In order to offer more context and specifics regarding safety protocols, all students will receive an information package at our first session that included all forms for Vanderbilt students traveling overseas, as well as general information about Kampala. Our staff, along with our partners on site, will pick up all students at the airport and, as is routine for Vanderbilt project, we do need and will cover evacuation procedures and other emergency precautions.
It is a program requirement to register at the US Embassy in Kampala. All our students must have international insurance coverage and we have staff on site as well as emergency contacts here in the USA. We will live in one of the safest area of Kampala: Kololo, or Mulago Hill where our apartments have armedguards. This is the same area where many foreign dignitaries keep residence. Our students are placed either in couples or groups. We created a google map that you can view to get an idea of the distance the participants will commute. Information about our buddy system, curfew and communication while in Kampala is available in the attached document entitled “General Information about Kampala” and below.
We have a very strong network in Kampala ranging from attorneys to doctors. Our students will have the opportunity to have guided debriefing sessions as well as access to psychologists in Kampala and doctors in psychology from the Vanderbilt Counseling Center. We are aware of the impact of vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, and importance of self-care for our students. Each of the program participants is our priority and thus, when someone –students and parents- have questions our staff will always be available for clarification and to offer any additional information needed.
We will address the visa procedure at our first session: since visas are available at the airport upon arrival, regardless of the day and time, we remind participants to have the exact amount and have their yellow fever card along with their passport while waiting in line. The current fee for a three-month tourist visa obtained upon arrival at Entebbe Airport is $50.00.
SAFETY IN KAMPALA
The area where our accommodations will be is the safest in Kampala. To insure personal safety to all students, the Kampala Project uses a buddy system for any evening outings that require travel in and around Kampala. No member of the group will be allowed to go out in the evenings by themselves. The minimum number of any group taking advantage of events in the evening in town will be three. In the interest of safety, participants should inform the site leader of their whereabouts at all times throughout the course of the program.
REGISTER WITH THE AMERICAN EMBASSY
Registering yourself as a visitor to Uganda is required for program participation in the Kampala Project. In a developing country in sub-Saharan Africa it makes sense to let the US government know our whereabouts. In the unlikely event of a country emergency, online registration will help the US government locate you and let your family know of any conditions.
Please note that you will need your passports in hand when you register, plus all of your emergency contact information. In addition, you will be asked for your itinerary and your destination (Kampala).
Directions for Registering Online:
Go to: www.state.gov
Click on “Travel and Business”
Click on “Travel Tips”
In the left-hand corner of your screen scroll down and click on “Registration with Embassies”
Click on “Travel Registration”
You are a “Short-term Traveler”
Follow registration prompts
INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE COVERAGE
You must check with your own insurance agent concerning any limitation your present health insurance coverage might impose on overseas travel. Some policies exclude coverage outside the United States or provide restrictions on treatment options. If your company does impose restrictions, the purchase of an overseas rider may be all that is necessary. In either case, I would have them send you a written statement of overseas coverage. You should also take a copy of your health insurance DOCUMENTATION with you. Travel insurance for luggage or belongings is optional. HTH is about $75. For details: www.hthworldwide.com
IMMUNIZATIONS
Students need to consult the above website as well as the Vanderbilt Student Health to ensure they have all appropriate vaccines prior to leaving for Kampala. Some of these vaccines must be administered weeks before leaving so do NOT leave this until the last minute.
VISAS
To enter or exit Uganda: A passport valid for three months beyond the date of entry, visa and evidence of yellow fever vaccination are required. Visas are available at Entebbe Airport upon arrival or may be obtained from the Embassy of the Republic of Uganda. The current fee for a three-month tourist visa obtained upon arrival at Entebbe Airport is $50.00. MAKE SURE TO HAVE THIS EXACT AMOUNT. Airline companies may also require travelers to have a visa before boarding. Up to date information should be confirmed at the website above.
TRAVELING AT NIGHT
To insure the personal safety of all students, the Kampala Project will adopt a buddy system for any evening outings that require travel in and around Kampala. No member of the group will be allowed to go out in the evenings by themselves. The minimum number of any group taking advantage of events in the evening in town will be three. In addition, if you leave The Compound with someone you will return to The Compound with the same group. Remember that we are responsible not only to ourselves but to our group as well. The Site Leader must be made aware in advance of participants’ travel outside the Kampala metro area and/or overnight lodging outside the Vanderbilt residence, i.e., The Compound. It’s a matter of safety that the Site Leader be made aware of the whereabouts of participants at all times throughout the course of the program.
CURFEW
For the first week of the project we will adopt a strict curfew policy for all participants in the Kampala Project. This policy was developed with the students’ best interests in mind. At the end of the first week we will revisit this issue and either continue the policy or adapt it. Remember that they also have your best interests at heart. Let’s keep this curfew in strict abeyance for the first week until we have a better handle on individual and group safety issues.
· There will be a strict and mandatory curfew from Sunday to Thursday of 12 mid-night. (1 a.m. on weekends—Friday and Saturday evenings) ALL students are expected to be back at The Compound by this time. Why? We need to account for everyone to provide the safest most productive environment for working at our work sites during the day hours.
COMMUNICATION
Each student in the program will have a cell phone in Uganda with an assigned telephone number. Please be very careful with your cell phones, they are liable to get stolen. We will load each phone with airtime minutes for students to use for connecting with agencies with program coordinators in Kampala. Calling the States, however, is an expensive proposition. If the students drain their airtime account they will be responsible for loading more airtime minutes from their personal finances. The good news is that students can receive calls on their phones for free. There is no charge on the Kampala end of a cell phone call for calls received. So, feel free to call away. OK, but let’s put some restrictions on calling:
Evenings and weekends. Students should not receive non-emergency calls during the day for two reasons: first, logistically they should not pull out their cell phones and engage in conversations in public places for safety reasons; second, they should not have telephone conversations when they are “on site”.
Dialing Kampala cell phones is different than dialing a landline in Kampala. You do not include the city code for Kampala because cell phones work throughout the country, thus once your student tells you their local MTN cell phone number you dial it from the States as follows:
011 256 782 XXX-XXX
011 (international access)
256 (Uganda country code)
782 (local MTN cell phone designation)
XXX-XXX (student’s 6-digit mobile number)
MAIL
You will not be able to send items (letters, packages) through the mail to Kampala. Mail from the USA is slow to Kampala, and packages are often subject to high duty tariffs if they are in fact ever received. Emergency packages (medicines, etc.) can be sent through DHL to the local DHL office in downtown Kampala, this is very expensive and packets are received in 2-3 days.
EMAILS
Yes. There are cyber cafés scattered through Kampala, and while their connections are often snail-paced they nevertheless afford affordable opportunities to send short messages. Do not attempt to send photographs or large attachments to any email you send to Kampala, it will take too long (and cost too much).
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Active Citizenship & Service | Vanderbilt University
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615-343-7878