Program Areas

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the right to food does not imply that governments have an obligation to hand out free food to everyone who wants it. This is a common misconception. "The right to food is not a right to a minimum ration of calories, proteins and other specific nutrients, or a right to be fed.

It is about being guaranteed the right to feed oneself, which requires not only that food is available – that the ratio of production to the population is sufficient – but also that it is accessible– i.e., that each household either has the means to produce or buy its own food. However, if individuals are deprived of access to food for reasons beyond their control, for instance because of an armed conflict, natural disaster or because they are in detention, recognition of the right to life obliges States to provide them with sufficient food for their survival.

RHF’s Intervention in relation to Food, Nutrition and incomes;- The aim of RHF’s Food, Nutrition and income program is to improve livelihoods through combined financial and technical assistance for rural women and youth with empowerment and training programs and engaging them in their development processes. Under economic empowerment, focus is put on food security and nutrition, agribusiness, livestock rearing and micro credit. Emphasis is put on capacity building in sustainable agriculture. RHF focuses on improving food production through improving farming practices, harvesting techniques, value addition, marketing and business management. Participants also receive intensive training in cooperative development and governance.

The goal is to establish a core of functioning cooperatives capable of producing and marketing high quality, high value agricultural products. The long-term vision of commercial farming is a women-led agricultural value chain whereby women are participants in every facet of the agricultural production cycle: producers, processors, distributors, managers and owners.

Commercial farming initiative functions not only as an income generation mechanism but as an agent of unification bringing together diverse groups of women and their families irrespective of cultural or ethnic backgrounds.

RHF adopted a working model that further increased capacity of farming communities to carry out profitable agribusiness. This is done by offering free advisory services and extending small loans to the farmers and small business owners to enable them to invest in their agricultural activities and business. Furthermore, by re-branding our micro-credit arm as Community Fund, RHF has made Financing more accessible to the most vulnerable communities, many of whom are wary of banks or financial institutions.

Community Fund’s accessibility and use of everyday language aims to offer an inclusive service that reaches those who need it most. In addition, beneficiaries are also able to invest in other income generating activities like trade, retail shops, and transportation and among others. RHF employs the group solidarity model where by women are encouraged to form groups which are trained. Through these groups, members have created strong bonds among themselves and instead of struggling alone, now these women work together to solve their problems.

WASH

Under the WASH program, RHF aims at improving general health conditions of the focus communities through increased access to clean and safe water, good hygiene conditions, sanitation facilities and building community capacity not only to maintain the facilities through Water User communities but to also to lobby and advocate for qualitative and quantitative WASH services from other duty bearers. RHF has adopted both right based and service based approach to service Delivery. RHF works with partners to supplement Government services by constructing Boreholes, shallow wells, spring tanks, rain water harvesting facilities, School, household and community sanitation facilities.

HIV/AIDS and Sexual Reproductive Health & Rights

The aim of this program is to promoting awareness and good governance in sexual reproductive, maternal child health, HIV/AIDS, Nutrition, and other health services. RHF builds community capacity to lobby and advocate for qualitative and quantitative SRH, MCH, and HIV/AIDS care services. RHF works with district and sub county health resource persons, nurses, HUMCs, PDCs, village health teams (VHTs), youth peer educators (YPEs), Private health workers, Traditional birth attendants (TBAs), and community based organizations, to create access, and availability of the reproductive health services. In partnership with other health organizations, RHF organizes mobile clinics for voluntary counseling and testing, provision of Health products like condoms, pills, and other protection and bath control products. Due to the increasing HIV rates, RHF works with Youth Peer Educators (YPEs) and school clubs to carry out community and school out reaches to promote awareness of HIV through music and drama. Not only does community positively respond to the campaigns but also gives the youth an opportunity to be part of a positive social change in their society.

This program aims at supporting the access to quality Education by Vulnerable Children. RHF does this by both Advocacy activities and service provision in some cases.

Areas of intervention include; Advocacy for improving access to quality Education for Vulnerable children, sponsorship Support for OVCs, construction of structures including classrooms, water and sanitation facilities, access to reading materials, science equipments and computers.

RHF supports Children out of school with life skills. By this RHF supports establishment of skills training centers. Such skills include tailoring, computing skills, bakery, Music, art, etc

RHF Supports training for teachers who in most cases have not completed their education certificates but would like to acquire them.

This program is aimed at promoting environmental protection that is otherwise destroyed by Human activity. Environmental conservation is the act of conserving or saving our natural resources through careful management.  

This means we can use the resources but wisely and responsibly. Examples: reducing your waste, saving trees, recycling, using renewable resources that don’t deplete our natural resources. Therefore RHF trains communities in proper environmental practices that lead to environmental sustainability. RHF trains in proper land use management and Tree planting as a measure to restore the green.

RHF supports communities to adopt to use of sustainable energy including solar energy, energy saving stoves solar driers and Biogas. This ensures that’s communities will not only reduce deforestation but also ensures good health. Agro forestry is also integrated in the agricultural program through boundary tree planting, fruit trees and coffee growing.

RFH is helping rural communities to access solar lights, Solar Power & Solar Systems, since they don’t have access to National Grid Hydro-power.

Donate a Bicycle is an activity whereby we help rural women get bicycles, this improves their mobility and in the long run attracts income

RHF holds government accountable for the promise of specialized sexual offences courts. We believe these courts are key to increasing reporting rates and conviction rates for rape, and decreasing the secondary victimisation of rape survivors. We will do this through our advocacy campaign, which will include community workshops, community actions and lobbying decision makers.

RHF also provides legal aid, researches and documents all cases of Rape & Violence.

RHF will re-open the Rape Help Crisis Center to offer help, support and shelter to victims of rape from hostile and violent environments  

Promotion of human rights and good governance forms is central to RHF’s work. Our capacity development interventions are geared at enhancing citizen participation in local government planning and accountability of service providers and public officials at local government level. We also play a pivotal role in strengthening the voice of ethnic minorities in Uganda.

RHF provides high quality organizational development support to various forms of Community Based Organization (CBOs at different Eastern in Uganda. This programme stems from RHF’s long term capacity building experience of CBOs in Uganda.

Under this programme we carry out training, follow up support visits and mentoring and coaching staff, board and members of various CBOs at community, district and national levels. Key contents of our organizational development support to CBOs include:

Organizational assessments; Strategic planning; Monitoring and evaluation; Formulation of internal policies, procedures and constitution; Leadership and governance; Financial management; People management; Resource mobilization; Gender mainstreaming; Documentation and communication; Advocacy and networking.