Welcome to NVIWODA

Ntulume Village Women Development Association (NVIWODA) is a non-governmental organization that equips women with entrepreneurship skills and capacity building for sustainable livelihoods. We promote family incomes at the grassroots through education. It started in 1987 and was registered as a Non- Governmental Organization (NGO) in June 1991- Reg.S.5914/404) Its membership is composed of individual members and Community Based Women groups (CBO’S) found in 10 Districts of Uganda. In 1987, the women living in Ntulume Village in Namirembe/Bakuli Parish, Lubaga Division- Kampala District, established –Ntulume Village Women Development Association (NVIWODA) to advance women empowerment at both semi-urban and rural areas of Uganda, who did not have an opportunity to access development knowledge and information. NVIWODA is one of Ugandan women’s organizations that originally founded as a CBO in the 80’s, and in its success it has covered a 32 Year Journey.

Pre-history

In 1987, a group of women living in Ntulume village met every Friday evening from 6:00p.m. to 10:00 p.m. in the night, with a torch, if it rained we would put on gumboots, these women would move door to door mobilizing fellow women to participate in meetings, discussing women development concerns. Sometimes we would find resistance from some husbands, but we never gave up until they allowed their wives to attend. On every Saturday of the week, women gathered under a terminalia tree, for a meeting at the residence of the late Mzee Kezironi Mukasa Ntulume, who allowed women a meeting space or venue in his compound. Through self-help efforts and team work, we began by mobilizing meager resources i.e. each participating woman contributed Uganda shillings 50atevery turn up for a meeting and subscribed 100/= monthly fee, to raise annual subscription fees for the organization. The Patron Late Kezironi Mukasa Ntulume, gave women a piece of land to construct an office, where NVIWODA now operates. In Uganda women national mobilization and development, begun through Music Dance and Drama competitions right from the grassroots at village, parish, district and finally National competition awards, women of Ntulume Village did not lag behind. At a parish competition, NVIWODA was overall winner and received gifts that included jerry cans, plastic mugs, hurricane lamps, and cooking oil. Women agreed to that these items be sold off to raise UGX.6, 000/= equiv. (1$), this marked the next move for the organization to mobilize startup funds to start sanitary towel project in 1988. NVIWODA 32 years of operation has involved running a number of projects that have shifted grassroots women and empowerment to another level of livelihoods.

Organs that Govern the organization

  • The Secretariat: The Secretariat that runs day –to- day affairs of Ntulume Village Women Development Association (NVIWODA) is headed by the Programme Coordinator.
  • The Executive Committee of NVIWODA The Committee is composed of Nine (9) women including the youth representative with a representation of the CBO’s. The function of the Executive Committee is to provide the strategic direction for NVIWODA, oversee the smooth running of the organization and effective implementation of NVIWODA programmes and activities.
  • The Annual General Meeting Is a supreme decision-making organ of the organization? The Annual General Assembly meets annually and consists of all individual members and Representatives of the Community Based Women Groups. The AGM is The Executive Committee elected by the General Assembly of members,

Our Details

NVIWODA mission statement has attracted partners ranging from individuals, Government to International Development Partners. At global level NVIWODA partners with the Global Fund for Women and African Women Development Fund (AWDF); United Methodist Women-Self Denial, Mama Cash; Serviette Sisters Charitable Trust; Netherlands Embassy and Canadian Embassy. At national level NVIWODA collaborates with Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development, National Association of Women NGO’s in Uganda (NAWOU),the Development Network of Indigenous Voluntary Associations (DENIVA), Women of Uganda Network (WOUGNET) and various community based women organizations at lower level and locally fundraising, through self-help efforts, from members and well-wishers. Our work has over the years been supported by Global Fund for women, United Methodist Women – Self Denial, African Women Development Fund (GWF), East African Community (EAC) - Regional ICT incubation Project, Canadian embassy and Mama Cash, Besides the many beneficiaries, whose lives have positively changed, NVIWODA has 100 paid up active and supportive members, and thirty community Based women groups, this has guided it to achieve organizational growth and expand its reach out programs in Uganda.

By the 1990’s, over one thousand three hundred and eight women, some men and youth had been reached. This was also the period when Minister for women in Development (mention the name of the minister) was touring women’s projects in Uganda. Ntulume Village Women’s Group was among the projects visited and they were found making sanitary towels. This prompted the Minister to invite them to her office and NVIWODA was linked to the Canadian Embassy for funding. They received a grant to start producing Sanitary towels on a large scale. During this period, NVIWODA started to explore and look for external funding. In 1998, NVIWODA applied for funding from the Global Fund for Women and were funded to start training women in entrepreneurship. This gave birth to the Microcredit- Entrepreneurs Development and Career Support Scheme (EDACASS) program, to support the trained women, who had started business, at the same time funds were used to train more women, although it was not sufficient to run both programs.

In 2006 some of the active members pooled resources and formed NVIWODA Development Enterprise Ltd, (NDE) through a shareholding self-help project and in total 1,941 shares was opened. Currently NDE has 46 shareholders and this project has contributed towards the sustenance of the organization by bringing members together. More than 300 women have benefited from the NVIWODA Development Enterprise. This entrepreneurship training program equips women with entrepreneurial skills and builds women’s capacity to develop sustainable enterprises, like making of tie and dye, wine production, liquid soap making, candle making, bakery, mushroom cultivation, food catering services among other enterprises.

Mandate and core functions

Core Mandate

A family which is empowered with increased incomes at household level.

The Vision

Promote family income at the grassroots level through education.

Mission Statement

Families equipped, through entrepreneurship skills and capacity building for sustainable livelihoods.

Participatory as a core value

NVIWODA believes that every woman irrespective of their education level has a right to participate in the development process from the grassroots household level, to the policy making process. The organization conforms to the cultural norms, values and practices in the communities, which particularly limit a woman’s capacity to participate effectively in the development process, hence it practices a coordinated effort to involve women, men and youth at all levels of intervention.

Principles and Values

Transparency Accountability Respect for each other Excellency High spirit of voluntarism Respect