Blind man with his new goats! Yum!
Today was a wonderful day for several blind persons in Gulu! GOATS! Due to the efforts of the board of GDPU, The Ministry of Labor, Gender and Development of Uganda gave a small grant to develop livelihood projects for the blind. The member agency of GDPU, Gulu Handcraft Society of the Blind were the fortunate recipients.
Santos Okot and Patrick Okello look at the new goats.
In the morning a truck drove into the courtyard of GDPU full of whining goats. Three minutes later the drivers were tying the 20 unruly animals to the fence. “OK, I thought just another weird, unexplainable occurrence in Africa…” No, it was a carefully planned donation to generate income for the blind. In the next few hours I learned a lot of about goats. I agreed that it was funny that it costs 50,000 Uganda shillings for female goat, but males are free! A female goat can produce several kids a year who can then be sold for income and boy goats only purpose is to impregnate them! Ugandans love their goat meat so there is always a market for it.
Taking new goats home on a "boda" motor cycle taxi.
Even I enjoyed some goat meat on a stick purchased through a bus window on my way up to Gulu from Kampala. I’m please to know I was supporting the local economy. It was delicious.
Blind women wait for goats.
Goats wait for their new home.
Posted By Christine Marie Carlson
Posted Jul 23rd, 2010