Work visit to Hoima in north west Uganda - inducting a new Director and recruiting new members for the Network

Following the successful first Annual General Assembly of the MARPs Network we have visited all the newly chosen members of the Network's Board of Directors. Veronica Asaba is the Director chosen to represent the experience of people living with HIV / AIDS. Veronica is the executive director of Meeting Point Hoima, a voluntary organisation that provides comprehensive counselling, testing and treatment for people with the HIV infection. It was a pleasure for Mboizi Richard, Natukunda Shalince and I to visit her and her colleagues on behalf of the Network.

Before meeting up with Veronica we held a briefing meeting for organisations interested in becoming members of the Network. 13 signed expression of interest forms. Membership is open to community based organisations who target most at-risk populations (in terms of HIV infection) in their work.
Ian introducing the work of the Network and explaining benefits of membership.
Natukunda Shalince - is Ian's shadow! Natukunda is the organisation development trainee at the Network's Secretariat and works closely with Ian to 'learn on the job'. She'll also be enrolling soon on an appropriate part-time learning programme.
Ian and Natukunda with Veronica Asaba at Meeting Point in Hoima
Veronica wanted to explain to her team what being a Director of the MARPs Network would entail - she stressed that she would be absent on Network business from time to time. She was also careful to point out that she was a Director to represent the experience of people living with HIV and not to directly represent the interests of Meeting Point Hoima. Everyone was very happy for Veronica to sign on the dotted line and commit to being a Director of the MARPs Network!
Veronica signing the declaration, committing herself to the code of conduct required of Directors of the Network.
On the way back from Hoima to Kampala we could not resist stopping at several road-side stall selling cheap, fresh, high quality fruit and vegetables.
In a forest half-way between Hoima and Kampala a special passion fruit is to be found. Much smaller than the ordinary passion fruit, with a rock hard skin, they have the most amazing flavour - completely moorish! We bought every single one that this stall had to offer - here's Mboizi Richard supervising the packing of the fruit.
These tiny bananas are delicious - very sweet!