When fruit vendor acted minister for a day

Recently, Girls Forum International, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) that supports communities and professionals to foster stable relationships for happy and healthy families, persuaded two prominent women into swapping jobs with two low profile women for a day.

The two notable women are the Trade Minister, Amelia Kyambadde and Geraldine Ssali Busuulwa, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) deputy managing director. On the other hand, the two less profile women are Rebecca Ampiire, 26, a vendor of mangoes and Grace Adrili, 33, a security guard. Here are their experiences on what it was like swapping jobs.

Geraldine Ssali Busuulwa’s day manning security

Busuulwa, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) deputy managing director, shares her experience:
“I go for anything geared towards supporting women. Therefore, when Esther Namboka, the lady behind this whole idea of women swapping jobs came to my office, I gave her audience. She told me that I had to play a role of a young mother in a less privileged job for a day. I thought that if I was to use either my office or voice in any way to bring women’s plights to the forefront of discussion, so be it.

One day as I was attending a baby shower of one my female friends, Namboka turned up at the venue with my security guard uniform and this was when it zeroed down to me the seriousness of this project.

By that time, my boss was not in the country and I was like, ‘Oh well, he will just see me on television on the news’.
When the day finally came, I reported to “my” designated workstation at Shoprite, Lugogo. Quickly, I was taken through different training drills including how a security guard should march, salute and walk. Then, I was proceeded to my station and starting working as a guard.

Discovery on the job
From time to time, I would converse with Grace, the woman I had swapped a job. This single mother of two revealed that she earned Shs210,000 per month as her gross pay. Grace then added that her job enabled her access medical insurance, meaning that whenever her children got sick, she was able to take them to a health facility to receive treatment.

Deep down inside my heart, I wondered how anyone can survive on that amount of money, even for a week. But this was the reality on the ground and Grace represents a fraction of many other women out there.

I had actually wanted a Member of Parliament to have swapped this role with Grace because they are our legislators. They are the ones who make the laws.

But you know what? There are many women out there like Grace who have graduate children. They not only perform day and night shifts but also engage other forms of income so that they see to it that their children reach university level.

To the other mothers

Now, let me tell you mothers with spoilt children the ones who complain that, “Ohhhh…. I ordered for my daughter’s Gucci sandals but they did not arrive on time, please….” Do you know what life means? Humble yourselves and be thankful to God for every little thing God has blessed you with.

Grace, thank you for opening up to me. I salute you for the pain and endurances you go through every day to raise your children singlehandedly.”

Security guard’s experience at NSSF
Grace Adrili, a 33-year-old single mother of two, opens up about what it was like swapping places with Geraldine Ssali Busuulwa, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) deputy managing director:

One wonders how you got this opportunity to swap office with Ssali
Esther Namboka, the founder of Girls Forum International shared the idea about the task with my supervisor at KK Security. It was him who recommended me, reasoning that I was the perfect person for the job.

What was your reaction when your boss eventually shared the idea with you?
I was very happy and accepted it without any hesitation. It was an honor.

The surprises you found on the job…
The first surprise I got on the job was when I was taken to a conference hall and required to address a group of over 100 people in number. I got shivers to the extent that I almost failed to make any communication to them. At the end, they laughed, not to demean me, but as a way of lessening the tension in the room. I ended up laughing myself.

The second surprise was that inside that hall were people who knew me. They kept throwing glances my direction with confused looks on their faces. Later, they approached me and asked me all sorts of questions. Aren’t you working as a security guard anymore? What are you doing here? Are you now the company’s deputy managing director? You are now a big woman! What’s going on? They were only able to calm down after I told them about swapping jobs with NSSF’s deputy managing director for a day.

The last discovery I found on the job was that whenever it is hot, Madam Ssali has the option of turning on the air conditioner unlike me who works in open space. It is even worse when it rains as sometimes I get wet.

The biggest challenge you found on this job?
Performing some of the duties with no kind of training was really tough for me. Imagine being told you are going to address over 100 people and you hardly have any idea what you are going to communicate to them. An assistant kept telling me to get ready for next schedule and I would just look on, smile and go with the flow. I wish I had been informed a week earlier so that I prepare for the role adequately. I was informed on Monday and had to do the swap task on Tuesday.

What lessons did you pick from this experience?
It motivated me to work harder. One day, I also want to sit in such a big, air conditioned office like that of Madam Ssali. Also, I came to realise that if you are a reputable person holding a high position in society, you get a lot of respect from people. For this reason, I am going to do everything in my power to see to it that my children go through with their education. Just like Madam Ssali, they too have to become reputable people in society.

The honourable’s day hawking mangoes

Trade, industry and corporatives Minister, Amelia Kyambadde shares her experience;
“The organisers came to me with four options to pick from. They told me that I could choose from the options of working in a restaurant, salon, in the market selling tomatoes or being a vendor.

I opted to be a vendor because of the misery these traders go through on the streets. I wanted to have a feeling of what they go through every day, gather their thoughts and experiences as well as find a way of helping them further in the future.

Well, the day finally arrived and I traded places with Rebecca as a vendor selling mangoes. She stayed by my side as I worked and from time to time told me about the challenges she faces at work on a daily basis.

Those people who went ahead to social media to mock me for what I did are entitled to their opinion. Those who understood the cause, appreciated it. Besides, not everyone wishes you well in life.

But anyway, this whole experience opened up my eyes on so many things. I am glad that the organisers came up with a concept that made me go through what these women face on a daily basis. I will use my powers and capacity as a mother to see to it that I make a difference in Rebecca’s life and in those of other female vendors.”

Resolutions born of the experience
• When the Trader Minister, Amelia Kyambadde was conducting a swapped role of vending mangoes, a vendor (not Grace) approached the Minister and expressed her interest of going back to school. At the end of their discussion, Kyambadde awarded her a scholarship.
• Through this small activity, the minister further declared that an association for the street women vendors is started under Girls Forum International so that these women are able to leave the streets and acquire training in different fields including baking and tailoring. In the end, they will stop having run-ins with Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) officials.”

ABOUT Live a day in her life
According to Esther Namboka, founder of Girls Forum International – the organisers;
“The Live a day in her life concept was intended to expose career, urban, successful and inspirational mothers to the different settings of life by attaching them to a more vulnerable woman to experience their life for 12 hours. It was aimed at having mothers understand each other’s plight, challenges and most importantly, appreciate each other’s roles. The participants did not choose which roles to take up but were matched by the organising team based on the objectives of the activity.

From fruit vendor to minister for a day

How did you feel about the whole experience?
It was a great experience and honour to have been selected among the many vendors to interchange places with the minister. It’s something I never imagined could ever happen to me.
What was the best feeling about the experience?
It was sitting on the minister’s chair inside her large, air-conditioned office.

What was the biggest challenge you encountered with this particular task?
There is a lot of work in her office. From time to time, people with different issues were coming to the office to see me. Everyone wanted a solution to their different problems.
What lessons did you pick from this experience?

The biggest lesson I picked from this experience is the value of educating the girl child. It’s because of a great education that the Trade Minister has her current job. If I had also gone to school, I would be sited in an office and not on the streets vending mangoes. This has been a wakening up call for me to ensure that I do everything possible to see to it that my two children aged four and three years receive a good education. They are both girls.

About Girls Forum International
Gals Forum International is a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) that supports communities and professionals to foster stable relationships for happy and healthy families.”