Refugees give back to Uganda

Jeremiah Mbaha (3rd Left) hands over donations to officials of Uganda Cancer Institute, children’s ward. PHOTO BY PAULINE BANGIRANA

What you need to know:

Gratitude. A group of refugees teamed up to help others and give back to Uganda for the hospitality, as they told Pauline Bangirana.

During Pope Francis’s visit to Uganda, he said, “here in East Africa, Uganda has shown outstanding concern for welcoming refugees, enabling them to rebuild their lives in security and to sense the dignity which comes from earning one’s livelihood through honest labour.”


Following the hospitality the refugees received, a group of Forum of Artistes Association and Refugees in Uganda (FAARU), organised a concert dubbed, Bless Uganda. Jeremiah Mbaha, the founder explained that the concert was the refugees’ way of giving back to Uganda for the hospitality they have received from Ugandans. The association was formed in 2014 as an initiative aimed at uniting refugees in the country.

Coming to Uganda
Mbaha, came to Uganda in 2004 after escaping a war in Congo. “I moved to Mengo with my wife and six children. I came with nothing: no property or even money to plan for our meal the next day. All I had was skills,” he says with a heavy French accent. He could hardly speak English but did all manner of odd jobs and plaited hair. Those whose hair he plaited would take word around and he won a big clientele.


“I was doing hairdressing and in my free time, I would compose songs. I always told my clients about my songs although they did not believe me since I had nothing to show for it,” Mbaha recalls. He was able to expand on his network.


Then, he started scouting for bigger space to do hair of his clients. He landed a job at Hammam’s Spa at Fairway Hotel. He did not give up talking about his songs.

Ambitious singer
In 2006, Mbaha released Let’s Build Africa , a song he submitted to BBC Swahili channel. The song is about awareness of the various cities in the Great lakes region and appeals to them to unite. The song was selected among the best.
By 2010, Mbaha had at least 10 songs and he decided to make an album, God Bless Uganda in line with the kindness he had received from the country. “When I submitted it to Interaid, I was advised to look for other refugees so that we could perform at Pope Paul Memorial in Rubaga in 2010.” The bands he collected were able to perform and later, were approached by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) after they had reviewed God Bless Uganda music video. Mbaha was asked to perform in Kololo at the World Peace day representing his country. The feedback was encouraging and he kept looking for support. I tried to launch music at Fairway hotel. I met Pablo the comedian and he offered to help me with organising my concert.”


The concert flopped but Pablo advised him to invite the guests to the hotel. “We invited the diners of that day who enjoyed the show and encouraged me to keep going.” From the concert, he was motivated to do something for refugees. He organised “Dress a refugee concert”. This was attended by UNHCR officials, Interaid’s executive director who suggested that Mbaha starts a project where all refugees who were talented could work together. In June 2014, FAARU was born.


The association’s first performance was on World Refugee day at Nakivubo Blue Primary School. It comprised at least 17 bands of refugees from different nationalities. Later, they celebrated World Youth Day in the Fairway Hotel gardens in August, 2014.

Giving back
“We have fundraised for the vulnerable refugee women. We gave basic needs to 25 families in 2014. However, at first, the money we made was divided among the various bands and we agreed that it would be used to develop the bands. Our most recent activity was the God bless Uganda concert. The funds collected were used to buy blankets that they donated to children suffering from cancer at the Uganda Cancer Institute. Currently, the association consists of 25 bands and they do not only concentrate on music but other basic skills such as carpentry, tailoring, moulding to mention but a few,” Mbaha adds.

Future plan
Mbaha wants the association to continue giving. “We would like to continue appreciating Uganda for her hospitality and hopefully, we will go to Karamoja and help the people there.”
FAARU also wants to help fellow refugees because it is challenging starting over in a new country. “We want fellow refugees to feel at home without being scared.” “FAARU plans to support 15 women living with disability and also hold a three-months training in making handicrafts. We also plan on going to Karamoja,” says Stervoce Kibandja. To become a member of FAARU, one must pay Shs 100,000 and abide by the rules. They are supported by Interaid, Office of the Prime Minister and UNHCR.

Others say...

Belyse Nsengiyumva from Burundi joined the association in 2014. “I’m passionate about singing and that is what the association does. We help musicians even when someone is not doing well financially, we come to their rescue. We come up with various projects to reach out to Ugandans because they have been kind to us.”
“I have learnt to help because we usually carry out fund-raising activities where we donate some items,” Nsengiyumva explains adding, “I was a peer educator against gender based violence and a freelance journalist member of the Uganda Journalist Union.”


Stervoce Kibandja, from Congo joined in 2014. “I was moved when we met for the first time to establish how we could help develop refugees talents but also create a mutual collaboration. One free from discrimination and create peace within.” The members are passionate and perhaps this is an epitome of what the Pope spoke about.
“How we deal with them is a test of our humanity, our respect for human dignity, and above all our solidarity with our brothers and sisters in need.”