The CSC is delighted to present the next case study in our ongoing series about the impact of Commonwealth Alumni.
This case study features Constance Nyamikola, a promoter of quality education for Uganda’s vulnerable and rural population, who has a commitment to reduce learning poverty. Constance sought the opportunity to study in the UK to help her become an effective education leader and reformer. With her Master’s in Education Leadership, Policy and Development from the University of Bristol, Constance has enhanced her understanding of child-centred learning, honed her leadership skills, and founded the Tororo Youth Initiative for Professional Development (TYIPD) which offers teacher training and equips youth and vulnerable women with business skills.
Upon completing her Commonwealth Scholarship, Constance worked as a Senior Field Officer for Redearth Education, an organisation delivering primary school teacher training. She led a programme which worked with teachers and school leaders to equip them with the skills and confidence they need to deliver a high-quality education and foster lifelong learning attitudes in children. Utilising the ‘training of trainers’ model, Constance supported 35 lead teachers and headteachers, helping them develop their professional and leadership skills to then cascade their knowledge to other teachers in their schools.
From Redearth Education Constance moved to work as a Head of Training and Support at Teach for Uganda, a non-profit organisation that nurtures a new generation of change leaders who would be committed to advancing equitable access to quality education in Uganda. As Head of Training and Support, Constance oversaw programme strategy, design and execution, including training newly recruited fellows in hands-on leadership and pedagogical skills to become effective teachers and lifelong leaders who are deeply rooted in the communities they serve.
After Constance witnessed the devastating impact that the Covid-19 pandemic had on the education and graduation rates of students, she set up Tororo Youth Initiative for Professional Development (TYIPD) in 2021. Constance reflects that the Commonwealth Scholarship enabled her to acquire knowledge, skills and confidence to establish a national NGO:
‘I consider this to be very significant because, I decided to take a risk of founding a national NGO – something I would hardly do before my Scholarship. In Uganda currently the needs of the youth and vulnerable people are not taken into account and their voices are never heard. So, I felt a section of Uganda’s growing population was being neglected, and of course they are the future leaders of the country.’
TYIPD developed a three-pronged programme dedicated to the empowerment and skilling of young people, professional development of teachers, and business entrepreneurship training for disadvantaged women and girls. To date, 147 young people in different parts of Tororo have graduated from the TYIPD skills training programme and are all running small businesses in their communities; 35 teachers from 35 schools in Tororo district have received training in good practices of teaching and learning to curb the high rate of school dropouts; and 85 young mothers have been trained and certified in business entrepreneurship and founding a start-up.
Constance is also an active participant of the Commonwealth Alumni community and CSC mentoring programme, through which she has been passing her knowledge and experience to the next generation of Commonwealth Scholars by mentoring them during their studies in the UK.
Constance’s work contributes to two of the CSC’s development themes: promoting innovation and entrepreneurship, and access, inclusion and opportunity. Furthermore, Constance is also working to address two of the UN Sustainable Development Goals: SDG 1 – End poverty in all its forms everywhere, and SDG 4 – Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
