My name is Rosetta Lokol and I am 26 years old. I was the first in my family to get university education. I managed to finish primary school but with a lot of struggles with school fees. I had a small alcohol brewing business in Kabong district that I and the entire family used to do to get some money. My mother was a struggling single mother trying to make sure that my sister and I finish school. Our father died when I was still very young and I did not get a chance to meet him. By my senior six, our finances were still not enough so in addition to the brewing business, we also sold some mandazi to supplement our income.
At the time of senior six registration for national examinations, I was still struggling and almost at the verge of dropping out. I had not cleared all the money and so they sent me home to get the rest of it. I had an aunt that would help offset some of the school fees and so I reached out to her and asked for her help. I quickly came home a journey that takes 3 hours, to and fro, so that I am in time for registration. Unfortunately, I did not find my mother at home because she was in hospital attending to my aunt who had been involved in an accident. Someone had to go from the village to the hospital to inform my mother about my school fees issue. I was sent UGX 50,000 which was still not sufficient as the actual amount needed was UGX 90,000. To top up this amount so that I can go back to school and register in time, I sold some goats at home and got the rest of the money. But even after getting the money for registration, I didn’t have the money to transport me back to school.
