Community leaders commit to championing drowning prevention in Mayuge

Officials train youth about safety in water Mayuge, Uganda | NEWS CORRESPONDENT | Community leaders, parents, government officials, and members of the fishing community in Mayuge District have committed to strengthening efforts to prevent drowning. The commitments were made during a community dialogue held in Bwondha Sub-county as part of Reach A Hand Africa’s commemoration of World Drowning Prevention Day observed on 25th July. Participants included the Senior Community Development Officer (CDO), Juliet Kyebogola, the Mayor of Mayuge, Ngobi Jamal, local council leaders, parents, school administrators, representatives from the fishing community, children and general community members to discuss their collective role in reducing drowning in one of Uganda’s high-risk lakeside communities.

Opening the discussion, Reach A Hand Africa’s Senior Programmes Officer, Suleiman Muganza, challenged participants to recognise the role each person plays in preventing drowning. Responding to Muganza, the Senior Community Development Officer, Juliet Kyebogola, pledged to integrate drowning prevention messages into routine community mobilisation activities and household visits. Meanwhile, the Mayor of Mayuge, Ngobi Jamal, urged parents across the district to enrol their children for swimming lessons as an essential life skill for children growing up in lakeside communities.

Former District Councillor Ngobi Bakari pledged to mobilise fishermen in his community to participate in weekend survival swimming and water rescue training offered by the swimming pool constructed by the drowning prevention project in Mayuge. Participants also discussed the major factors contributing to drowning in lakeside communities, including limited swimming skills, low life jacket use, alcohol consumption while on water, risky fishing practices, and misconceptions surrounding survival swimming. The dialogue also provided an opportunity for parents and community members to reflect on the misconceptions that continue to prevent children and adults from acquiring survival swimming skills.

Participants acknowledged that many families still perceive swimming as a recreational activity rather than a lifesaving skill, despite living in communities where water is part of everyday life. Through community dialogues such as this, Reach A Hand Africa is working to address these misconceptions by encouraging c…