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Arua, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Mungu Feni Foundation has launched the Weaving Hope Project, a youth and women empowerment initiative aimed at equipping vulnerable communities in West Nile with practical vocational skills and pathways to sustainable livelihoods.
The project was launched in Arua District, drawing district leaders, community representatives and development partners. It focuses on vocational skills training, advocacy, inclusion, networking and enterprise development as tools for addressing unemployment and social exclusion in the region.
Implementation will take place in Anzu Parish, Arua District, targeting more than 360 direct beneficiaries, 70% of whom are women and 30% men, aged between 16 and 48 years. Priority groups include widows, school dropouts, unemployed youth, orphans, vulnerable children, persons with disabilities and other marginalised groups in West Nile.
According to Benard Feni, the foundation’s founder, the project was designed following extensive community consultations in Anju and Nyio parishes under the UNNGOF Change the Game Programme match funding framework. He said the initiative seeks to address both immediate income needs and longer-term barriers to economic participation.
“We are committed to lifting our community through skills that lead to livelihoods, dignity, and self-sufficiency,” Feni said at the launch.
The project will be implemented over a 12-month phased period, beginning with inception and mobilisation, followed by capacity building, advocacy and civic engagement, and concluding with sustainability and exit strategies.
The Weaving Hope Project aligns with national policy priorities that emphasise technical and vocational education and training (TVET) as a driver of employment and inclusive economic growth. Government and education officials have consistently underscored the role of TVET in producing market-relevant, competency-based skills to address youth unemployment.
Recent reforms under the TVET Act 2025 have strengthened quality assurance, trainer standards and industry linkages, while the government is advancing a national TVET Qualifications Framework to formalise career pathways and recognise both formal and informal skills.
At the launch, Alfred Okuonzi, Arua District LC V Chairman, welcomed the initiative and pledged support from both the political and technical leadership of the district.
Other officials present included community development officers, sub-county leaders, representatives from the Office of the RDC and CAO, faith leaders and local community members.
Feni urged residents to actively participate in the programme, noting that the Weaving Hope Project is part of a broader pipeline of initiatives the foundation plans to scale across the West Nile region.
Mungu Feni Foundation has gained regional recognition for its community development work. In 2025, it received multiple honours at the West Nile Quality Brand Awards, including the Quality Excellence Award – Platinum, Best Community Development NGO and Best Local NGO. It was also named the Best Community Transformation Organisation in East Africa at the East Africa Brand Quality Awards.
Founded in 2021 and based in Arua City, the faith-based indigenous non-profit implements programmes in education support, vocational skills training, community health, road safety and youth talent development, with a stated mission of uplifting vulnerable communities through sustainable, values-driven empowerment.
