POSHU Newsletter March 2026

Issue 32

Welcome to the 32nd edition of the POSHU Newsletter. The aim of this newsletter is to raise greater awareness of the work POSHU is doing, to keep regular supporters informed and to outline howsupporters (new and old) can help.

Currently POSHU operates women’s  education classes in villages in Kumi, Bukedea, Palisa, and Njeru. In 2025 over 400 women and girls attended their local village POSHU Sewing Class to learn an income generating skill. Girls are unable to progress from Primary to Senior School due to poverty or not passing exams.

It’s a stressful time for them and their parents. They value the opportunity Poshu Class gives to them, free of charge, and the friendships they make. Some girls progress to open a small business together, supporting each other with guidance from their teacher.

So far in 2026, we have…

• Welcomed our new sewing students to Term1
• Taken 8 children to Cure Children’s Hospital for free treatment
• Supported another 18 children with school fees
• Sent vegetable seeds to 14 remote POSHU Groups for women subsistence farmers
• Begun teaching 15 girls to make snack food to sell to customers
• Begun another POSHU English and Math Class in a village

The past 3 months have been productive

Training:

POSHU works with women market stall holders to help them grow their businesses. This year we are training another 15 girls to sell snack foods for income. They learn how to make chapatis, pancakes and samosas which they can sell from their verandahs to customers passing by on their way home from work each day.

These girls are school leavers and are making the most of this training to earn income for themselves. At first, they will work together as a group until they gain skill and confidence to work on their own.

POSHU Vegetable Seed Distribution:

In February we distributed seeds to women subsistence farmers in 14 villages. Most will plant the seeds in their home gardens, but some grow as a group in their community garden. We gave them seeds for eggplant, nakati, okra, capsicum, cabbage, tomato, amaranth, depending on what they asked for.

Our background

In 2009, Australian woman, Susan Howe founded POSHU. The organisation is a registered fundraiser based in Victoria, Australia, and is recognised as a Community Based Organisation in Uganda. Encompassing rural, urban, and remote areas of Uganda, POSHU works with groups of women impacted by violence and poverty, affected by HIV/AIDS, and internally displaced persons (IDP).

POSHU Trip to Cure Children’s Hospital:

In February we hired a minibus to take another 8 children and their mothers to the Children’s Hospital for review and free medicine. This is lifechanging for these children and enables some to go to school. Hospital staff work with the mothers and advise them on the best care for their child, including the importance of good nutrition. For 2 of the children, it will be their first time to be diagnosed. POSHU supports the mothers with interpreters, free lunch and other needs that day. It’s an early start in the morning, so those that travel far sleep at the home of POSHU coordinator Grace

School Support Continues:

In January we paid Term 1 school fees for 18 children. POSHU supports school fees, lunch and stationery for children from poor families. One of our first students is now a Math Teacher at a Senior School!

What your donations mean for Disability Support

  • $30 buys one month of nutritional food for a child having surgery
  • $40 buys a female goat to help support a disabled child
  • $50 buys support shoes or walking frame for a child
  • $100 hires a minibus to take 6 children and mothers to Mbale Cure Hospital
  • $200 buys a specialised wheelchair for a child with spina bifida

Goats for Disabled Project:

In 2021 we started giving a female goat to mothers of children with disabilities. Now over 15 families have been able to trade their goats for cows to provide milk for the children. Families also breed from their goats to raise funds for emergencies. Photo to the right shows Patrick (12 years old) with his cow, calf and sheep, all bought from selling his goats.

POSHU Sewing Classes:

POSHU sewing teachers Rhoda and Betty were among our first sewing students and now they are the teachers! They have taught over 160 students. Many of the
girls marry when they graduate and leave the village, but they return when they have a difficult sewing project to ask for guidance from the teacher, especially when cutting out the pattern. These girls attend POSHU classes within walking distance from their home, but some travel long distance. They make new friends and classes are free. They love sewing and earning income.

For more information

Contact Susan Howe, POSHU Director.
Email: howesusan287@gmail.com
Phone: +61 448 086 991
Donation Details:
POSHU Australia Inc
BSB number 083-764
Account number 20-141-2490
Pay Pal: Donate to POSHU via
Pay Pal using the email address[Tax receipts available on request]