Rights without Borders Uganda (Rights WIBO Uganda) is a women-led human rights organization that was established on 12th May 2018 and registered by Uganda National NGO Board in 2020 as a company limited by guarantee. The organization was founded by two women activists (JKs) and one man (BW) who were passionate about the environment and human rights promotion and protection especially for the vulnerable and less privileged populations in Uganda. Rights WIBO Uganda was founded primarily to increase the social and economic wellbeing of women and children, Increase access to quality healthcare services and deter inequalities affecting vulnerable groups of people in Uganda. The organization focuses on the promotion and protection of rights and freedoms of marginalized humans as well as flora and fauna in Uganda. The organization works as an arbiter to the social, economic, and political injustices and inequality that are faced by women, children, and other marginalized groups in Uganda. Rights WIBO Uganda works to amplify the voices and opinions of the vulnerable while promoting consistency and resilience towards the realization of equality and rights for all.
To promote, and protect environmental and human rights and freedoms of the marginalized groups of people, through capacity building, research, advocacy, and service provision so as to achieve social rights, economic stability and sustainable management of their environment.
A community enjoying their environmental and human rights
- To increase awareness and respect of human and environmental rights in Uganda.
- To promote the social and economic empowerment of women, children and other vulnerable groups of people in Uganda
- To increase access to quality healthcare services for women and children in rural and slum communities in Uganda
- To strengthen human rights supporting institutions and structures in Uganda
Rights WIBO Uganda has 32 committed members who meet annually to review organizations work in line with the vision and mission. The members also elect members of the Executive Board every five years. The members are drawn from the five traditional regions of the country namely (Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western, and Central).
Rights WIBO Uganda has five senior members who form its Executive Board (EB) four women and one man, from various professions and drawn from the five regions of Uganda. The Executive Board meets every quarter to offer strategic direction to the organization towards its vision and objectives, through formulation and approval of organizational policies, procedures and plans. The Executive Board uses the same sitting to supervise and support the management through reviewing financial and narrative reports, asking the hard question of how, why, by who, and when to management.
Rights WIBO Uganda has five highly experienced, competent and qualified staff who technically implements the organizational work aimed at protecting and promoting rights in Uganda. RIBU management team is led by the Executive Director (ED) Ms. Jennifer Kwarisiima who boasts of over 14 years of experience working in Parliament of Uganda, government ministries, and non-government organizations both in Uganda and the region. She holds a Master’s Degree in Gender and Women Studies as well as a post graduate diploma in Project Management. The ED is supported directly by two highly experienced and competent managers (Human Rights and Capacity Building Directors) with over 12 years of experience each working in these respective areas within the CSO sector in Uganda and the region. The two hold master’s degree in human rights, project planning and management respectively.
Rights WIBO Uganda has successfully implemented two grant projects in Human rights protection and promotion for LGBTI communities and children in Uganda.
STRATEGIC APPROACH
Rights WIBO Uganda believes that the status quo can be changed through scientific research to generate evidence to support advocacy strategies for change. Rights WIBO Uganda believes in working with mobilized communities to advocate for their rights. The organization will initiate and coordinate advocacy campaigns geared towards reforms, enactment, and implementation of economic social, and cultural rights-related laws, Ordinances, and bi-laws, and well as Civil and political rights-related laws in Uganda. This is will be done at community, district, regional, national, and international spaces to ensure the promotion and protection of rights of women, children, and other vulnerable key populations in Uganda and the region.
Rights WIBO Uganda believes that knowledge is power and an informed citizenry is a half liberated one. An informed population is in a better place to hold their leaders to account as well as demand for their rights. RIBU implements awareness creation for its beneficiaries through public dialogues, conferences, community meetings, sensitization meetings, trainings, media campaigns, and information education and communication materials. (IEC). Under Institutional Development, RIBU plans to strengthen the capacity of the existing but vulnerable human rights groups /organisations to enable them provide effective and efficient social economic and human rights promotion services.
Cognizant of the fact that woman comprise the biggest percentage of the population in Uganda below poverty line and are very often in situations of extreme poverty and social discrimination, RIBU invests in providing a revolving fund to specific groups of vulnerable women and youth for economic empowerment. This effort is supported with entrepreneurship trainings for the beneficiary groups to enhance their capacity in income generating activities as well as management of their resources for growth. In addition to that, RIBU provides legal assistance to the victims of human rights abuse, especially for women and children and the wider vulnerable population such as PWDs and the elderly to mention but a few. The legal assistance is in form of legal advice, legal representation, and legal protection for the indigent persons with the aim of promoting access to justice for all.
Rights WIBO Uganda believes in the power of partnership and collaboration with other like minded organisation, donors, state and non-state actors, private organisations and the organization’s beneficiaries to generate impact in the work they do. RIBU currently has a list of 10 partner organisations in Uganda and few in the region who work in collaboration for the realization of RIBU’s vision. Through continuous networking, RIBU intends to continue growing its network both in the country and at the regional level in Africa and beyond.
Member organisations
In the period of her existence, Rights WIBO Uganda has registered a number of organisations and persons as her members. These are organisations that share the same vison and mission as Rights WIBO Uganda and collaborate with Rights WIBO Uganda to achieve her targets.