Rtn Kate Barasa Asekenye
New Club Adviser, RC Bukeerere
ROTARY CLUB OF BUKEERERE : A MAGICAL YEAR FOR THE BUKEERERE COMMUNITY
The idea of establishing a Rotary Club in Bukeerere was born by Past District Governor Stephen Mwanje of Rotary Club of Mukono in 2021. Appreciating the progress made by RC Sonde, PDG Stephen as we commonly refer to him said “Bukeerere is a very deserving community, make it your next project for a Rotary club and I will support you”. His desire was to see another big and vibrant club in Bukeerere. Today we celebrate a landmark achievement of a vibrant and strong Rotary Club of Bukeerere.
In 2022, the journey of exploring the possibility of starting this great club was started. It was preceded by an identified need to establish a Rotary Community Corp (RCC) in the same area. During the discussions with the RCCs it became apparent that a Rotary Club was needed by the community. Two of the Community Corps indicated that they wanted to join a Rotary Club instead. Rtn Juliet Sekyewa our very first contact provided information about the community and prospective members who could be approached. She invited a few more ladies to the next meeting that took place at the Bukeerere HC II vaccination shade. Unfortunately, the numbers did not grow quickly because of inadequate knowledge about Rotary in the community and the lack of an entry point for engagement.
Finally, a turning point happened with an effective community leadership connection with the Bukeerere community. Rtn Gerald Muhumuza a highly organized and respected community leader bought into the idea of the Rotary Club and made himself available to learn more about Rotary. He permitted engagement on two community platforms each with over 500 members. I was allowed to post Rotary information as well as invite interested members to join the Rotary meetings. The initial response was great and the meetings picked up.
After about 5 start up meetings, the attendance declined. There was difficulty in choosing an appropriate meeting date and time for members. Every effort to reconcile the meeting time was futile. There were also several misconceptions about Rotary being for the rich and for those who have excess time for fun. The meeting venue didn’t appear convenient for all members and so we tested out alternative venues. It was a challenge to address these and many other negative forces against the club formation without proper meetings. Rtn Muhumuza in his wisdom, opened up a window for community awareness on Rotary at the well-attended community Christmas get-together. At this very well attended meeting, more community members showed interest. They registered to attend the subsequent meetings and a separate group was established. A few had been invited to join Rotary before and were excited that there was an opportunity for a home club.
The Club Formation period kept extending because of inconsistent attendance, fear of affording membership dues and the few interested members almost lost hope. Some members wanted to move to other clubs while others completely dropped out for a while. It is time to appreciate Rtn Muhumuza and Rtn Edna (Past President RC Nabbingo) for the continuous encouragement and motivation to keep going. Without these two great leaders perhaps, this victory wouldn’t be.
The major turning point was the coming of CP Augustine Kirungi. He is a leader who has completely turned the Rotary wheel in Bukeerere! Congratulations Charter President. He has such exceptional leadership and engagement skills. Within a few months he was able to reorganize and reignite the club, increasing membership and regularizing the club meetings thus leading RC Bukeerere to Provisional status and finally charter. Today we celebrate the extension of Rotary to a deserving community through the 33 Charter Members but also the emergence of great and selfless leaders with unmatched skills to motivate inspire a community to join Rotary. Together with the club board so much has happened. Some activities including service projects have been implemented, hospitality events, a training retreat, vocational visits to members’ workplaces and much more! All the members have paid up their membership dues for the first one year and are committed to sustaining their dues payments through small monthly deposits over the next few months.
What lessons have we learned?
The duration and efforts in the formation and charter of RC Bukeerere demonstrate that for every good idea there is patience, resilience and consistency. It is also clear that we can not give up on extending Rotary despite the hurdles, it is possible.
It is very important to give clubs the time needed to organize and get ready. The need for a clear communication strategy and plan at the start of club formation is essential. This should be supported by a stakeholder analysis so that messaging on Rotary is well targeted.
Communities need a lot of awareness about the benefits of Rotary as a precursor for club development in the area. Buy in and support can accelerate the establishment of new clubs.
Existing Rotarians can be a great catalyst for club development. It helps to integrate Rotarians into new clubs a s resource persons and learning facilitators but above all to inspire and motivate community members.
Risk assessment is critical for new club development. It is important to foresee any shortcomings and suggest mitigation strategies ahead of time. In this way the cub is able to navigate foreseen challenges.
Leadership in new club development is a critical success factor. It pays to identify the key drivers of new clubs in time without who club development can be challenging. They should have the necessary skills to engage and attract new members. Some members make a decision to join depending on who else is in the club or who the leader is or wo has invited them. These are key pillars.
What awaits this great club?
Rotary’s Action Plan provides a bedrock for RC Bukeerere to turn their community into a hub of service excellence.
Expanding our Reach: The opportunity for growth, extension and service are both clearly in plenty! Bukeerere is a new settlement with rapidly growing population, businesses and overall development. It offers great opportunity for membership growth and extension. The club will develop a 3-year membership growth strategy and plan. This will be supported by service visibility and the creation of a club environment of choice for its current and prospective members.
Increasing our Impact: Bukeerere is underserved by far. This creates an opportunity to increase Rotary’s impact in the area. Through the 7 Areas of focus many community needs in Bukeerere can be addressed. RC Bukeerere has a great potential to embrace partnership with other clubs and corporate organizations to create lasting impact in schools, health facilities, the environment, community economic empowerment, water sanitation and hygiene, Peace and Conflict resolution and more.
Enhancing participant engagement: Good member engagement and experience will promote both attraction and retention. The majority of club members are residents of the same community, coming from the 9 villages in Bukeerere. There are several opportunities within and outside the club to ensure that members interact and bond. Understanding members’ diverse needs will be important in shaping their participation in club activities. Regular club health checks and member satisfaction surveys will inform the club which direction more efforts are needed.
