Snowball Effect had interview with our outstanding ambassador Matovu from Uganda to talk about his experience in replicating WLR in Uganda. Below you can read some of what they talked about in the interview!
Matovu is the founder of We Love Reading in Uganda, he decided to replicate the program in his country. Learn about the highs and lows of replicating, his advice to others, and why it’s important to remember that one size does not fit all.
How did you get involved with We Love Reading?
I was not so much into social entrepreneurship, but somehow, I stumbled into it. When I stumbled into it, there were many things I could do but improving my community in reading and enhancing knowledge was something that was very important to me. For me, to help the community to improve, it had to be in education.
Then in 2012, I went to Malaysia. I was covering an event as a journalist and I had a list of people to interview. I heard about a scientist who was improving children’s reading and I decided to interview Dr. Rana, the founder of We Love Reading. Within two minutes, everything clicked: this was the answer!
What is the best part about replicating We Love Reading?
I love these aspects:
- Adding value to my community
I feel fulfillment and happiness that I have added something to my community.
- The simplicity of the project
I find it easy to replicate, people easily understand the project and they come when they are invited. Even now they are asking me, “When are we resuming?”.
- The acceptance of the project within the local society
The acceptance of the project in the community and in the district leadership and country leadership is very positive.
What is the most challenging part of replicating We Love Reading?