Action for Child Social and Economic Transformation (ACSET) is an indigenous National NGO registered in Uganda under the Uganda National NGO Act of 2016 (Reg. no: INDR14793745NB, File number: MIA/NB/2020/01//3745, Permit number: INDP0003745) and incorporated as a company under Uganda Registration Service Bureau (URSB) number 221856. Using a Right-Based-Approach, ACSET implements four inter-related and connected thematic areas, each of them with specific objectives to alleviate poverty; Agriculture and Economic Development, Education and Vocational Skill Development, Renewable Energy and Clean Drinking Water, and Health and Social protection. .
ACSET – Uganda strives to have an economically-empowered and enlightened community that works together to alleviate poverty and promote sustainable, healthy lifestyles for vulnerable children, youth and women through the implementation of demand driven and financially sustainable programs that both develop capacity and generate income.
A society free from poverty and injustice in which vulnerable children and youth live in harmony with everybody and every person enjoys their right to a life of dignity.
ACSET shall be bound by the following beliefs
ACSET Uganda is run by a management team headed by an Executive Director and supervised by five board members. Currently ACSET has ten permanent staff members and four volunteers and is currently running projects in six different districts of Uganda with several national and international partners.
Mr. Bruno is a consultant in program development, especially in rural development. He holds a Master of Science in Rural Development and Natural Resource Management (NRM). Currently, he is the Executive Director of ACSET Uganda (Indigenous NGO in Uganda). Bruno has worked in different sectors (Agriculture, Community development and Youth Development) with the Local Government of Uganda, International NGOs and Local NGOs in Uganda. At ACSET, Bruno is a Local backstopping expert in a GIZ-tendered project – promoting local economic development and climate-smart agriculture in Northern Uganda. The Climate Smart Agriculture component of the project uses the public-private partnership (PPP) model to promote agri-based value chain development. It is a point where Bruno identified a gap in climate change actions at local levels. Bruno now strives at creating a framework where local people and culture can play role in mitigating climate change in Uganda.
Jaspher Ewany studied Agriculture for Sustainable Development at the Natural Resources Institute (NRI), the University of Greenwich in the United Kingdom and currently pursuing a PhD in Biology at the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland. At ACSET Uganda, Jaspher Ewany is responsible for leading the development, winning and management of major programmes, maintaining good working relationships with donors, government officials and partners, and leading strategic programme planning, resources mobilisation and funding to ensure that ACSET Uganda responds effectively to the problems and needs of the people of Uganda. Currently leading projects including a Swiss Academy For Development (SA4D) funded “Transitioning Youth to Sustainable Livelihoods (TYSL) project (2022 – 2025), Promotion of Renewable Energy Use (ProREU) project funded by GIZ (2020 – 2022) and co-leads a GIZ – tendered project on Promotion of Rural Development in Uganda (2018 – 2023). Jaspher Ewany is also an Indigenous Hip-Hop Practitioner, Activist, and Builder. He is one of the pioneers of the Indigenous Hip-Hop Practitioner agenda in Uganda, contributing to the emergence, growth and development of Hip-Hop Communities. He has pioneered the application of the transformative power of Hip-Hop for over 10 years in many fields such as Climate Change, Agriculture, Health, Youth Engagement and Leadership, Economic empowerment and community development. Jaspher has been invited on a Hip-Hop ticket on many international platforms including, the World Youth Forum 2019/20 in Sharm El Sheikh Egypt, COP26 as a speaker for ‘The Missing Link: International Perspectives on Culture and Climate’ plenary event in Glasgow, and represented the indigenous community voices at the 2022 COP27 roundtable discussions on “Financing Resilience ‘Radical collaboration to address the urgent need to mobilize private capital for adaptation and resilience” in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.
Ms. Bella Vicky Ato studied Bachelor of Arts in Education at Makerere university and continued to pursue a Post Graduate Diploma in Monitoring and Evaluation at Uganda Management Institute. She is currently an M&E Officer for the Swiss Academy For Development (SA4D) funded “Transitioning Youth to Sustainable Livelihoods (TYSL) project” at ACSET Uganda, where she is engaged with supporting disadvantaged youth and women in acquiring technical competencies and certification in a specific trade or in agriculture and equipping young people with the capacities, skills and networks needed to find decent employment or start up their own business. Her efforts are directed at informing managers and decision-makers, enabling them to take measures that improve program effectiveness and efficiency.
Mr Ocen Agard okabo studied Bachelor of Arts degree in public administration and management at Gulu University. At ACSET Uganda, Agard is the “Skills and Learning Coordinator” for the Swiss Academy For Development (SA4D) funded “Transitioning Youth to sustainable Livelihoods (TYSL) project” at ACSET Uganda, where he is responsible for supporting the recruitment of disadvantaged youth, overall training, apprenticeships with Private sector Businesses/Workshops and supporting the TYSL graduates in achieving personal and professional growth, by providing guidance and mentorship, Life Skills training, and job opportunities. Additionally, he is responsible for onboarding the Private Sector Businesses/Workshops, attaching trainees for apprenticeships, managing trainees’ On-the-job training, and supporting trainees with their successful integration into the Labour market.
Ms. Nicole Emch holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the University of Geneva and a Master of Arts in International Law degree from the University of St. Gallen. She is currently pursuing a Master of Advanced Studies in Development and Cooperation at ETH Zürich. As part of the study programme, she is working as Junior Professional Officer at ACSET Uganda in the “Transitioning Youth to Sustainable Livelihoods (TYSL)” project. In line with the sport-for-development approach of the Swiss Academy for Development (SA4D), her focus is on integrating sports- and play-based methods to equip young people with employability and (green) entrepreneurship skills. This will complement the technical competencies and certification they gain in a specific trade or agriculture and enable them to find decent employment or start up their own business.
Mr. Ogwang Nathan Ariko studied Bachelor’s in Environmental Science Technology and Management at Kyambogo University and has 4 years of working experience in the field of renewable energy. He is currently the Renewable Energy and Environment expert in ACSET Uganda’s BMZ-Germany funded “Systems Strengthening to Enhance Solar Use and Services (SESEUS)” project. Nathan is engaged with supporting the training of rural women and youth on solar technology, who will graduate as Solar Extension Agents to provide solar services and become multipliers of knowledge about the use of solar energy in their communities. He is also tasked with supporting the capacity building of District Local Government (DLG) officials on renewable energy and the integration of renewable energy and Solar Technology into DLG development plans and budgets as well as translating them into policies.
Mr. Fredrick Omara holds a Master of Science in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security from the Royal Agricultural University, England (UK), and obtained a Bachelor of Agricultural and Rural Innovation from Makerere University. At ACSET Uganda, Fredrick is the Agronomist and Market Development Officer in the Transitioning of Youth to Sustainable Livelihoods (TSYL) project. Fredrick is engaged in improving and building the employability capacity of 2,000 disadvantaged young adults (aged 15 to 29) in Amolatar and Oyam districts through engagement in Local Seed Businesses, market-based micro-enterprises, and fostering sustainable local agri-food systems. Specifically, Fredrick supports disadvantaged young adults in acquiring technical competencies and certification in soybean seed production and equips young people with the capacities, skills, and networks needed to find decent employment and set up their businesses. Additionally, Fredrick is tasked with developing green skills and fostering ecological methods and practices, raising awareness on social issues related to gender equality and gender-based violence, with the involvement of a wide range of local actors.
Mr. Omara Geoffry studied Bachelor of Agri-entrepreneurship and communication management at Gulu University. At ACSET Uganda, GEOFFRY is the project officer – livelihoods for the “Women Livelihood Improvement Project II” (WE- LIVE II). He is responsible for training the households of Amolatar district on and promoting the Kitchen Garden approach as a climate-smart means of increasing food production, providing training on nutritious dense vegetables and the associated Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) to increase vegetable production, demonstrating the performance of improved vegetable seed varieties, and sustainable farming practices. Additionally, Geoffry is tasked with establishing functional village savings and loan associations (VSLA) groups among the households, enabling them to translate the economic benefits from the Kitchem gardens to savings for the future. He provides the target households with training on VSLA methodology, financial literacy, and life skills and engages women, teenage mothers, and young people in income-generating activities.