This Global Grant brings accessible, evidence-based mental health care to underserved communities in Ngora District, Uganda. Building on a successful Global Grant in Agago District (2020-2023), the project trains local health workers and peer counselors to integrate mental health into primary care using WHO-endorsed approaches like Interpersonal Counseling (IPC) and Problem Management Plus (PM+).
Special focus is placed on women and girls, who often face compounded mental health challenges due to factors like poverty, caregiving burdens, and exposure to gender-based violence (GBV). By offering counseling, outreach, and stigma-reduction campaigns, the project will expand support systems for women while strengthening mental health care across entire communities.
Timeline & Budget:
The project will run for one year, from October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026, with a total budget of $80,000.
Identified Need:
In Ngora, depression, anxiety, and trauma are widespread-mirroring Uganda's national trend, where 35% of people are estimated to suffer from mental disorders. With just one psychiatrist per million people, most rural communities depend on traditional healing. GBV is a silent epidemic. Community leaders cite high rates of violence against women, which leads to prolonged emotional suffering with ripple effects across families and entire communities.
Planned Activities:
Train 15+ peer counselors and health workers in IPC and PM+
Deliver 3,000+ counseling sessions across 10 health facilities
Launch community-wide stigma-reduction and help-seeking campaigns
Embed services through MOUs with the District Health Office
Measure outcomes using PHQ-9, WHO-DAS 2.0, and HRQoL-14
Why Rotary? Why Now?
Rotary's first investment in Finemind supported over 3,500 people in Agago District through structured, evidence-based care. This next grant builds on that momentum-bringing care to Ngora, a district with pressing need and strong local partners.
Ngora, located in Eastern Uganda, is home to roughly 200,000 people, most of whom rely on subsistence farming. The district faces high poverty, widespread GBV, and limited mental health access-yet boasts active leadership and robust community structures. This is the moment for scalable, community-rooted action.
Project Objectives:
Expand Access to Care: Train and support peer counselors and health workers to deliver mental health care at 10 local health facilities.
Reduce Stigma: Launch education campaigns to normalize help-seeking.
Support GBV Survivors: Provide trauma-informed counseling to women and girls affected by violence.
Integrate into Primary Care: Embed services within public health systems through close collaboration with the District Health Office.
Measure What Matters: Track and evaluate client outcomes using standardized tools to guide implementation and ensure effectiveness.
Sustainability Plan:
Build Local Capacity: Equip local providers with the skills to deliver care independently using WHO-endorsed protocols.
Embed in Public Systems: Align with the District Health Office and Ministry of Health to institutionalize mental health services.
Foster Government Ownership: Secure MOUs and integrate into national frameworks for continuity and scale.
Strengthen Communities: Empower clients to become advocates-shifting from beneficiaries to agents of change.
Normalize Mental Health Support: Sustain help-seeking behavior beyond the grant through stigma reduction.
Continuously Improve: Use real-time data and feedback to adapt and refine service delivery over time.
Your project is "Fully Pledged". This means the amount of the pledges is equal to the total budget of the project. Now the project needs to be finalized and go through the approval process with The Rotary Foundation. This process gets started on the administration page.
Project listed for the 2025-26 Rotary Year.
The TRF Grant application number is #2577896.
Proposed Financing
Existing Contributions Towards This Project
Date
Cash
DDF
Total
Denver Cherry Creek (5450)
28-Jul-25
$7,500
$11,250
$18,750
Ngora (9213)
28-Jul-25
$2,000
$2,000
$4,000
Fort Collins-Breakfast (5440)
29-Jul-25
$2,000
$4,000
$6,000
Boulder (5450)
18-Aug-25
$2,000
$3,000
$5,000
Smoky Hill (Aurora) (5450)
18-Aug-25
$1,000
$1,500
$2,500
Denver Southeast (5450)
18-Aug-25
$2,000
$1,000
$3,000
Parker (5450)
25-Aug-25
$2,000
$3,000
$5,000
Denver Mile High (5450)
25-Aug-25
$1,000
$1,500
$2,500
Evergreen (5450)
16-Sep-25
$2,000
$3,000
$5,000
Cheyenne After Hours (5440)
16-Sep-25
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
Pueblo (5470)
19-Sep-25
$1,000
$1,250
$2,250
Highlands Ranch (5450)
27-Oct-25
$2,500
$0
$2,500
Centennial (5450)
28-Oct-25
$2,000
$3,000
$5,000
Summit County (Frisco) (5450)
7-Nov-25
$1,000
$0
$1,000
Littleton (5450)
13-Nov-25
$500
$500
$1,000
Niwot (5450)
8-Dec-25
$1,500
$2,250
$3,750
Amount Requested from The Rotary Foundation
-
$31,400
$31,400
Total
$101,650
Note: as of July 1, 2015 there is a 5% additional support fee for cash contributions. This fee does not appear in the financials above because it does not apply if the funds are sent directly to the project account (without going through TRF, and therefore without Paul Harris credit). Clubs sending their cash contribution to TRF must be aware they will have to send an additional 5%.
Project Supporting Documents
There are no documents yet for this project. Go to the administration page to upload documents.
Project Photos
There are no photos yet for this project.
Go to the administration page to upload photos.
History Log Entries
28-Jul-25
System Entry
System Entry: Creation of project page.
29-Jul-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,000 with $4,000 DDF by Bob Waltermire of the Rotary Club of Fort Collins-Breakfast, District 5440.
18-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $41,550 by Adrielle Knight of the Rotary Club of Denver Cherry Creek, District 5450.
18-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Project is now "Fully Pledged".
18-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,000 with $3,000 DDF by Alessandro Sachs of the Rotary Club of Boulder, District 5450.
18-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $1,000 with $1,500 DDF by Beverly Edwards of the Rotary Club of Smoky Hill (Aurora), District 5450.
18-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,000 with $3,000 DDF by David Willman of the Rotary Club of Centennial, District 5450.
18-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,000 with $3,000 DDF by Tom Laetz of the Rotary Club of Denver Southeast, District 5450.
25-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $1,000 with $1,500 DDF by Adrielle Knight of the Rotary Club of Denver Cherry Creek, District 5450.
25-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,000 with $2,000 DDF by Michelle Schultz of the Rotary Club of Parker, District 5450.
25-Aug-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $1,000 with $1,500 DDF by Audrey Leavitt of the Rotary Club of Denver Mile High, District 5450.
16-Sep-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Project reverted to "Published".
16-Sep-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,000 with $3,000 DDF by Kelly Garrod of the Rotary Club of Evergreen, District 5450.
16-Sep-25
System Entry
System Entry: Pledge of $1,000 with $2,000 DDF by Jackie Parker of the Rotary Club of Cheyenne After Hours, District 5440.
19-Sep-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $1,000 with $1,250 DDF by Diane Messamore of the Rotary Club of Pueblo, District 5470.
27-Oct-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $2,500 by Connie Golas of the Rotary Club of Highlands Ranch, District 5450.
28-Oct-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $3,000 by David Willman of the Rotary Club of Centennial, District 5450.
7-Nov-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $1,000 by Joan Tilden of the Rotary Club of Summit County (Frisco), District 5450.
13-Nov-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $500 with $500 DDF by Pete Rose of the Rotary Club of Littleton, District 5450.
8-Dec-25
by Adrielle Knight
System Entry: Pledge of $1,500 with $2,250 DDF by Matt Dolan of the Rotary Club of Niwot, District 5450.
