Juma is from a rural village in eastern Uganda. Always an excellent student, he was awarded a scholarship from The Mastercard Foundation to study at a boarding school in Kampala. At the school, Juma was elected Speaker for his class and was a key member of the Media Club. He was also recognized by the National Red Cross Council for his volunteer service in Eastern Uganda when a mudslide left thousands of people without basic services.
After graduating, Juma began searching for university options and found EARTH through The Mastercard Foundation website. With his EARTH education, Juma wants to bring new ideas and technology to rural farmers like his own family. “The first step is educating people about the benefits of moving away from subsistence farming and getting them to see how we can work together, introduce new farming methods, and become much more productive. Where I am from, if someone studies abroad it really means a lot because they believe you have experience, exposure, and education, and will bring new ideas. I believe this will give me a big advantage.”
