By Bazio Doreen.

The Vice President of Uganda, H.E. Major (Rtd) Alupo Jessica, is set to visit Adjumani District in March 2025. Her Excellency will be visiting the district on the invitation of Miss Jewel Michaels, the 2024 Miss Teen Pearl of Africa, to launch the Jewel Michaels Foundation for Education in Adjumani.

During the visit, the VP will interact with pupils at Pakele Girls and Ofua Central Primary School and patients at Ofua HC III. The VP is also expected to meet with technical and political leaders from the West Nile region.

According to Queen Jewel, the main objective of setting up the foundation is to prevent teenage pregnancies and other factors that hinder mainly girls from going to, staying, and completing school. In Adjumani, teenage pregnancy stands at 15.7%. Between 2020 and 2024, Adjumani District reported 1,785 cases of teenage pregnancy and child marriage. According to the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB), in the last decade, over 1.2 million children dropped out of school. In Adjumani, the school completion rate is only 48%.

Queen Jewel also says her foundation shall, among other causes: create a running scholarship scheme for underprivileged children to go, stay, and complete school; support small-scale household projects of chicken and goat rearing; as well as undertake cross-country study tours for children to learn from Uganda’s development site. 

Miss Jewel also represented Uganda at the Miss Teen Universe 2024 pageant in Delhi, India, where she was the second runner-up. Miss Jewel, 14, is the daughter of Major General (Rtd) Michael Ondoga and Lucy Batcher, a sister to VP Alupo. She is also a vocalist, guitarist, and sportswoman.

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