By Eriah Lule
Apart from the Guild Bazar and the School of Business exhibition, there is a crazy silent market that is known only to a few and runs for two days within the university.
Uganda Studies Program (USP) holds their annual sale every May at one of their offices opposite the former Foundations department offices.
When you enter the complex, it will give you the smell and feel of the Green Market that was formerly located at Shoprite or any second-hand shop in town.
It’s called “sale” in the USP department. The items on sell are cosmetics, electronics. textiles, reading materials, among others, from donors and former USP students who were using them during their stay at the university.
The money collected is taken to financial aid, which in turn is used as a tuition top-up for financially disadvantaged students.
The sale runs for two days. On the first day, prices are at 100% and in the afternoon they are 75% of their slated prices. On the second day, in the morning, prices are at 50% and in the evening you take them free of charge.
Lydia Wankuma, the USP Administrator, said that goods that don’t meet the sale standard are given out free of charge. This semester’s sale was special because the department had not held one since May 2019 due to the COVID.
She said, “Some people who understand the power of giving buy things at a higher price that are even above the original price from shops because they know we give a hand to financially disadvantaged students.” She added, “95% of the items are from USP students.”
Walter Washika, the Financial Aid Manager, says that there is a growing number of students who are financially disadvantaged and USP is one of the university arms that come in to support such students with tuition top-ups.
“The sale is one of USP’s programs to support our office, which is very much appreciative,” he said. “It helps to at least give a hand to our students who have tuition challenges, especially in such hard times.”
Libby Pratte, the Program Assistant at USP, said that they have many household items in stock since we have not sold them due to the pandemic, which is going to give customers a variety to choose from.
The department used UCU Community Mail to advertise, plus word of mouth and referrals for their customers. According to Wankuma, UGX 2 million on average is collected and handled over to the financial aid in the community worship hour in Nkoyoyo Hall.
