Philip Tibenderana (pictured below) has served as the Uganda Representative of CED since 2007, succeeding Bishop George Bagamuhunda. His role involves being retained as CED’s Representative and working under the direction and accountability of the CED Trustee/Director nominated by the Board.
Philip liaises closely with the Church of Uganda’s Directorate of Household and Community Transformation (formerly the Planning, Development and Rehabilitation Department). Through this partnership, he supports the identification of infrastructure development projects aimed at alleviating poverty and ill health among poor communities. His responsibilities include defining, evaluating, investigating, surveying, designing, and preparing cost estimates for projects; arranging their implementation and supervision through community labour or contracted works; and taking responsibility for the control and accounting of authorised expenditure. He also receives, organises, and facilitates supervision and monitoring visits by CED members from the UK, including site itineraries, logistics, and coordination with local stakeholders.
His first assignment was the design and construction supervision of Kakagate Valley Tank in Kiruhura District. This was followed by gravity flow schemes in Nyakabande (Kabale District), Bushekwe (Kanungu District), and Kisya-Kagaana (Rukungiri District), where he also supported testing of a prototype self-backwashing filter designed by Nigel Heeler (pictured below). He has since supported the design and supervision of several 6,000 m³ valley tanks in Katete, Rwentamu, and Kikatsi, all within North Ankole Diocese.
Philip said the following about his role: “The most rewarding aspect of my role is witnessing the joy communities experience when they access clean water after years of hardship. Disease burdens reduce, time is saved, and households invest more in farming and children’s education. Despite challenges such as difficult terrain, limited community capacity, and fundraising constraints, I greatly value this role. I appreciate the strong technical and financial support from the UK team and look forward to expanding CED’s work, particularly by reaching unserved communities with clean water using renewable energy solutions such as solar pumping“.
