Deaf students from Walukuba West Primary School pictured with Dr. Sam Lutalo-Kiyingi, Irish Ambassador to Uganda Kevin Colgan, principal of Walukuba Primary school Ziyadi Tamuzadde, founder of Nile Óg Cusacks GAA Club, John Conroy and John Walsh.
A GAA club in Uganda is using newly developed sign language to teach deaf schoolchildren hurling and Gaelic football.
The coaching has come courtesy of Clare man John Conroy, a long-time volunteer with the Rays of Hope Hospice in Jinjia in eastern Uganda. In July of this year, he founded the Nile Óg Cusacks GAA Club.
New signs incorporated into Ugandan Sign Language (USL) dictionary have been used by Mr Conroy and the club to coach football to 30 deaf children at Walukuba West Primary School.
The new signs were launched by Irish Ambassador to Uganda Kevin Colgan at the Irish Embassy in Kampala to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the Embassy, where the children were invited as guests.
By September all 1,300 students at the primary school had been introduced to football with plans in place for hurling to be coached in the future.
“It’s brilliant to see how much joy Gaelic football brings to the kids,” he said.
“For now, we’re focusing on football, but hurling is the next goal. Developing these new signs for both games is brilliant and shows how sport can bridge cultures and foster inclusion.”
The sign language project was inspired by the Ladies Gaelic Football Association’s #SignMeUp campaign, an initiative promoting inclusivity in Gaelic games through the use of Irish Sign Language (ISL).
“It’s essential that all sport provides a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone. We’re proud to contribute to the diversity of Gaelic Games in Uganda,” Mr Conroy added.
The establishment of Nile Óg Cusacks brought the number of GAA organisations based in Uganda to seven. The club also unveiled its new logo, showing the River Nile running through Poulnabrone Dolmen in the Burren in Co Clare.
With the source of the Nile located in Jinja, the logo represents the connection between Ireland and Uganda.