ASEC runs two programs; African sisters Education Collaborative (ASEC) is an organization that runs two programs here in Uganda in conjunction with ARU with whom they have a Memorandum of Understanding to run this program in ARU.
The first is SLDI (Sisters Leadership Development Initiative) where sisters are given skills in administration and financial management. This program is non-academic, certificates are given but for participation. But skills are given to the sisters who need them and can use them. It was the very first one and it came about because the sisters those days had inadequate skills and could find difficulties in writing projects and could also not adequately report for the funds that were given by the Hilton Foundation. This is how SLDI was started by the Hilton Foundation which patterned with ASEC and it provides full funding for this program.
The second is HESA (Higher Education for Sisters in Africa). HESA started in 2012 and its purpose is to empower the sisters through higher education e.g. Diploma and Degrees so that they can serve efficiently wherever they are.
ASEC is running programs in 10 countries in Africa; Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Sudan, Malawi, Zambia, Lesotho, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon.
ASEC is doing a lot for the sisters in Uganda and the sisters who have gone through the program have put the skills in use and they have developed projects and their congregations.
In Uganda now there are more than 300 Alumni for both HESA and SLDI. The first years, they are trained in basic technology. In the second year, they choose either finance or administration and in the third year they are also taught according to the fields they have chosen. While in 2nd year, they are asked to mentor other sisters by sharing the knowledge they have learnt by sharing the skills with three sisters in their congregation.