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Who represents ROWAN legally in Uganda?

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Hello family of ROWAN!

As you have stood by us during this unforeseen mining crisis that has entered our region, I wanted to give you a real time update on what ROWAN is doing to actively protect and fight for the rights not only our beneficiaries, but over 2 MILLION affected by this project.

For the past month, we as ROWAN, along with the support and guidance of the local lawyers out of Kampala have guided negotiations between the mining company and the people.

What are we negotiating?

As the mining company uses their exploratory license to find minerals in our region, their next goal would be to get a signed MOU from individual land owners to obtain a mining license. Initially this MOU was found to be extremely shallow, with zero interest in the peoples’ rights and need for compensation. The mining company had a plan to divide and conquer in order to obtain such signatures.

Thankfully, through the collaborative efforts of our ROWAN staff and lawyer team, we educated the community to stand together as one. The community is now working in unity across 3 Districts!

Our lawyers are actively visiting the affected communities and educating people on their rights. They are guiding our steps and standing in the gap between the government, mining company, and the PAPs (Project Affected Persons.)

It is a long road ahead, but we are hopeful in God’s protection and provision of His children.

When you stand with ROWAN, you are not only supporting the orphans and widows in our program, but you are supporting our advocacy efforts. It is no surprise to our God that we are located at the heart of this crisis, and we have unshakeable faith that God will show us the opportunity to impact millions for His Kingdom! What an honor.

The most important thing right now is to intercede for the ministry and those on the front lines of this effort.

Watch this Crucial video (about 7 minutes) to meet our lawyers and real time updates from Uganda.

Standing in the Gap: How You Can Pray for ROWAN and Uganda’s Vulnerable

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Sometimes, an obstacle looms so large in your life that it’s hard to see through or around it.

Have you ever been there? You’re staring up at your own personal Goliath, speechless, prayerless, and breathless. If you feel that way, we invite you to fall back on these 3 simple prayer requests:

Peace

ROWAN is paying for the best local lawyers to represent 70,000 people who will be displaced from mining. Pray for peace in their hearts that they are cared for and valued.

Protection

Please pray for Pastor Paul and his family, who face a lot of pressure, threats, and intimidation as they stand in the gap and advocate for our widows and orphans. Pray also that ROWAN as an organization would be protected so that we can continue to do God’s work in this region.

Provision

Join us in knocking down God’s door as we pray for provision. This is both in terms of finances as well as the right people to lead ROWAN into this season of advocacy.

Mining Crisis Threatens the People of ROWAN

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Our region is being directly threatened by a private mining company called Ionic Rare Earths, locally called Rwenzori Rare looking to extract minerals from the soil under ROWAN. This mining project is called, “The Makuutu Project.” From recent reports from Ionic:

“Makuutu is owned 100% by Ugandan registered Rwenzori Rare Metals Limited (RRM) which at the time was owned 85% by South African registered Rare Earth Elements Africa Proprietary Limited (REEA). IonicRE has entered into a binding option agreement with both companies that enables it to acquire up to a 60% direct interest in RRM, and thereby up to a 60% indirect interest in Makuutu. It was announced on Ionic’s website in April that:

Ionic Rare Earths signs milestone non-binding MOU with global rare earth giant Chinalco

Chinalco is the world’s largest rare earth miner and separator by market capitalization *The parties to cooperate to accelerate mine development and production of the Makuutu Rare Earth Project including potential off take agreements and Project funding *Attracting Chinalco is a significant endorsement of the Makuutu Project as a globally strategic long-life supply of critical and heavy rare earths…Read more

Kelsey traveled to Uganda to meet with the Rwenzori Rare Metals manager and to partner with other local leaders, churches, and NGOs on the ground to explore the best way forward for our community.

Our goal? We sought to collaborate and find a way to preserve the dignity of the thousands (later learned that it is millions) of people who would be displaced by this mining endeavor.

Listen to Kelsey break down more details here: (If you’re familiar with ROWAN, start the video at about 11 minutes 38 seconds. The first 11 minutes contain the origin story of ROWAN, while the details of the crisis start at about 13 minutes 20 seconds.)

Mining Project Updates (June, 2025)

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The mining project recorded slow progress during the first and second quarter of 2025. That notwithstanding, global mining experts warn of the risk of minerals shortages following China’s recent trade restrictions which impact on many companies relying on rare earth metals for their automotive industry.

In what appears to be a renewed commitment towards Makuutu Mining Project, IonicRE – the co-owner of Rwenzori Rare Metals, is currently gearing-up for partners in the US focusing on establishing a refining facility to process intermediate products from the company’s 60% owned Makuutu Rare Earth Project in Uganda. Several discussions with strategic partners in the US is expected to be concluded by close of this year to highlight Makuutu’s mining potential as the most advanced Ionic Adsorption Clay (IAC) project globally.

Due to the recent trade wars between China and USA, partners and stakeholders now want Makuutu Project implementation fast-tracked to tap into the vast opportunities created by automakers in US, Europe and Japan who inevitably rely on rare earths for manufacturing both internal combustion engines and electric vehicles.

We are yet to establish further developments and how strategic the recent China restrictions on its rare earth metals would benefit the Makuutu Mining Project in Uganda.

It is expected that a strategic meeting of stakeholders and partners will be held in or about late August, 2025 in Uganda to push the Makuutu mining agenda forward. It is also expected that compensation of the PAPs shall form part of the agenda for that meeting. We hope to provide further updates after the meeting.

Sincerely,

Adv. Edward

Cultivating a Culture of Savings

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Contribute to Micro Enterprise Projects Here

Using training from Care International in Uganda, community members have started several successful savings and loans groups to promote self-reliance and encourage others to reach their goals and follow their dreams.

From these groups we have seen many small businesses born! Our founder, Pastor Paul calls these groups “the backbone to the ministry.”

Today I want to highlight one of those groups — the Kirabo savings group. This group conducts their business by meeting together every Tuesday. The total number of members is about 30, and all of those members are part of a special group in ROWAN. Each time they meet there is a range of 2,000-10,000 Uganda shillings saved and together this group has saved a total of 3,500,000 shillings (over $3,000 usd) since they started!

George, who is also a zone leader for ROWAN, has also gone through business training. Because of the money he was able to set aside through Kirabo savings group, he was in a better position to start his mobile money business and is now making a profit.

Madina Mutesi sells second hand clothing to bring in money to provide for her family. When she started in the savings group, she had about 30,000 shillings, but that has grown to over 400,000 shillings and she now has a successful business.
 

Contribute to Micro Enterprise Projects Here

South Sudanese Refugee Crisis in Uganda

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Conflict in parts of South Sudan continues, and as a result, hundreds of thousands of people are being displaced to neighboring countries. Many of those refugees face food shortages, life-threatening illnesses and the fear of imminent violence. Other difficulties include an abrupt halt to education, the hyperinflation of food and necessities and inability to receive much-needed medical care due to various obstacles. According to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon, “one million South Sudanese children are not able to attend school, and nearly five million people face severe food shortages.” Even those who are fortunate enough to escape to another country are struggling because of these factors.

(photo credit)

-South Sudanese man- “Since the fighting started again in Juba, I had to send my wife and my six-year-old son to Uganda. I don’t want them to be here. Life [here] is not only insecure but also very expensive, while in Uganda, even as refugees, they have access to health and education. When I was a child, in 1989, I fled South Sudan because of the war [1983 to 2005] and spent more than 20 years working in Khartoum and Darfur. In 2012, I came back hoping the independence would give us a better life. But all that hope is lost now. Selling vegetables in my small shop gives me around 7,000 pounds every month, which I need to convert to US dollars to send to my family in Uganda. With the current exchange rate, I barely get 100 dollars – three or four times less than [only a few] months ago. The currency depreciation has made supporting my family harder. Food prices are getting ridiculous in the market. For the past few months, they are three, four or even five times more expensive. Before, one banana used to cost 10 pounds. Now, it’s 50! How are people going to buy from my shop? I never rest. I work all week – more than 10 hours a day – just to keep surviving. It makes no sense to me. I’m considering leaving South Sudan for good and joining my family in Uganda. I think it will be better for all of us.”
(http://allafrica.com/stories/201609151142.html)

(photo credit)

About a month ago, 1,700 South Sudanese were arriving in Uganda each day. That number is rapidly growing and funds are getting thin. There is a push to register all of the refugees in Uganda in order to secure safety and peace of mind for residents near the transit centres. And rations have been cut in half, just so the demand for food can be met. Many pregnant women who have fled South Sudan are fighting to keep themselves and their unborn babies healthy due to the rapid increase in population at the temporary housing for refugees. They receive the same rations as everyone else, and often that is just not enough to sustain them and the life growing inside.
 

These refugees are people with families and hopes and dreams much like our own. They have been ripped from their homes, torn away from family and face insurmountable obstacles on a daily basis. Would you join us in praying for the leadership of this war-torn country? Pray that God would bring peace and people would eventually be able to return to their homeland. Pray for these precious people; that they would receive the nutrition, medical care and education they need. And finally, pray about helping to support the organizations providing aid and relief in these uncertain times in South Sudan. Want to know more how YOU can make a difference? Read more about the conflict in South Sudan here.

Birthday Reflection

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I don’t know about you, but I’m still adjusting to the fact that we are almost through July. Where did the summer go? While we’re at it, where did the last year go? As I turned 42 last week, I took time to reflect on the past year as well as check in with myself and how my heart is doing. Below are the few words I wanted to share with you – those who have committed to serving the Lord through ROWAN.  

You have walked with us on this ROWAN journey, some have even traveled arm in arm with me to Uganda. Some of you I’ve never met, but we are connected to the heartbeat of the women and children. You have trusted ROWAN to maximize every dollar raised, and there are no words to express our gratitude. As you can view in the annual report, the ROWAN board is diligent to make sure every dollar is maximized and multiplied to support our women and children.

All  our children are all in school, and the elementary kids are attending our weekly Saturday program at the Hall of Hope.

Our clinic serves our village community daily.

Our farm is harvesting food that supports our feeding programs, and providing training ground for our widows for their personal homes.

Hope in Jesus continues to be our anthem.

As most of you know, the past 2 years have been extremely challenging concerning mining in our region. In December of 2022, ROWAN raised over $88,000 which provided legal representation, purchased land to build a relocation office, and continues to empower our communities through weekly meetings. The report here shares all that we were able to accomplish last year as well as continue to meet with our lawyers and promote the rights of our precious people.

With all the progress from above, I admit that I’ve struggled with fear and doubt. There are countless nights I’ve laid awake wondering if I should give up.  As ROWAN staff were bullied, threatened and even arrested for standing up for the people’s rights, I thought to myself, “There must be someone else better to handle this crisis. This is too much. I’m not strong enough.”

That thought ever cross your mind?

Moses must have felt the same way when God called him to speak on His behalf. (In Kelsey’s abridged version) Moses reminded God Almighty, “Um, you may have forgotten but…. I have a serious speech impediment. I’m Not your guy!”

Oh the countless times I’ve reminded God, “I’m not your gal!” And you know what I heard? “You’re right. You can’t do this on your own. That’s why you need me, and I’m bringing you others who will walk with ROWAN.”  And that is exactly what He is doing.

So friends, these first 6 months may not have been the most visible, but God is re-working and uniting the staff and boards across the globe to see His vision for our future.  I would say 50% of the work ROWAN is doing is unseen. We may not be building houses, but we are building a foundational bridge of empowerment and vision for our next chapter.

We are taking this crisis and turning it into an opportunity for God to show us the way forward.

In August the USA and Uganda board will meet and seek God’s direction for the next 5 years, and we need your prayers!

Meanwhile, what is our current need? Our kids have outgrown their uniforms! Please join us and support our “Back to School” campaign that will help each child get a new uniform and school supplies that will take them into the next year! $80 will supply uniform, shoes and school supplies! More info coming out next week!

In hope,

Kelsey

Living in the “Both, And”

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4 weeks ago one of our special mamas in ROWAN, Anne, passed away. She was a widow, mom, HIV+ community member, and hope-filled believer. She breathed her last at 39 years old as cancer took her life.
3 weeks ago one of our ROWAN staff, Jeremiah, died suddenly in a car accident. He operated our ultrasound machine for the maternity center and for cancer scans. He was only 27. 
Last week my friend’s daughter passed away from a long battle of cancer here in the States. She was 13. 
As I share about these precious people, I know I’m not alone in this journey of loss. It happens suddenly, whether you are in a good place or not; yet how we process that news is so crucial to our relationships with God and each other. 
There is never a “convenient” time for loss. I don’t know about you, but some days I wake up, hear heart breaking news and think to myself, “That’s it, I’m done. I’ve got nothing left.” 
Other times I am able to rally around others and simply share tears of pain.
 I recently got other news, too:
 
— That a pre-mature baby girl has gained another pound and is growing strong.

— That one of our orphans in Uganda has grown up to become the best car painter in the region.
 
— That the mining crisis in our region has slowed down because of ROWAN’s effort to promote justice, per an update from our lawyers.
 

Oh, and my daughter started reading chapter books by herself.
 
What I love so much about our Father is the way we can enter into His presence in the very space we are in.

I so often feel conflicted between life’s heartaches and victories, and the whiplash we feel getting pulled from one to the other.
 
But I suspect that we aren’t meant to experience only one and never the other (we all know what we’d choose).
 
When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, He knew what had to be done. He was sweating blood as he asked for “the cup to pass Him by.”
 
Even Jesus longed for the victory of the cross apart from the suffering of the innocent. 
At the last supper Jesus found joy in laughing and joking with His closest friends around the dinner table, and at the same time awaited His betrayal and death around the corner. 
He lived in the “both, and” …and taught us how to experience life fully and honestly. No matter what is in your path today, whether you are walking through something painful or celebrating a victory (or both), He is right there, in it with you. 
God created us to fully experience His love through everything in our lives, both in tears of sadness and tears of joy. 
So let’s do this one thing together: 
Let’s laugh and eat at the table of friendship even as we feel the weight of grief within us. 
Look across the table… 
And know you aren’t alone.

Thank you for loving Anne

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Tears can express all forms of emotion. Tonight, the ROWAN team sheds tears as one of our dearest members suddenly passed away. Anne Naroti, 35 years old, died in an emergency surgery. We met Anne 7 years ago when she was struggling with HIV/AIDs and needed support. Her husband had died from AIDS and left her with 6 children alone. We couldn’t do much, but we did all we could to find her loving sponsors (which there were 2), and invite her into the fold of the Lord’s love and trust. She had a hard time smiling. She was weak. She didn’t have much to live for, but she knew she had to stay strong for her children. 

Thanks to the love of God through ROWAN, she experienced friendship, generosity and empowerment these past 6 years. And as you can see in the picture, she found reason to smile again. 

ROWAN has walked with people through all seasons of life. We’ve celebrated hundred’s of childbirths while also attending the burials of our closest friends. What we have learned is that God’s love is unchanging, and He has called us to the least of these. Everyone is a child of God and is His beloved. 

Pray with us as navigate helping the family place her 6 children. If you would like to sponsor one of them, please contact us here. Details coming soon on how to love her family in this time. 

Am I Enough?

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 Do you ever wake up with your first thought being, “I didn’t get enough sleep,” or “I don’t have enough time,” or “I don’t have enough ideas,” or “I don’t have enough money”? Yeah, me too.

This month I’ve been reading Brene Brown’s book Daring Greatly, and one of her main points is that we don’t live in a culture of self-centeredness but rather one of a scarcity mindset. And scarcity isn’t only believing there isn’t enough, but the continued belief that there is never enough.

There have been countless days in the past 22 years of ROWAN where I started my day in the red. The fact is there isn’t enough time in my day or people I know or grants I can write or money in our bank that will supply every need. I can see how people start believing the lie of unworthiness which is a slippery slope to despair. Right where the enemy wants us to be: unarmed and ashamed. Have I visited that valley? More than I’d like to admit. 

But what does our God say about this? He speaks loud and clear on this very issue in scripture:

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this is NOT from yourselves. It is the gift of God- Not by works so that no one can boast.” Eph. 2:8-9

“That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man…” Eph. 3:16 

In these powerful words Almighty God disarms the lie of scarcity by reminding us that He saved us not because of what we do, but because of who we are. We are His children with faith in our King and all power comes from Him. He doesn’t have a grid for productivity like we do. He is not bound by time. He is the supplier of ALL things. When this truth moves from my mind to my heart and soul, I begin to view the world from His perspective.

“I experience peace in my life when I get out of the driver’s seat and receive direction as a passenger.  

When I wake up thankful for all God has done for me, I’m ready to receive His love. In trusting God’s abundance I posture myself to listen to His truth. In other words, I’m letting the Lord drive my day. It may be that I set my to-do list aside and do the 1 thing He asks of me. Sometimes He reminds me to pick up that list and highlights actions to move on. The difference?

I find my actions produce lasting fruit. I have experienced miraculous answers to prayer not based upon my grit but on His grace. My stress levels decrease and joy becomes my strength. Basically I’m led by Him, not me. This is not a formula for successful living. However this moment of self-awareness, if you are really honest with yourself, can lead to lasting peace, because He is our peace.

I invite you to do a simple thing with me this month.

Every morning you wake up, remind yourself of who you are. You are His beloved. You are His son / daughter. You are loved for who you are no matter what happens today. (I mean it. No matter what.) You are a child of the King who supplies every. single. thing. 

Song of the month: Steady Heart by Stephanie Gretzinger

Reading this month: Ephesians & Brene Brown “Daring Greatly“