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Registered charity 12345 6789 RR0001 · Kamloops, British Columbia · Bweyale, Uganda
info@cariboogate.caFamilies in and around Bweyale are building homes, shops and schools every month. This one-year Level 1 course turns willing hands into skilled masons who can read a plan, lay a true wall and win paid work. Our volunteer experts train the teachers who teach it.
Masonry is one of the fastest routes to a daily wage in Bweyale. A trained mason can earn two to three times what a casual labourer earns — and the work is steady, because the settlement is still growing.
But training is out of reach for most refugee families. Course fees, boots and a basic set of tools can cost more than a household earns in months.
1 year · 3 days of theory and 2 days of practice each week
Site safety, reading simple plans, measuring and setting out, mixing mortar and concrete to the right ratios.
Laying brick and block to line and level, corners, openings and lintels, with supervised practice on real community builds.
Plastering, rendering, floors and basic repairs; estimating materials and pricing a small job.
Starter-toolkit handover, a supervised job on a community project and introductions to local contractors.
Every trade is built as a three-level path. Level 1 runs today; Levels 2 and 3 are coming soon, and Level 1 graduates will be the first to move on.
1 year
The entry course: safe working, core skills and a BVE certificate, ready to earn.
$450 funds one student, free for them
2 years
Deeper skills and larger projects, for graduates who want to work independently.
3 years
Advanced techniques, supervision and teaching skills, preparing the next master instructors.
Pathways to income: Employment with local contractors, small building jobs, and work on community projects such as the school foundation.
Every masonry class is taught by a qualified masonry professional who is in the workshop every day, accountable for results, and committed long enough to build the course. Volunteer experts from Canada then train these instructors in new methods, so students get both.
Qualification, years of experience and a short bio, added when the instructor is confirmed
Qualification, years of experience and a short bio, added when the instructor is confirmed
Classroom. Site safety, plans, materials and measuring, plus English, mathematics, citizenship and social skills.
Building site. Laying brick and block, mixing mortar and plastering on real community builds, under supervision.
Local master masons teach the students every day. From time to time, expert masons come from Canada to train those teachers in new skills, so they are fully equipped to train the students. The teachers then pass it on, so one visit keeps paying off for years.
Funds one student for a year
Free for the student, paid for by donors$450
“Before the course I carried bricks for other people. Now I lay them — and other people carry for me.”
Yes. Level 2 is a two-year program and Level 3, the advanced level, runs for three years. Both are coming soon. Level 1 graduates will be the first to move on as places open.
Yes. Every graduate leaves with their own starter toolkit so they can start earning the week they finish.
Yes. From month four, trainees practise on live community builds, including the school foundation project under qualified supervision.
You can, but we usually advise against it. Shipping tools overseas often costs more than the tools themselves, and freight is slow and uncertain. Buying the same tools in Uganda costs less, supports local suppliers and arrives in days. Choose “Buy locally for me” and give the value, or contact us before you ship anything. Kamloops drop-offs are accepted for lightweight, high-value items such as laptops.
For cash gifts, yes — eligible gifts of $20 or more receive an official donation receipt. For gifts in kind, the Canada Revenue Agency requires the fair market value to be established, and some items need an independent appraisal, so we confirm eligibility before you send anything. Where we buy tools for you with your cash gift, it is simply a cash donation.
Cohort funders receive photos, handover lists and a short report after each graduation. Tools are counted at handover, with a record of who received what.
Equip the workshop, send a volunteer expert to train the teachers, or sponsor a student. Whatever you can give — money, tools or your own skills — we put to work in the next stage.
$450 trains one student for a year, free for the student · $9,000 funds a full cohort of 20 · 148 students have taken part since 2024 · 91 tools still needed (about $2,274)
Trainees practise on real community builds. Here are the projects this program connects to.
Level 1 carpentry: woodworking skills that can start with a handful of tools.
Learn moreLevel 1 welding: metalwork skills for gates, doors, frames and repairs.
Learn moreComputer literacy for office work, administration and small business.
Learn moreGarment-making that can start with one sewing machine.
Learn moreFarming skills that turn allocated plots into food and income.
Learn moreCounselling and life-skills support for every participant.
Learn more
Give money, tools or your own skills to the program that matters most to you, and follow what it achieves in our field reports.
Give money, tools or your skills. Every gift goes toward tools, teacher training and places for the people who need them most.
