Jjumba Martin

Documentary Photographer | Kampala-Uganda

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How much effort are you willing to invest for a single photo? Inset, shooting with Rock Springs, the largest fish nursery in Uganda. Part of my confidence to get into this water came from having seen my “elder” @edward_echwalu do the same thing a number of years ago when he was shooting in a swamp and in his scenario, he didn’t have any protective gear. You’re still a great inspiration, Edward. At the same time, the need to do the shot from the right angle is always calling. #documentary #everydayafrica #uganda #bts (at Tororo) https://www.instagram.com/p/CpKGzXctppk/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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As 2022 draws to a close, it’s a good time to look back. This year has been incredible in my personal life and I am so grateful for every little amusement that has come my way. I did some really interesting assignments and met incredible selfless people while at it. Thanks to everyone who made this past year as good as it was. Here is a selection of some of my most memorable assignments in 2022. Captions: 1. Kyaka refugee settlement, Felista enters her house with her 6 year old daughter who cannot sit nor stand. Felista´s story highlights challenges of living in a refugee settlement or camp with disability. She tends to her daughter 24 hours a day amidst the hardships of living in a challenging environment. 2. Dr. Priscilla Busingye, an accomplished fistula (birth injury) surgeon performs a birth injury surgery at Karoli Lwanga hospital, Nyakibaale western Uganda. Dr. Priscilla, a consecrated nun with the Catholic Banyatereza Sisters of Uganda, is the first woman and first African physician to win the L’Chaim Prize. Sister Priscilla is now one of only a handful of such specialists in all of Uganda, and a rare resource for the rural communities she serves. 3. October 6th 2022- Yumbe district- Bidi Bidi refugee settlement. Kujang, a refugee from South Sudan stands in her vast simsim garden she owns with two other colleagues. Their group is a beneficiary of the DREAMS program which aims at enabling the poorest refugee and host community households to improve their income and well-being significantly and sustainably by providing them with the capital and skills. 4. Exploration of rare earth metals in Busoga, Uganda. These metals are worth over US$500 billion but the Ugandan government lacks financial and technological capacity needed to facilitate explorations and actual mining. 5. Hadija Naluyange, one of the Community Health Workers in Mayuge district administers the Sayana Press method of family planning to a young woman at Bukatube Health Center. Community Health Workers like Hadija work to ease access of Contraceptives and relevant information for mothers in different communities in Uganda. #documentary #uganda (at Kampala, Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cm1FMPEtUtF/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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In her words, “we may all be in the same boat, but we are in different storms” Vanessa Nakate campaigns internationally to highlight the impact of climate change already playing out in Africa, especially the inequities it amplifies and how it disproportionately affects women and girls. It is important to note that the entire African continent is responsible for less than 4% of global emissions yet it’s one of the most vulnerable to climate change. Congratulations @vanessanakate1 upon receiving the 2022 Goal Keeper campaign award. #onassignment #goalkeepers2030 #climatechange #sdg (at Kampala, Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ciw_i--L8Ln/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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Okere City #okere #uganda (at Okere City) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbk-DzBrkwr/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jjumbamartin]

The last couple of weeks have been relaxed on my end and I am taking the time to redesign my website. Been going through all my archives and landed on these photos I took in the 2016 Presidential Campaigns when I followed Dr. Kizza Besigye’s trail around Kampala for a day. Those were different days. The tension between the state and its citizens wasn’t as high as it has been with the People Power movement. Looking back to the year we are ending, Most notable of all events is going to be the aftermath of the Uganda Presidential elections that was Marred by record-breaking State Violence. The weeks leading up to Uganda’s elections were characterized by widespread violence and human rights abuses. These included NUMEROUS killings by State security forces, arrests and beatings of opposition supporters and journalists, disruption of opposition rallies, and a shutdown of the internet. To date, Facebook can only be accessed with help of a VPN. For me, the signs were clear from as early as 2020 and from an early stage, I made a decision not to engage with any of the campaign rallies for fear of my life. Salute to all the journalists and photographers who dared to preserve this year’s history amidst the life-threatening chaos. . . . #uganda #politics #kampala #documentary (at Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/p/CYKKRpQLfxi/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jjumbamartin]

My recent post here of a blue-eyed boy (sapphire eyes) called Kibila raised a number of questions, most notably, whether the eyes of the young boy were real. There have also been overwhelming heart-warming comments from all over the world in appreciation of the obvious uniqueness of this little boy. I will make sure I pass them on to him when I have a chance. Looking through the shots I took of him when we met, I realized that most of them were happy faces, yet I find myself having shared a serious look of him. I guess it showed off his unique eyes more. Today being Christmas, let me take this opportunity to share a happy look of the same boy, as a way of saying Enjoy the holidays and Find Happiness. #sapphire #uganda #eyes #portrait #african_portraits #documentary #blueeyes (at Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/p/CX6OzZVIh57/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jjumbamartin]

I have met beauty, all summed up in the face of one little boy, Kibila. It was my first time seeing sapphire eyes and the experience is unbelievable when you look straight to them. #sapphire #uganda #africa #portrait #everydayafrica #portraitmood #portrait_perfection #portrait_ig #iganga #eyes #thechildrenoftheworld (at Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/jjumbamartin/p/CXf0YBULTzL/?utm_medium=tumblr

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“Food” A very important aspect in African culture. Each region has its own favorite dish and it’s incredible how diverse the choices are. Over the years, women have played a leading role with food production, either with the actual cultivation or the harvest phase, which sometimes can be more labour demanding than the former. It’s always good to know the food we eat, where it comes from and how labour demanding production of that particular food is because that’s when we appreciate the monetary price attached. There is an African sati that goes… “Even the best cooking pot will not produce food.” So, thank a farmer every chance you get. #ghana #millet #food #africa #afro #culture #women #globalisation #agdevco #jjumba_martin (at Bawku) https://www.instagram.com/p/CWkdLB4LBcY/?utm_medium=tumblr

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On assignment with French Development Agency. (AFD) AFD mobilized various financial instruments to support the environment and bio diversity through setting up regulatory frameworks and sustainable management of continental aquatic ecosystems. The assignment was done along the shores of Lake Victoria, the second largest source of fresh water in the world. Through analyzing water over a period of 4 years, WaSAf research project (launched in 2015) revealed that the lake is being colonized by algae and micro organisms. The research revealed a proliferation of cyanobacteria in Lake Victoria, contributing to the deoxygenation of the aquatic environment, which in turn leads to the degradation of water quality. The data collected on the lake's eutrophication process shows the disruption caused to ecosystem functioning and the impact on the local population's water supply. Findings from the studies warn of the toxic risks to the health of people living on its banks, posed by excessive concentrations of algae and micro-organisms in the water. #uganda #lakevictoria #conservation #aquatic #afd #africa #pollution (at Lake Victoria) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVccd6VrJaC/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jjumbamartin]

May your wedding photographer arrive like this. 😎 cc @makulapictures #culture #tradition #photographer #ghana #kente #africa #afro #thebrightcontinent (at Ghana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVKWJ6eIBXE/?utm_medium=tumblr

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To Grand Mothers. Our Mentors, advisors, Lovers and comforters. If nothing is going well for you today, call your grandmother. #granny #grand #grandmothers #mothers #africa #uganda #grandchildren #afro # (at Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVAv6e8oo3T/?utm_medium=tumblr

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Women with boiling pots on their heads. . #ghana #kyebi #nana #asante #ashanti #africa #rituals #tradition #afro (at Ghana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CU4VWrhoAwh/?utm_medium=tumblr

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Royalty . . #ghana #royal #kings #asante #ashanti #afro #africa (at Ghana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUyA5RqItgV/?utm_medium=tumblr

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Protective Mode The 75th Anniversary of Nana Ofori Atta's death. #ghana #africa #afro #thebrightcontinent #Ashanti #asanti (at Ghana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUuQve3ob3v/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jjumbamartin]

The 75th Anniversary of Nana Ofori Atta #ghana #afro #royalty #kings #africa #thebrightcontinent (at Ghana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUrp0gVoTK7/?utm_medium=tumblr

[jjumbamartin]

Farmer’s Portrait Bawku East- Ghana #ghana #africa #farmer #portrait #portraitmood (at Ghana) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUZC9mqoRxt/?utm_medium=tumblr

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Crazy Kampala. #kampala #256 #uganda #africa #cities #matatu #taxi (at Kampala, Uganda) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUPPDsXLzJj/?utm_medium=tumblr