Raised as an orphan, once a teacher and now a student, Pius Ariho enters a new stage of his life.

Poverty and hunger are not only the words that describe the problems the world has been facing, but also have been the reality for Pius Ariho

Ariho is from the Rukungiri District of Uganda. He came to Canada in 2008 to study at the University of New Brunswick – he’s working toward a PhD on mathematical biologics.

Coming to Canada made Ariho realize that what’s normal for Uganda is not normal for the rest of the world, especially developed countries like Canada. The standard of living and the definition of poverty are very different things in this country.

Ariho says life expectancy in Uganda is low, between 30 and 50 years. His father died when Ariho was 10, his mother died four years later.

Ariho says his parents’ illnesses were treatable, but treatment and medication weren’t available.

“It’s so normal in Uganda that people die in their middle age. Also, medical situation (in Uganda) is bad. If you can’t pay for your medicine, you die. It’s totally different from the life in Canada. I just can’t compare the life in Uganda to the one in Canada.”

Lack of medical services is a huge issue in Uganda, Ariho says.

“For some cases, the government does give free medicine to hospitals in rural areas but, of the target group, very few will actually get it free. At some hospitals, they will tell you the medicine is finished. They take it to a drug shop for cash,” he said.

“Hospitals are there and doctors are there, but they are not many and I can’t say we have enough. Everything needs improvement.”

Before coming to Canada, Ariho went to university and taught math and physics in a secondary school in Uganda. He enjoyed teaching, education has been his priority, he said.

“I didn’t have enough funds for my further study. That’s why I was there (in Uganda). But I got in touch with one of the professors at UNB. They were in Uganda for a conference. So I got an opportunity to come to Canada.”

It was difficult for Ariho to pursue his passion for education, because day-to-day life was such a struggle.

“We did not have enough money. Sometimes, we sold a part of our lunch to pay tuitions,” he said. “Sometimes, we had nothing to eat, didn’t have clean water or didn’t have money for school. So it was good when we were able to get help.”

Financial problems have always troubled him even after he got a job as a teacher, he said.

“Occupations such as teachers and doctors are not paid well in Uganda. If you compare the salary you get and expenditure, they don’t match,” said Ariho. “You can’t save any.”

He said poverty in Uganda is a social issue that is connected closely to one of the biggest social problems in Uganda – orphans.

An orphan since 14, Ariho managed to pursue his education with help from others. Instead of going to an orphanage, Ariho lived at home with his siblings.

“A Catholic priest came to help us. My father was a catechist and because he was in church, he was known by the priest. He paid school fees for me and for my sister,” he said.

“Sometimes we forgot that we were orphans. It’s not good to be reminded that we were orphans all the time,” he said. “If you come up, get help, work hard and come out of poverty, you become good. Then, you are no longer an orphan because you are able to meet your needs and you become happy.”