Betty Lalam

Betty Lalam is a Ugandan teacher and ex-abductee of the Lord's Resistance Army, She is a director for Gulu War Affected Training Center.

Early life and career In 1994, Lalam, aged 14, was abducted from her home in the former Koro Sub-county, located in Amuru district, northern Uganda a community-based organization that worked with World Vision to rehabilitate war returnees and former child soldiers and providing them with psychological and social support. In 2004, She quit her job and begun a tough journey of creating lives of women and girls who returned from captivity, and begun right outside in front of her rented house with five girls that she trained free of charge, using one sewing machine. With time the numbers kept growing.

In 2006, Lalam signed a contract with World Vision to train more than 60 women and girls who had returned from captivity, she used money earned from the World Vision contract to buy land which turned into a home for the Gulu War Affected Training Centre.

In 2008, Lalam's dream became a reality when the South African ambassador to Uganda, Thanduyise Henry Chiliza, pledged to construct a training center with the South African company Eskom. As a result, classroom blocks, dormitories, a computer laboratory were constructed. In 2010, The Gulu War Affected Training Centre was officially opened and since then According to this centre has graduated 4,300 students in various vocational courses in mechanics, hairdressing, tailoring, catering and business management.

Recognition She was recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women of 2014.