Over the next few weeks we´ll be adding more info about how you can sponsor a Chicken and their friend, the cow, donated by Oxfam.
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THE number of cattle in the country stood at 11.4 million at the end of last year, an increase of 3.9 million compared to three years ago, according to the just released national livestock census.
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In recent years, investment in private sector agriculture in East Africa has been very limited, despite the fact that East Africa’s agriculture sector has many entrepreneurs with good ideas for building successful businesses. A lack of access to finance and technical assistance has meant that many businesses have been unable to expand. This in turn has resulted in a failure by the private sector to adopt improved technologies, products and services to the agriculture sector, which acts as a key constraint on rural job creation, development and food security.
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Uganda is located on the eastern region of Africa and lies between latitude 1° 30´ south and Longitude 29° 30´ East ; and occupies an area of about 241,500.km² of which 15.3% is open water ,3% permanent wetlands , and 9.4%seasonal wetlands (see map). Uganda´s perimeter is about 16630 km long. Is boardered by the Republic of Kenya in the east, Tanzania and Rwanda in the south, Democratic Republic of Congo in the west and Sudan in the north.Most of Uganda forms the interior of plateau of the Africa Continent.It is characterised by flat - topped hills in the central , western and eastern parts of the country. Along the boarders, are Rwenzori mountains and Mufumbira volcanoes in the west and Mt Elgon and Mt Kadam in the east.
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Despite this wealth of foodstuff, there still is food crisis, due to international development, lack of facilities to dry and store products, little information on foodprices on the worldmarket, corruption and wholesalers not paying a fair price. Our challenge now is to find creative solutions to these problems.
The list below is the start of an educational programm menat to show what you can do with the products. “Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways” will be replaced with reference to the proper information and identify ioptions that most likely are not considered today. Friends of Bunabumali are invited to add their tips.
Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways
Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways
Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways
Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways
Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways
Can be storred/conserved and used in various ways
‘The land is fertile and the weather can be good, but the ability to open land for sustainable production is lacking,’ said John Justine Orone, a government agricultural co-ordinator for Katine sub-county. ‘There are farmers who own 20 acres but only use 10.’
The waste is caused by a multitude of factors, some pf them cultural, some economic, others climatic. From
Katine’s hunger is a hydra in urgent need of a holistic solution. Amref’s livelihoods initiative is seeking to break this series of interlocking negatives. By long cultural tradition, the people of Katine measure wealth in the number of cattle they own.
In the absence of banks, cows are in effect a savings account, used for dowry in marriage and a safety net when crops fail. ‘Without cows, you are nothing’ is a familiar refrain.
While cows have immense cultural value, bulls and oxen have huge practical benefits for the ploughing of fields. Yet with a bull typically costing up to 700,000s (£224) - double what it was at the start of the year - only a small minority of farmers possess them. The rest are forced into the backbreaking work of ploughing with a hand hoe. Many of the farmers interviewed by The Observer in Katine complained that a lack of oxen and ploughs meant they could farm only a small portion of their land, leaving the rest to lie fallow.
Peter Ecobu, 50, who grows cassava, millet and potatoes, said: ‘We have very good, fertile and stable land. The problem is lack of equipment and animals. Give four bulls and one plough to a group of us. Then our problems are over.’
The average farm in Katine is five or six acres. Market forces might demand that a farmer who cannot exploit his land should sell it to a better resourced neighbour who is itching to work it. But for this he must seek permission from his tribal clan, and often the answer will be no. ‘You are not allowed to sell land because of the clan,’ said Phoebe Ageo, 35, chair of one of the farmers’ groups. ‘I know people who wanted to sell but the clan would not allow it.’
Many experts believe the system is stifling land development. But it is also regarded as a safety valve that prevents landowners simply downing tools and selling up, which would earn a fast buck but deprive their children of their inheritance. Amref does not call for an end to customary ownership, but is advising farmers to consider renting out land temporarily.
Farmers culturally focused on cattle are still learning about the need for crop rotation and the differences in quality of seeds.
There are failures of commerce, too.
Livelyhood groups, each comprising 30 farmers. It has provided each group with practical training in better farming methods, such as varying crops from season to season, in the hope of improving productivity. It has also set up demonstration fields for each group to grow cassava, using improved stems that have greater resistance to disease and drought.
This has provoked debate in the community. Charles Emaju, speaker for the Katine sub-county council, said: ‘Making people go to dig with their hands - is this really the way to uplift people? Is this really helping us? Agriculture does not just mean digging. We are getting the skills, but how do we use them? I can have skills in my head, but a group needs oxen and ploughs.’
In Amref’s farmers’ groups, typically only two or three members out of 30 possess an oxen and a plough. ‘Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today,’ goes the timeworn maxim. ‘Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.’ But in this instance does he possess a fishing rod?
In Holland we have an organisation Saved Tools that will provide free tools. There’s more initiatives like that in other countries, but bottlneck is always:
- Transport costs.
- Time.
- Complicated procedures to become approved as benefiiary.
- No clear picture of costs of tools on sale in Uganda, to ofset the difference between donated 2nd hand stuff in relation to transport costs.
It is a potentially divisive issue, but Farm-Africa says there has to be realism about the project’s constraints. George Mukkath, its director of programmes, said:
Ambitions:
There are other farming communities in Uganda where people just rely on a hand hoe. We have told people in Katine about these case studies, but it is hard for them to imagine it.
‘The idea of coming full blast to give livestock was never in the plan. The idea always excites people, they want to see something happening suddenly, they tend to value something tangible. We are looking at doing something on a smaller scale, giving a goat to each woman in the groups, then when the goats reproduce, giving them to men. This could depend on another fundraising drive.’
People in Katine are going hungry today, as on every day of the year. Yet in this verdant land, it does not have to be this way. The support of Observer readers, and the work of Amref and Farm-Africa, could shift the balance and turn a vicious circle into a virtuous one.
Ann’s donation has resulted in kids.;-)
Ann’s donation has resulted in the first kids ;-)
Since we started the blog, we welcome Ann as our first sponsor. A most welcome contribution of GBP 10.00 means Norman can buy 10 hens, which brings the total number of chicken to 25.
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