In the Masaka and Rakai Districts of Southern Uganda over ninety per cent of the people are dependent on subsistence agriculture. Most farming is on sloping land between hilltops and valley swamps with average farm size between 2 and 3 acres. Population pressure results in encroachment both on the riverine swamps which feed the Nile system, and also steeper slopes and watersheds.

The area’s two rainy seasons have become less predictable and weaker over recent years. Subsistence farmers face problems of water availability and depleted soils, and need to make better use of natural precipitation. They do not have knowledge or skills, and schools do not teach such practical agriculture. Despite HIV/AIDS, population growth is putting pressure on land and water resources.

For more than five years Uganda Rural Community Support Foundation has taught mulching, contour cultivation and water management as part of an integrated organic farming program which increases food security and diet diversity, a village-based program is used with short blocks of residential training at URCSF farm Training Centre and then follow up on each farm. Recent developments have been simple appropriate technology for a group plant nursery, and water storage in secure pits on each farm. The building of fuel-efficient stoves is also taught.

Targets of this Project

The target group is very poor rural families, almost entirely dependent on subsistence farming, in remote rural areas of Rakai-Masaka Districts. The entire family will benefit from training, and their participation is fostered throughout the project. In addition, the wider community is likely to learn by example. HIV-AIDS means that groups will include many widows and teenagers from ‘child-headed households’.

Women, who grow most of the food, will be the focus of this training. The women are encouraged to form mutually-supportive self-managing groups with about thirty members. This builds in greater sustainability for the post training period.

Water Management Strategy

Minimizing evaporation and run-off and increasing the water holding capacity of the soil are key strategies for subsistence farmers’ training. However, water security is not sufficient on its own since crop yields are steadily declining, and malnutrition is rife. Techniques used include contour cultivation and contour ditches for soil and water conservation, water storage, mulching, intercropping, as well as composting and manuring. Additional land is ‘found’ by taking much of the bare compound in front of the houses for vegetable beds, particularly important in homes with a small acreage.

Summary of the Project Methodology and Approach

The project’s prime aim is food security using an integrated approach, which has water management, appropriate technology and organic farming as key elements. It builds cohesive, self-managing rural women’s groups practicing organic farming with a wide variety of food crops, many of which will contribute additional nutrition, and others which will ensure food security in the driest seasons.

The approach ensures that these groups will continue long after the project and its training have been completed and be a source of information and technology in their communities. Group Committees receive additional leadership training, and groups informed on procedures conducive to harmonious groups. The methodology empowers participants to make specific changes on their farms, but also to gain confidence to make their own changes. Readiness to innovate further is a key goal and outcome of URCSF training strategies.

It has been found to be very valuable to build in short blocks of residential training for each women’s group in turn. (four per group over the period of 12 months). As women work so hard in the home, most of the time they are close to exhaustion, and unable to find energy for new activities.

The residential blocks of 4-5 days training fulfill many needs per month:

• some rest and good food for the women, and their babies,
• exposure to a farm practicing the techniques they will be learning,
• practical training to meet the needs of people with limited education & language,
• opportunities to visit other farmers who have already made changes, and
• simple accommodation so that they feel at home.

Follow-up training in the village involves sending experienced trainers out to work intensively with individual farmers on their land. This ensures that mistakes and misunderstandings are managed quickly and at a personal level, and can quietly encourage women with low self-esteem. Trainers are selected for their practical farming ability, grass roots knowledge, and local language skills.

The Innovative Elements of this Project

The effective combination of water management and integrated organic farming techniques is something that is seldom seen in Uganda. It is clearly something that is much needed for the 90 percent of the population dependent on subsistence farming.

The existence of Uganda Rural Community Support foundation as an indigenous NGO doing this work (on their 10 acre farm) makes it a very appropriate starting point. The teaching is practical and in the local language. Transportation is not easy in Uganda, and rural women rarely have the opportunity to visit somewhere innovative like at URCSF model farm and their with your help this will be URCSF avail sources close to the people who need it most.

One significant and effective recent innovation which URCSF is trying to show to many people is a large (9ft x 9ft x 6ft+ deep) water storage pit. The ‘tank’ is waterproofed inside with a polythene sheet and collects filtered run off from the compound and roofs. Molinga seeds help to clear and clean the water. The tanks are covered to minimize evaporation, avoid providing a mosquito breeding area and improve safety. Soil is replaced on top to allow cultivation of shallow rooted crops. The pit is accessed by a trap door, which can also be locked for safety,and security.

It is also valuable as it can provide some water for animals. Animals like cows and goats will be given to 300 farmers, and it would usually be the next step for each farmer in the year following this training. Animal manure will enrich the soils more effectively and make better compost. URCSF is the only organization in the area that has introduced a water tank made out of plastic bags supported by trees and other local materials available at every household and this tank can uphold 300ltrs of water after it rains.

This local water tank its material to make it costs $20 compared to the tank at the factory of the same capacity of 300ltrs which costs; $189 therefore, you can see a big difference and how many of our farmers can afford such a tank. We are very much convinced that our farmers have now a relief of having such simple technology to make their own water tanks.

In addition the project teaches the value and construction of fuel conserving stoves now used in many Ugandan communities. Fuel conserving stoves reduce labour, and improve the kitchen environment. They also use far less firewood than traditional three stone fires. However, the remoter areas have been exposed to few new ideas, and so it is a new technology for them.

This project will address the following issues:

1. Stakeholder Involvement – The stakeholders will be the local farmers and their community. The initial request for training will come from the community. Many women’s groups send someone to URCSF farm, requesting help, as their reputation is becoming well known, and one member may have seen an improved farm.
   
   

   The project will focus in one locality, but with separate village communities. One of the groups could include many orphans and child headed households, a very common situation in Rakai district, where AIDS originated and this project is targeting over 3500 beneficiaries.

   Local government personnel will be involved from the start, and be aware of the goals of the project, and support that may be needed from them. They will be kept informed of progress and invited to the concluding ceremony for the project. At the conclusion of the project, a few successful women will be selected as community trainers, to continue promoting the technologies learned to others in the area, and those in the group that were slower to progress.

2. Gender - The focus is on women as they are the main food, water and wood providers in the home. The approach is family oriented, in that care is taken to include husbands. Husbands are welcome to come to the field program trainings, and an opportunity for them to visit the Training Centre will also be arranged as training progresses. Baseline data collection will cover each farmer, to be clear on each individual’s starting point, and the structure of the group. This and subsequent data will always identify gender.



3. Environmental Security - Environmental security is a key element of this project, with water and soil conservation, trees and agro-forestry integral parts of the training. An environmental impact assessment will be made at the start of the project, and impact reviewed quarterly. Support from trainers will assist in the initial plans for managing the entire area of land around the home of the participant. Compound hygiene, with proper pit latrines, privacy screens, and rubbish management are all part of the training.
   
   

   Tree planting for fuel wood, fruit, and other purposes will be carried out. Intercropping, mulching and composting all assist in reducing soil degradation. Contour ditches reduce soil erosion. Fuel conserving stoves have considerable environmental value as they use only one quarter of the wood previously needed for cooking. In addition, the stoves use smaller twigs, and do not require small trees to be cut down.

4. Impact on the Poor - The goal of this entire project is to have a positive impact on the lives of the poorest rural farmers. Improved food security leads to improved health and better family cohesion and well-being. The good thing about URCSF training is that people can always get started, and make small manageable changes to their farming and improve livelihoods.
   
   

   The crops grown and management practices help to address the problems of chronic malnutrition and seasonal hunger. An increased range of food crops, especially drought tolerant ones, for people and for animals is urgently needed. Bananas and maize are the staple foods of southern Uganda, especially bananas (matoke), both of which can fail in dry years. Other hardier crops such a range of varieties of yams and cassava are introduced, especially as there is a need to disseminate disease-resistant cassava, as a mosaic virus has destroyed the former dominant variety.

   Workloads of women are traditionally huge. The savings in time taken to collect water and fuel wood mean less stresses on their lives, and more time for other things. Quick growing trees are planted for wood, and fuel conserving stoves reduce wood use, and provide a more smoke free environment for cooking.