Give 35 families food security in Uganda

In the fight against poverty, hunger and malnutrition in Mayuge district, Act4Africa continues to reach out to farmers through the Grains for Growth Program. The objective of this program is to equip farmers with better agronomy practices that will enable them to increase their yields, improve storage and thus have enough food for consumption and surplus for sale.

As a contribution towards the above objective, a group of 35 beneficiary farmers in Lwabala village, were trained on pre-harvest handling in March 2023. We are pleased that the training increased farmers’ knowledge and inspired them to adopt practices that are going to change the face of farming and thus transform their lives as farmers.

Through this training, the beneficiaries learned the appropriate steps to take before planting, which include; site selection, land preparation (bush clearing, removing tree stamps, ploughing at least 21 days before planting), fertilizer application and planting on the onset of the rain.

This training also helped beneficiaries know the maize varieties that yield highest in the region (Bazuka and Longe 10). As a result, they purchased and planted the right seeds, thus expecting a better harvest as compared to the earlier seasons.

“Before coming for this training, I ignorantly planted over five seeds per hole. Thanks to the training, I realized how much I was losing by using that practice for years.” A beneficiary narrated.

Visiting the demonstration garden provided farmers such an opportunity to practically see the better way of farming. Through this, they witnessed first-hand the appropriate spacing, small drainage channels to drain away running water, how to intercrop, and so on. This visit put an end to some of the bad practices they were employing, as shared below.

“I used to plant a maize grain and a bean seed in the same hole. I’ve learnt that this was wrong. Going forward therefore, I will plant them in separate rows to improve my yields” said Mohammed.

Furthermore, the team is planning a monitoring visit to the farmers this month to continue supporting them in attaining the desired results. Farmers will also be trained in post-harvest handling in July to help them prevent grain losses that occur due to poor storage and drying mechanisms. 

We are grateful to you for your support, which has enabled us to consistently deliver this program.