Gender Equality Uganda Project #48520

1,000 Women's Gardens for Health and Nutrition

by Rwenzori Center for Research and Advocacy

Summary

Your donations will support 1,000 organic home gardens and 80 community gardens managed by rural and small town women in Kasese District, Uganda. Small-scale organic gardens empower women to feed their families with nutritious foods, generate income, buffer against illness and hunger, and nurture the soil. "We learned sanitation, family planning, nutrition, kitchen gardening, and health education from RCRA..as for me the good life that we are in is because of kitchen gardening." Mother of 7

$150,000
total goal

$27,198
remaining

200
donors

6
monthly donors

8
fundraisers

3
years

Challenge

In Kasese District, 85% of households make a living as subsistence farmers on degraded land and hunger and malnutrition are chronic issues. Over 40% of children 5-59 months old are stunted and 13% are wasted. Women are the main farmers of food but need support to improve crop diversity and productivity. Other women lack access to land but can garden collectively. Better nutrition is essential for improving the health status of children and school performance.

Solution

Enabling women's organic gardens is a gateway to food secure and climate resilient families in the Rwenzori Region. Mixed gardens are a low-cost and effective way to increase vegetable and fruit consumption and empower women to generate and spend income on family needs. This project also supports ASRH Gatherings for Young Mother Gardeners, to discuss and address the aspirations and needs of the whole adolescent. We work with local leaders for buy-in and expansion over time.

Long-Term Impact

This project will significantly improve the dietary diversity, nutrition, health and welfare of 1,000 rural and small-town families in Kasese District. It will provide a partnership model of effective support for home and community gardens for replication and scaling-up throughout Uganda. Women managed gardens empower women to feed their families, earn income, reduce domestic tension and, eventually, command community respect.