Agricultural Empowerment for Rural Farmers

NKobazambogo Farmers Group.
Is a community based group in manyama village, mateete sub county , Sembabule district .
It started in 2014 as a VSLA aiming at improving peoples standards of living more so women, at the start they were five women , by 2015, a number increased at a terrific speed to 40 people and by 2017, a curve reduced to thirty four members till now. In 2019, they were advised by COSMA to start up side income generating business and fortunately, they agreed and start catering service in July, 2021.Unfortunately in that very year, the COVID 19 pandemic came across and distorted everything , and immediately they resorted to farming, where they agreed to grow tomatoes on a small scale and in phases so that they can hit the market. They continued to narrate that some of the reasons as they resorted to tomato growing are:
Presence of COSMA as financial assistant
Presence of skilled personal in them.
3 Some of the materials to use are locally available like mulching materials.
4 Availability of market.
They expect to earn around 120000 to 400000 per 100kg box. So they engaged in that business after realizing that it is so profitable. However they expect challenges like
Unfriendly weather i.e. too much sunshine
Floating of the commodity
For the first phase, Nkobazambogo yield 22.5 boxes and sold at one hundred eighty thousand shillings per box making four million fifty thousand shillings though they were expecting to earn around six million shillings but still they continued with the business since they made some profits, as they invested in 1.7m and other factors like the presence of financial assistant among others as mentioned above.

Women in Uganda face significant challenges as they seek employment outside of the home. Harriet had always dreamed of becoming an example of those women struggling to make that dream a reality without the necessary training. After joining a CSRD program, she was matched with a mentor and received the business and technical skills she needed to start her Piggery.

Since the hit of COVID-19 pandemic farmers who are part of CSRD program have not only engaged in crop production but have carried out other income generating activities like poultry, piggery among others. These have helped them to realize additional household income leading to improved income and savings, hence, improved livelihood.

Additionally, the litter from the poultry and the animals are used as organic manure for the crops, and we expected, through our agronomist who has trained the farmers how to apply them, the yields will improve

Harriet aged 49 a resident of Manyama, Mateete Sub- County, Sembabule district-Uganda. She is a single mother with six children. Harriet narrates that her husband died when her children were young in primary section, the elder one by then had just completed primary seven. Harriet was stuck. Harriet is a member in Nkobazambogo Farmers Group and good enough that group is a member to COSMA where they get soft loans at an interest of 2 % as a group. Harriet, after realizing that she was stuck, planned to borrow money from the group to start a piggery project. She went to her group and asked for a loan of five hundred thousand shillings (500,000/=) at an interest of 3%, which she received. Subsequently, she used that money to construct a piggery sty, bought 2 piglets and after the piglets had grown up to pigs, one delivered 8 piglets, 2 of them died and she sold off 4 at the cost of 80,000 per piglet, remaining with 4 pigs.