We’re off the ground!

Last week, the first ploughing was completed in Opedi! Almost 9 acres have been cleared and prepared for the coming season as we begin our first community farm.

After revising the budget to match our current financial resources (UGX 5,000,000 / €1,200), we decided to scale down the project for the first season. While this was necessary, it will also allow us to learn from both our successes and areas for improvement while continuing our fundraising efforts. This will enable us to expand the project next season with more knowledge and resources.

The project will start in Opedi, one of the most remote locations within the project area, with 9 of the 70 available acres. In addition, we are starting with a small group of outgrowers cultivating around 30 acres. And coffee!

Through a government programme, we have received coffee seedlings free of charge. Since it takes up to three years before the first harvest, we will begin distributing the seedlings and providing training across the different project locations. In doing so, we hope to build trust within the communities and demonstrate that this project is not a flash in the pan, but something intended to remain for the long term.

Perhaps you wonder why there is such a need to build that trust, or why it might be lacking in the first place. The history of the region plays an important role in answering that question. When the war ended and the LRA left in 2006, international aid organisations arrived one after another. Food and clothing were distributed, schools were built, and medical support was provided. Whenever one project ended, another was often ready to begin.

This support was both important and necessary for the post-war region. However, most projects focused on providing assistance rather than building something sustainable that communities could eventually take ownership of and continue themselves. As a result, many people have come to view projects as temporary; sooner or later, they will come to an end.

While a major difference is that this project is run by the local parish rather than a foreign organisation, a change in mindset does not happen automatically. That is why we aim to involve communities in discussions about the project’s design and future. We want people to understand that, financially, the project can become self-sustaining if the people are willing to take ownership of it.

A quick return to the ploughed field. Looking at the soil and the types of plants growing there, it is clear that the land is fertile. For now, the field will rest for three weeks until the second round of ploughing. In the meantime, new weeds may emerge, which will be removed during the second ploughing when the large clods of soil are broken down into a soft, fine seedbed.

On our way back, a woman stopped us on the road and asked whether she could get a ride to her village. She told us she was part of a group of twenty women who had established a savings and loan association together. Aha! That is exactly the kind of initiative we hope the project will eventually support.

“Here, here, here!”

As she got out of the car, we agreed to visit her group soon to discuss the next steps of the farming project.

“Apwoyo matek.”

“Wanen!”