Ssezibwa Demonstration Farm
In the Mukono district of Uganda, a demonstration farm taught over 185 families how to grow food, raise livestock and eat better. The ultimate goal: to no longer need us.
The context
The Mukono district was historically a reference point for agriculture in Uganda. Demographic pressure and overuse of the land have progressively eroded that reputation, pushing many families into growing vulnerability. The infant mortality rate in the area stands at 64 per thousand children.
How it works
The Ssezibwa Demonstration Farm was established in 2012 as a centre for agricultural and livestock training for local communities. Not a distribution of aid, but a transfer of knowledge — with a precise mechanism: those who receive, give back.
Over 185 families were introduced to sustainable farming and livestock techniques, with particular attention to the most vulnerable groups: pregnant mothers, the elderly, families with young children, HIV-positive people, people with disabilities, widows supporting families.
Each beneficiary family sends one representative to be trained in agricultural and livestock techniques. With the Foundation's funds, 1,000 chicks, 40 piglets and tonnes of maize, bean, soy and pea seeds were purchased. The offspring of animals are divided: part stays with the family, part returns to the farm for redistribution to other families. After the first harvest, 5 kg of seeds must be returned to the farm's seed bank. The cycle sustains itself.
The farm also includes a fish farming operation — tilapia and catfish, distributed to pregnant mothers — a solar-powered pump for the existing well, 10,000-litre tanks for irrigation during dry seasons, and a nutritional training programme to teach beneficiaries how to grow and use vegetables properly.
The most important result
After three years of activity, the Ssezibwa Demonstration Farm became economically self-sufficient. It no longer depends on external funding. That was exactly the goal.
Why we do it
Economic autonomy is not something you give away — it is built through shared skills and self-sustaining mechanisms. The Ssezibwa Demonstration Farm is one of the most concrete examples of this principle: an investment of €198,000 that generated autonomy, and that continues to do so even without us.
