APRIL 27th, 2020
GRANDMOTHERS KITCHEN GARDEN PROJECT
According to the UN’s World Food Programme, hunger is coming in full force to East Africa due to Covid-19.
Due to the pandemic and impending repercussions many people are dealing with extreme hunger and food shortages.
The grandmothers are the caregivers for many children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. The children are not going to school due to Covid-19 closures and the pressure on grandmothers to feed large families is serious.
Our project manager Patrick Paul Kidega decided to donate his time and resources and in his words, “We have decided to do something, a new calling, aspire to inspire with permaculture. We have selected 15 elderly women age 70 and above to go design for them a 10m by 3m kitchen garden and plant assorted vegetables, 6 different types with onion, egg plants, tomatoes so that in two weeks they have there some vegetables ready.” Yes they can have a full crop of cowpeas in that short period!
Patrick has amassed 59 commitments from young people who are eager to help dig and learn important permaculture skills and give back to their community. In return, they will be able to go home with simple techniques that will give them the ability to grow food for themselves. The project will also provide breakfast and lunch.
The curfews, travel restrictions, business closures and gathering bans are deeply affecting Ugandans. Patrick is initiating a program, “that would do something amazing during this lockdown. I know many shall get inspired by our permaculture kitchen gardens and be creative and be positive about this pandemic. Hunger is coming in full force.”
We have been able to establish 65 gardens so far on a shoestring which is incredible! This low-budget, high-impact project is changing lives on a daily basis!
We also planted 200 fruit trees last month. The goal was to plant 5 trees per Grandmothers Garden for the 40 gardens we had already installed. Grafted mangos, grafted oranges, jackfruit, avocado and guava trees were planted at each site. This will enhance soil health, provide another business option for the families and give them access to more nutritious food for years to come. We are working toward our funding goal of implementing 35 more gardens for a total of 100 gardens and planting 200 more trees.
There is still time to sponsor one of these life changing gardens and fruit tree planting initiative! Your generous donation will make a huge difference to the Grandmothers Kitchen Garden Project.
We totally understand that times are financially difficult for some right now so you can also help by sharing and being an ambassador for our cause!
We thank you so much for supporting us by liking our posts, commenting on our work, sending us emails. All these acts encourage us to continue our life-changing work!
The entire REFARMERS team in Canada, Uganda and the grandmothers and children in Kitgum warmly thank you.
Apwoyo Matek! (Thank you in Acholi, the local dialect of Kitgum, Uganda)
We have reached our 100 garden goal! We started the Grandmothers Kitchen Garden Project as a response to COVID-19 on May 4th and since then have positively impacted the lives of over 1000 people with simple permaculture skills and small kitchen gardens. We did it on a shoestring with your help and are so feeling so proud today!
This phase of our Grandmothers Kitchen Garden Project has come to a close but it is far from being over for the team in Kitgum. Although there is still a long wait list of families wanting to be a part of this program, we are holding off on establishing more gardens in order to strengthen the peanut butter social enterprise we are developing, VSLA (Village Savings and Loans Association) we are conceiving and building on other things like rabbit and duck systems we wish to implement with gardens in the future. Some of the team will remain employed in order to continue helping with garden maintenance and the other things previously mentioned while some have other opportunities they will be moving on to.
We will establish kitchen gardens at all their homes so that they can become self-reliant as well and work on their entrepreneurial skills through this small homestead farm which has allowed our project manager Patrick Paul himself to become self-sufficient and live comfortably with his family. We will keep you posted regularly on all new developments and are looking to start this type of kitchen garden project in many other districts!
We are also still actively looking for funding to help support the ongoing efforts of the team. If you feel like you can help us at this time, we would be eternally grateful! It is truly amazing that a small investment of time and money can completely alter the course of a person’s life! It is so inspiring to us and hopefully will inspire you to support our work further so that we can continue bringing self-reliance and empowerment to the women, children and families of Uganda.
Thank you!
