From seeds to vibrant plants for food!

Tweheyo Robert and Mushamba Moses have worked with the Batwa families to fully plant the new 10 acres of farm land.  The next phase, in a few weeks, will be weeding of the new plants.

Beans, maize, pumpkins and cassava have been planted for this first season.

The beans will take approximately three months to grow.  We hope to harvest in June.

The maize will take four to five months to grow and the harvest is planned for July and August.

It is possible to plant and grow two crops of beans and maize per year.

The pumpkins will take three months to grow and harvesting can begin in July and August. 

Pumpkins can continue to grow and be harvested for about two years.

Cassava takes approximately one year to grow before harvesting.  We hope to harvest Cassava in March or April of 2024.

BATWA FARM PROJECT AT MATANDA [KIHIHI] UGANDA

            UPDATE APRIL 16, 2023 by Les Omotani

The Batwa families have reported being excited and positive about the farm and they have enjoyed every step of farming.  Plans are being developed for a small accommodation facility at the farm so the Batwa can spend longer periods of time at the farm.

Plans are being formed for transportation and also a storage facility for the harvested crops.

A local farmer has also worked with Sahaya and Rafiki Memorial Wildlife Conservation Initiative to sell an additional two acres of productive farm land to the Batwa Farm project at Matanda.  To date the new farm will now consist of 12 acres of productive land.  This farmer is very supportive of the new farm project and is willing to provide his personal support and assistance to help make the Batwa farm project a success.

http://rafikiwildlife.org/batwa-farm/

We hope there we can avoid the need to purchase, donate and distribute food to the families of Bwindi in the future.  We hope that this new farm project will allow many Batwa families and settlements to achieve food self-sufficiency in the future.