Farm Clinics: Changing the lives of the farmers

What you need to know:

  • One year in farming can be such a short time. Just last August, farmers from all over the country were jostling for knowledge at Kabanyolo and 12 months later, the success stories they are sharing are not only overflowing but also inspiring and amazing, writes Denis Bbosa.

“Knowledge is power. I have attended several agribusiness refreshing courses since 1980 hoping to learn the latest farming trends,” 81-year old Henry Kanyike proudly says.
His diary states he has meetings on September 1 – the Seeds of Gold Farm Clinic day – but he is ready to skip the afternoon session and drive to Kabanyolo since he lives nearby in Lusaze. “I urge all farmers to attend because in farming you need expert information even though you have a rich educational background. The Farm Clinics are positive, they are open up sessions and offer a wide range of enterprises to active and prospective farmers,” Kanyike who been in dairy farming business since 1972 at Kiteezi – Lusanja reveals.

Benefits
Despite that vast experience in farming, Kanyike also a soil scientist is particular when enumerating the tangible benefits he accrued from the last Farm Clinic outing at Makerere University Agricultural Research Centre, Kabanyolo (MUARIK). “First of all the farm clinic session enlightened me on how to improve my cow shades and management of the pigsty. I learned a lot in improving my poultry and most of all making value addition from my animals, banana plantations, and milk,” Kanyike explains.
The veteran farmer has since seen his milk bar in Lusanja grow into one of the largest milk, yogurt and ice cream distributors in Kampala and Wakiso districts – thanks to increased yields from his 30-acre farm.
Kanyike has zeroed down on Zero grazing method for his five cows (scaled down from about 20) and has managed to raise his own milk testing laboratory which inevitable has contributed to the high quality of his products.
Farm clinic easing government agricultural projects
The last edition of the Farm Clinic MUARIK did not border on any class, age or educational background; it was an interaction of justices, politicians, students, active and prospective farmers - young and the elderly.
Fred Bamwine, the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) of Buikwe District, who attended the clinic to boost his piggery and banana ventures, is glad to reveal that government has by default benefited from the last Farm Clinic.
“The President (Yoweri Museveni) is talking about the use of the four-acre farming model (allocating plants, animals, poultry at least an acre each) and the farm clinic has come in handy. We as political leaders are preaching it throughout the districts and after learning at the last farm clinic that it is beneficial to have a few animals on a piece of land, I have greatly seen the tangible outputs,” he said. He is anxious to attend this year’s event; “To the new attendants, I urge them to come early to tap knowledge. I learned that the traditional farming methods are wasteful and should be dropped.”
Bamwine prides in being a model zero grazing farmer now equipped with knowledge of cattle breeding, pregnancy and feeding – thanks to the farm clinic.
“I have improved from 30 litres daily to 160 litres from my eight cows and that is one reason I can’t miss the next event.” He calls on the organisers to think of ‘decongesting’ the session by making it a two-day event.
Farmers seek knowldege
The relationship created between the participants and the facilitators is still bearing fruits. Crop expert Julius Ahangaana, who handled the passion fruit enterprises then is still monitoring the majority of his students to date.
“The farmers got to know where to buy authentic products and how to manage grafted plants. On a monthly basis I receive requests for grafted passion fruit seedlings from hundreds of farmers,” he reveals. Ahangaana has taken it a notch higher by visiting extensive farmers in Wakiso, Kamuli, Kampala and Masaka districts to see the progress of the Kabanyolo farm clinic hands-on tutorials.
“The disease rate has significantly reduced since then because farmers can now identify and manage the pests and virus. Before, they would hurt the crops and spread the diseases themselves,” says Ahangaana.
Sponsors getting value for money
“Our mission is to promote private sector agribusiness development to enhance wealth creation in Uganda. Therefore, as a champion for agri-business in Uganda the farm clinics have for the past two years provided aBi with a platform to reach out to all the agribusiness stakeholders through information dissemination, training and capacity building, influencing policy for agribusiness development and bridging the gap between farmers and agribusiness private sector actors,” says George Mutagubya, the advocacy and communications manager of aBi Trust, a sponsor of farm clinic.