Getting Some Advice

At a cafe in Kampala, one morning not long ago, three of us met for a conversation. Alex and I had travelled from Buhugu the previous day, and Dorothy had arrived from Mozambique on a late flight. She'd be leaving for the US in a matter of days, and made time to meet us - to talk about chickens.

Dorothy founded an organisation that's doing some interesting work in a rural community in Uganda (Jinja district). Women's Center for Job Creation (WCFJC) is all about partnering with low income women and helping them scale up their income generating activities. It's high powered business consulting meet resourceful rural women. An MBA and US corporate experience meet goat and poultry ventures. It's women (for the most part) figuring out how to break the patterns of the world they find themselves in.

The women of WCFJC having a discussion. Dressed in blue is Dorothy.

We count WCFJC among our friends, and also clients. The monthly news updates are delivered to the web by Buhugu IT. But, when we were thinking up our poultry project, it occurred to us that we could learn much from WCFJC.

Over coffee and soda, Alex and Dorothy discussed all things chicken. It was an open and spirited exchange. It's conversations like this that spark and mould ideas that eventually find expression as a "project".

There was something unusual about it too. It is not common to find people involved in grassroots initiatives sharing openly. Perhaps it's the competition for funding or perhaps it's a fear of admitting difficulties or failures. It's a pity. For by sharing with us her ideas, contacts, successes and also challenges, Dorothy, and WCFJC, have helped us better prepare for our experiment.

Thank you, Dorothy.

Return on Investment

Mai Nalongo during the construction of the poultry house.
Many of her grandchildren are under her care.

One of the debates surrounding the poultry project had been whether we should recover the investment and if so, how.

For example, during the pilot, each household is getting an injection of 60,000 shillings (about US$ 40). (This excludes services provided voluntarily.)

Provided the pilot is successful, should the women:

• return this amount to the project

• pass it on to someone else

• treat it as a donation

What we settled on was this: each household is expected to handover two mature (hybrid) hens which would be passed on to another household.

This is only a fraction of the value of the input. And the project itself will not recover any amount that is invested. Post pilot, the investment we are looking at is US$ 5000 (for 120 households). Not a small amount to simply give out.

So, how did we arrive at this? It came down to psychology (how people, in Buhugu in particular, relate to money and the management of finances) and logistics (what it would take to recover the input in bits and pieces).

Sure it is possible to design a project whereby the beneficiaries pay back the investment (with or without interest). But, given our understanding of the dynamics involved, we know, or feel strongly, that it will not work.

So, why go ahead with this? Well, because the return on investment, makes it a no-brainer. This project has the potential to:

• increase household incomes which has a direct impact on the education, health and well being of especially the children

• increase the protein intake especially of the household members (malnutrition is prevalent in Buhugu)

• impart management skills to women

• increase the information available within the community regarding poultry rearing

And it is our hope that once enough households are taking part in the project, neighbours and friends would take note and implement it themselves. After all, we are designing the project so that the monetary input necessary to get this going, per household, is as small as possible. But, perhaps we are getting ahead of ourselves. First let's see what the pilot turns up.

More About Chickens

It's a journey that started sometime last year.

When one sees a child staying home from school, because she couldn't buy a pen or a book to write on, the temptation to simply buy her the pen or the book is a natural one, but one that we are cautious about heeding.

More interestingly, it also raises the question: why are household incomes so low that even a pen, which costs 100 shillings (1/16th of a US dollar) can be difficult to purchase at times?

Since last year, we have been having numerous discussions around this topic. Jigga Alex, one of the core I Buhugu volunteers, has been working with farmers for a number of years and has a deep understanding of the dynamics affecting the economic situation of the households in Buhugu. His insight and experience is what gave birth to the poultry project.

Over the last few weeks, Alex has been busy identifying and organising the group of ten women who will conduct the pilot, which is to last six months. If the pilot is successful, as we hope it would be, then the idea can be implemented in a greater number of households (ideally 120).

Here are some of the characteristics of the poultry project, which is heavily customised to the conditions in Buhugu:

• Hybrid poultry (cross between indigenous hens and exotic cocks): to maintain a balance between productivity (number of eggs) and “hardiness” (dietary needs and resistance to diseases).

• Distributed management: each household is responsible for the management of the poultry in their care.

• Women owned

• Technical input from qualified personnel: such as a Field Extension Officer, a veterinarian and a business consultant.

• Close monitoring: regular visits to the households to monitor the progress and provide input.

Why Chickens?

So, why did we decide on the poultry project as a viable income generating venture? Here are some compelling reasons why chickens are it:

• Anyone can take care of them (unlike cows for which you need some serious muscles)

• Not weather dependant (unlike agriculture - and the rains are screwy these days)

• The market for them is hot and is expected to remain so

• They don't need much land, which is in short supply in Buhugu.

• They offer a steady source of income. (Instead of waiting for the harvest, or for the cow to give milk, one can sell a chicken every few weeks.)

There is one caveat, however. The cost of feed is rising and is related to the rising food prices around the world. We are busy crunching some numbers to customise the project so as to minimise the impact of this.