Fruits give Nwoya youths hope but govt delaying to establish factory

At 19 years, she was already a mother. While motherhood is considered a blessing, hers came with multiple challenges.

The father of her newborn not only mistreated her, he also adamantly refused to cater for the baby’s needs. With little hope, she wandered from one place to another to fend for her baby. Her marriage eroded her self-esteem and troubled her conscience.

She considered herself a total failure and toyed with suicidal feelings. But in 2020, something unexpected happened. A partnership between Delight Uganda Limited, Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) and Mastercard Foundation to launch a youth empowerment project in agriculture changed her life.

As one of the interested youths in her area, she was trained in fruit farming, modern agricultural practices as well as financial literacy. Then she received seeds and fertilizers to start her own agricultural venture. Three years later, twenty-six-year-old Milly Oroma, a resident of Anaka in Nwoya district, is living a dignified and meaningful life.

“When I first heard about this project, I was scared of joining it because my self-esteem was low thanks to my past experience in marriage. But I was encouraged by friends to give it a try and one day, I gained the courage and requested to join. I was registered and started learning. In the training, I found many young single mothers and this gave me confidence as I realized that I wasn’t alone,” Oroma says.

“At the end of the training, we were given seedlings and fertilizers to also urged to plant our own fruits and crops. But we continued coming to Delight Uganda and learning even more. Currently, I grow crops and also rear poultry.”

She proudly affirms that this project has transformed her from a desperate single mother into a confident, self-sustaining and productive businesswoman.

“I am now able to take care of myself, pay my seven-year-old’s school fees, and support my parents and siblings. I have since been able to save some money and acquire two acres of land at Shs 1.5 million each, that I am using for fruit farming. My dream is to become as successful as Dr Julian Adyeri (the proprietor of the Delight Farm) and create opportunities for hundreds of youths that are suffering like I used to,” Oroma said.

Oroma is not alone. Hundreds of other young women and men have benefited from the Delight for Youth project. The project is hosted by Delight Uganda Limited, a nucleus farm of approximately 2,000 acres of land; 1,000 acres of mangoes, 150 acres of citrus, 350 acres of guavas, 50 acres of cashew nuts, 500 acres of clonal eucalyptus, and 200 acres of compensatory forests.

The project is part of the Lead Firm Structure (LFS) implemented by PSFU. According to Brendah Ankunda, the PSFU investment specialist in charge of crops, 56 per cent of 6,300 beneficiaries of this project are young women, many of whom are single mothers.

“At least 6,300 young women and men have been trained in fruit farming, modern agricultural practices, animal rearing, financial literacy and business management. The beneficiaries include many single mothers and young couples. Those that have been trained will now be primary producers of fruits such as mangoes, citrus, and guavas for the Delight Factory that will process them into juice and other value-added products.”

Further, Mr Apollo Muyanja-Mbaziira, the Lead Firm Structure (LFS) project director, noted that minus counting the thousands that have been trained, the success rate of this initiative is measured in terms of money that goes in the pockets of the young people.

“Success for this project means a young person earning at least $100 dollars (Shs 370,000) per month, sustained over a year. Success for this project also means that the beneficiaries have learnt that earning is not enough but how the money earned is used is more important. That is why from the stories you have heard, the beneficiaries are saying that they can now run their businesses and sustain their livelihoods. Success also means that the crops and fruits planted here have a ready market,” Muyanja explained.

“This region has a lot of young mothers, as young as thirteen years. These are young people with so much responsibility. Success further means that such people are given an opportunity to learn, earn and live a good life.”

DELAYED FRUIT FACTORY ESTABLISHMENT MAY SPOIL THE PARTY!

Even though more youths continue to get involved in fruit farming, the government’s failure to establish a fruit juice processing factory in Nwoya district continues to undermine their efforts.

According to media reports, the fruit factory that is meant to sit on 1,700 acres in Nwoya district, Acholi sub-region, was meant to be expedited as directed by President Museveni in a letter addressed to the Agriculture and Finance ministries on May 10, 2018.

The said letter tasked the two ministries to fast-track the establishment of this factory so that farmers’ ripe fruits don’t rot in the gardens. Unfortunately, up to this day, Museveni’s directive has never been acted upon.

Dr Julian Adyeri, the Delight Uganda Limited chief executive officer, noted that the area urgently needs a fruit factory so that the farmers’ efforts don’t go to waste. She noted that her company has been actively engaging the government and private players to find about the availability of the Shs 17.6bn required for establishing this facility.

To this, Stephen Asiimwe, the PSFU chief executive officer, noted at a recent function in the area that although the establishment of a factory is a priority, high-level market linkages will temporarily provide ready markets for the fruits harvested in Nwoya and other northern Ugandan districts.

“At PSFU, we are in the business of growing businesses. Delight Uganda Limited is an important prospect for us and, as such, we are going to walk with them on the journey to ensure that they set up the factory here. They shared with us details and we know that they need about 4.3 million Euros to set it up,” Asiimwe said, adding; “But we also believe in market linkages and that is why today, Soroti Fruit Factory and other fruit juice processors were part of this stakeholders engagement meeting. So, we are telling Delight Uganda that as you prepare to set up your factory, don’t sweat too much; get the fruits and supply them to these fruit juice producers. So that even in the future when there is surplus, you have a market to supply to.”