6/12/15
I have seen so many parts of Uganda, but today driving to Kihihi from Rukungiri, where we are staying, to visit the Rice Farmer Cooperative I saw perhaps one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. The long dirt road winds through the tall mountains, which are literally covered in banana trees for as far as the eye can see. The trees look as though they are flowing down the mountains in liquid form and on the tops of the mountains they look like windmills. There is a river running fast in the valley below and the contrast of the brightest greens of hillsides and the red mud of the road is striking. Last year, we didn’t take this route, as the bridge was down, so this was my first time seeing this spectacular sight.
First, we went to the rice processing plant that was funded by Pilot Light. There are over 1000 members of the cooperative and this is where they can bring their rice to be hulled, once they have harvested and dried it. The plant is larger than the coffee processing plant we visited yesterday, but as luck would have it, the power in the whole town was off in order for the power lines to be worked on, so we did not get to see the plant in action. It was built after my visit last June, so I have yet to witness it. However, while waiting for the power to go back on, I had the chance to make some new little friends, three siblings, who entertained me for a long time.
We visited three rice farmers with different sized farms. One couple, Florence and her husband, have increased their harvested rice by more than five times, since joining the cooperative. They are now able to hire additional labor and used the micro loan group to buy a tarp for laying the rice to dry in the sun. Another farmer named John told us that he has doubled his land and increased his income by half.
The farmers told me that the factory helps them produce better quality, as the machine hulls the rice more neatly and completely. The cooperative allows farmers to process store and sell in bulk to make more profit. I learned that there are two seasons per year.
We stopped at the market to speak to two members of the microloan group. I bought delicious raw peanuts, called groundnuts here, fresh from the farm. One member we spoke to was a woman named Prossy, whose toddler was sleeping on a mat in the middle of the tiny store. She showed me the large sacks of ground peanuts, millet, rice and many other things she had displayed out front of her store and told me that the loan helped her to increase her business and pay for healthcare, school fees and other needs for her children.
We drove towards Democratic Republic of Congo, which is only 3-6 miles from where we had our last meeting of the day. We gathered in the yard of a cluster of small houses with a group of rice farmers. Just after we started the discussion, the dark clouds began to erupt with lightening and soon the clouds opened up with a torrential of rain. Everyone, about 13 people, quickly moved inside of a house that was about 10 ft. by 10 ft and dark. The roof was iron sheet and the sound of rain pummeling down made it really difficult to hear. Nonetheless, we discussed the structure of the cooperative and how to address certain challenges. Delphin, our partners Arthur, Solomon and Ezra and I made a run for the cars as soon as the rain lessened a little bit. It had rained so much in such a short time that there were ducks swimming in the front yard where no pond had been when we arrived.
Rand, the friend/filmmaker who is here with me said that Ugandans are the friendliest people he has ever met and I agreed, BUT they are the worst drivers!! We made our way back through the banana river to the town where are staying for the night and now we have a couple days of driving and relaxing to do before going back to Kigali to visit more projects.
