Visit to Busoga Farmers Resource Centre.
Visit to Busoga Farmers Resource Centre.
Yesterday I led a team from church to the farm of Pastor Dauson Musasizi located in Busembatia area in Namutumba district, about 50kms outside of Jinja. The pastor and his team are engaged in different farming activities.On his 25 acre farm he grows fish, cattle, Bananas, bees, beans, oranges,coffee,etc. He also makes organic pesticides and fertilizers. He has a training center for those interested in modern farming. He is making millions of shillings every year from his modern farm while his neighbor
s and others are sleeping with their land idle.
He told me a story of how he one time offered to train all pastors in Namutumba district for free in modern farming methods plus donation of up to 100 free banana suckers to each pastor. He told me that many pastors declined the offer and only a few went for the training. Some claimed that they were not ‘called’ to be farmers! Well, maybe so. In Genesis 2:8, 2:15, we see that God himself planted a garden and instructed Man to work and take care of the Garden of Eden.
Now,Namutumba district is very remote and rural area.Subsistence farming is the main activity that majority of people, including those we pastor,there engage in on a daily basis. Everyone in this district including pastors have to eat every day. Well, maybe not everyone will be a farmer. But why should we import food from China when we can grow our own, even if for home consumption only. The habit of complaining and blaming others for our problems when we can do something,is one thing am tire of.
Pastors can play a big role in mobilizing rural people for community agricultural Transformation projects, but they would have to first buy into (believe in) these projects themselves before they can invite their followers to do the same.
Population of Uganda right now is about 40 million people, on top of that, Uganda’s growth rate is about 3.2, which means that about 1 million babies are born every year. Now where will the food to feed all these babies come from if we don’t mobilize our people to utilize their idle lands? Why should World food program(WFP)continue feeding Ugandans when we already have a big rare blessing in the form of fertile idle land?
Blessings – Edward
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