School Garden Project is Buzzing…
Rose, the head teacher at Nayenga Primary School and the excited (well some) students
There was so much excitement yesterday at the Nayenga Primary School when they heard they were selected to be one of the first schools for the garden project. The kids' smiles just grew and grew. (As you might have guessed this blog post will have a few puns about gardening.)
We’re also excited to be starting our school garden project in Kamuli District, Uganda. Our local advisors, Prossy and Betty, along with the teachers and the community, have been the advocates for getting this project started. Students, teachers, staff and the community will be building raised-bed organic vegetable gardens using rain capture and drip irrigation. The gardens will be maintained by the students and teachers and the students will be harvesting the vegetables.
Why It Matters
Malnutrition and food insecurity continue to impact children the most in rural Uganda. Three in ten children are undernourished causing stunted growth both physically and mentally. If you’ve ever been hungry, even for just a little while, you know that gnawing feeling in your stomach. These children experience that feeling just about every day.
Most often, lunch at school is the only meal each day for kids which is a helping of posho. This is cornflour cooked in boiling water until it’s a paste-like consistency. While it fills bellies with carbohydrates, kids need more vitamins than they are getting. The school gardens will improve nutrition among the students at the primary schools in Kamuli district, and most importantly teach about nutrition and promote healthy farming practices in the communities.
Making a Difference
The school gardens will be providing vegetables such as eggplants, tomatoes, peppers, and beets. 950 children and 50 teachers will benefit from this project. We will also be planting trees around the school properties to help with soil erosion and aid in reforestation to improve climate conditions. While we provide the “seed” funds, the school and community will eventually be owners and managers of the project. As with all our projects, there is a plan for transferring responsibility back to the community, which is a true partnership.
Gardeners United
For those of us who enjoy gardening and get excited putting our hands into the soil, we can relate to the kids’ excitement. Especially that feeling of picking and eating something we’ve grown ourselves. Of course living in rural Uganda they’ve seen crops grow, but they will have ownership and a real stake in their school garden. We’re looking forward to seeing the project from start to harvest
With Gratitude,
Mary Muroski, Founder & Director
P.S. - Changemakers Needed- You can learn more about getting involved with this project here. It’s thanks to our generous donors that these kids, and the communities will have nutritious food. Just $25 funds a garden share and for another $10 you can fund 5 trees. We’ll be sharing updates on Instagram and Facebook, and through email all along as this project gets underway and grows!
