By Frederick Womakuyu

FACT FILE
Name: Ali Alias Ajaru
Location of farm: Ongeroi Village, 1km from Amuria town council, Amuria District
Farm size:Eight acres
Enterprises: Fish farming, Rice growing, eucalyptus, citrus
How he started: with three cows and now earns sh20m annually and by October 2009, he projects earnings of sh100m.
winning formula: Hard work and perseverance
Total income: sh20m per year
Contact: +256772997794

RIDING down a rutted road, the dust raised by incoming motorists engulfs the air, reducing the visibility of my cyclist. When we slow down and the the dust clears,we see a gigantic bald-headed man seated next to a permanent house, surrounded by three fish ponds.

He was throwing food crumbs into the ponds but when he sees us, his face lights up with a smile. He surrenders the only seat to me, but out of respect, I choose to stand.
At 55, Ali Alias Ajaru is sure age is catching up with him and needs something he will fall back to when he can work no more.

Through Amilimil Ongeroi farming project, Ajaru, with two wives and eight children, has been doing fish farming, citrus farming, eucalyptus and rice growing.

He has built a permanent house and pays fees for his children from this project. Ajaru emerged from war with only three cows in 1990, but now earns sh20m annually.

He believes that by October, 2009, he will be earning sh100m if President Yoweri Museveni fulfills the pledge of 50,000 fish fries (young fish) he promised when he visited him recently.

Born in Ongeroi village in Amuria district, Ajaru was raised by peasant parents who cultivated cotton to send their children to school.

â€œI went to school and stopped in Junior Two. My father could not afford fees anymore,â€ he says. He was later admitted to a technical school to study typing and accounts.

Ajaru graduated with a certificate and got a job in Kampala in 1973 as a bus conductor.

â€œI worked for two years and the company collapsed. With no other option, I went back home and joined my father in farming,â€ Ajaru explains. â€œMy father cultivated cotton and owned 300 head of cattle.â€

But when a rebel group, the Uganda Peoples Army, then based in Teso region, launched a rebellion against the government, almost all the cattle was stolen.

â€œI was left with only three cows. Life became hard and I was homeless,â€ Ajaru recalls.
When the war ended in 1990, fearing cattle raids from the Karimojong, he sold the animals and went into farming.

He bought 1,202 eucalyptus tree seedlings and 200 local orange seeds at sh50 each and planted on two and six acres respectively.

â€œThe trees matured fast and I sold each at sh3,000, raising about sh2m. Unfortunately, the oranges took long because I did not have the technology to care for them well,â€ Ajaru adds.

He could not afford pesticides and manure to improve on the soil. But using the money he got, Ajaru pruned his citrus and bought farm inputs.

â€œIn 1998, an opportunity struck. I was elected chairman of Promoting Farmers Initiative (PFI) Teso branch, an association that teaches farmers about modern farming. They taught us how to harvest water and manure,â€ he says.

After applying the knowledge, Ajaruâ€™s oranges flowered. At the same time, he bought about 1,000 exotic oranges. â€œIn 2002, I harvested 100 bags and sold each at sh10,000. I got sh10m and built my first house,â€ he explains.

In 2003, when he was expecting a bumper harvest, the Lordâ€™s Resistance Army rebels struck their village.

â€œI run and left everything. The rebels stayed in my house for two months and burnt and destroyed the oranges,â€ he says. They spared the house.

When Ajaru sought compensation from the government, he was invited to Rwakitura by President Yoweri Museveni, who offered him two heifers and a water pump to rehabilitate his project.

When he came back, PFI sponsored him to South Africa to attend a farmerâ€™s forum. â€œI learnt land management skills. But I also discovered that South Africans were managing land badly,â€ he says.

They were using a lot of chemical fertilisers on their land.
â€œI was given a chance to present a paper on land management skills. I posed a question to the audience: do you know why you will die soon? I gave them five minutes, but everybody failed to answer,â€ he says.

Ajaru offered to answer and lectured the audience that studies he had carried out revealed that soils where chemical fertilisers are used, pollute food and also reduce soil fertility over the years.

â€œThey shorten the life span of people. During that conference, we had a chance to practically test the soils and the food,â€ he adds. â€œWe later confirmed this and the audience asked me for a solution.â€

He told them to turn to organic farming. â€œOrganic farming involves use of farmyard manure. It is natural, sustainable and the plant takes up 100% nutrients and never gets exhausted.â€

They rewarded Ajaru by sponsoring him to Namibia for another conference. â€œIn Namibia, farming was difficult. The soil was sandy and wind blew crops,â€ he says.

â€œThey used a lot of chemicals in the soil, making it lose fertility. I advised them to practise irrigation and avoid chemicals.

He also told them to dig deep holes, plant the crop and later use pegs to support it from the wind. In Namibia, he learnt that people had turned to fishing and were making millions of dollars.

â€œI met one man who had six fish ponds and was selling 200 fish per day. He was training his children to inherit the project when he passed on,â€ he says. â€œHis life was better than mine.

They did not have enough water and depended on irrigation.â€ We have enough water here but do not exploit it.

When Ajaru came back, he set up two fish ponds and when the National Agricultural Research Organisation were doing research on new fish feeds, they chose his ponds for the experiment.

â€œThey did research on feeds for cat fish and tilapia. They were trying to get the right feeds,â€ he says. â€œAfter a year, the experiment ended and left me with 6,000 fish.â€

He sold the fish at sh1,500 each and got sh9m. â€œI also sold two plots of land and bought a plot at sh3m, next to the town council. I used the rest of the money to construct eight fish ponds,â€ he says.

He also constructed a small house next to the ponds to store fish feeds, harvested fish and accommodation for a security guard.

â€œThat is when NAADS selected me as a model farmer and when the president came, he made a stop over at my project,â€ he said.

President Museveni gave Ajaru sh15m to help him in his project. â€œI used sh8m to buy a pick-up for transport and saved sh7m, which I am using to dig 10 more fish ponds,â€ he adds.

He also used part of the money to cultivate eight acres of rice. Ajaru is happy that his life has improved and the challenge is to train other farmers.

â€œI am now a consultant. The community organises two seminars every week on farming and invites me to teach farmers about modern farming techniques,â€ he says.

He says the challenge the community faces is the persistent drought that dries up the crops. Ajaru requested the president to dig a dam for the community to carryout irrigation.

But for the moment, he is happy that he has achieved President Museveniâ€™s vision of having at least every homestead in Uganda earn sh20m annually.

If you know of anyone who has made money through an enterprising venture, nominate them for recognition.
Write to features@newvision.co.ug, or send a fax to 0414232050

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