Pepper opened the doors to wealth for Ssekanyo
Mar 09, 2009
Everyday up to the end of this month, The New Vision will run a series of stories on wealth creation role models from all over the country for Ugandans who would like to learn from them to generate wealth from our natural resources
By Joshua Kato
Everyday up to the end of this month, The New Vision will run a series of stories on wealth creation role models from all over the country for Ugandans who would like to learn from them to generate wealth from our natural resources
Standing next to one of his coffee trees, Misusera Ssekanyo Kiwuli smiles. He looks like a person who is being photographed next to an important personality. “I am proud of you,†he says. But who is Misusera proud of? It is no human being: It is a coffee tree! “This was my first coffee tree,†he says. The tree, even on the day of this visit, was the only one with ripe coffee beans and Ssekanyo had already harvested some from it.
His farm is located in Mawonvu village, Busimbi sub-county, Mityana district. “I started agriculture in the late 70s,†he says.
Difficult start
His ambitions were affected by the liberation war between 1981 and 1986. The area where his farm is located was an operation zone for the National Resistance Army.
“It was terrible. All my produce was destroyed. I had nothing to start with when I came back,†he says. He started over in 1986, when he revived his coffee shamba. “I made four good harvests between 1986 and 1990. I was harvesting an average of 150 bags a season, but then the coffee wilt struck,†he says.
When most of the coffee was destroyed, he resorted to trading in domestic merchandise in Mityana town. “I was not doing so badly, but everything was stolen,†he recalls. He had taken a bank loan to help him develop his business, but when the shop was broken into, he was left with nothing.
“The only piece of wealth I had was my land. I decided to return to it,†he says.
Breakthrough with pepper
This time round, he vowed to make the shamba his daily office. He worked hard on the land and struck gold. “I heard that hot pepper had a big market. So when I prepared my next acre of land, I planted pepper on it,†he says.
He was not disappointed because he earned sh20m from the pepper. Now, Ssekanyo plants hot pepper whenever he tills a new piece of land. He bought more land in Mawonvu, where the current farm is and has another big piece of land in Ssekanyonyi.
Diversifying
He has over 70 acres of land under agriculture. Coffee trees occupy 30 acres, while the rest is occupied by pine trees, bananas, a fish pond and eucalyptus trees.
Future earnings from coffee
“I have 10,000 coffee trees. My projection is to harvest at least 10kg from each tree, then I will earn sh12,000 from each of them,†he says. “The coffee season comes twice a year and my target is to earn at least sh100m per season,†he says. The bulk of the coffee will start producing in two years’ time but at the moment, he only earns from the 1,000 trees that he planted first.
Profitable bananas
To mitigate the costs of maintaining the coffee trees without earning from them, Ssekanyo planted bananas. The shamba is well laid-out and mulched with dry grass.
The plants are well-pruned of dry leaves (esanja). Ssekanyo has over 1,700 banana plants, over 100 of which were given to him by the National Agriculture Advisory Services (NAADS).
“I harvest 20 bunches every week and earn between sh150,000 to sh200,000 or between sh600,000 and sh800,000 a month from the bananas alone,†he says. The money helps him pay his four workers and meet his daily needs.
By the time he starts fully earning from the coffee, he expects to be earning profits since the operational expenses and investments would be already re-couped from the banana sales.
“Most times, people buy the bananas from the farm. However, sometimes they make orders and I deliver the bananas to Mityana town,†he says.
He transports the bananas in his Toyota Corolla Touring, Estate. “I bought this vehicle with the proceeds from this shamba,†he boasts. The car is in good working condition.
Fish farming
Ssekanyo has also started fish farming to widen his enterprise base. The small fish pond is already stocked with fish. He sells some of the fish to residents of the area and uses the rest to boost his family’s dietary needs.
“I am going to expand the fish pond and restock it so that it becomes fully commercial,†he says.
Challenges
One of the biggest challenges Ssekanyo faces is limited resources. “If I had enough capital to invest in this farm, I would be one of the richest farmers in the country,†he says.
The lack of money has meant that he is unable to buy the most effective fertilisers and other farm implements. Though he has ambitions of starting gravity irrigation on his farm, he has not been able to because of limited funds. “This coffee needs fertilisers to grow faster, but these things are so expensive that sometimes I do not have the resources to buy them,†he says.
However, Ssekanyo is a member of a village farmers group, Mpolampola Savings and Credit Society, which has over 30 members. He believes that with this united front, the farmers enjoy more advantages, including getting better markets for their produce.
For the last few years, he has been re-investing most of his earnings back into the farm. But now, he has broken even. “I have just started getting profits. Previously, I was just investing in the land,†he says. He is able to educate his children, service his car and live a generally decent lifestyle, thanks to farming.
Fact File
Name of farmer: Misusera Ssekanyo Kiwuli
Location of farm: Mawonvu village, Busimbi sub-county, Mityana district.
Size of farm:
70 acres.
Enterprises:
Coffee, bananas, commercial trees, hot pepper growing and a fish farm.
How he started:
In the 70s, growing coffee.
How he markets produce:
To consumers in Mityana town.
Winning formula: Supervising work at the farm.
Farmer’s contact 0772857907
If you know anyone who has made money through an enterprising venture, nominate them for recognition in the ‘Ugandans Making a Difference Project’. Write to features@newvision.co.ug, or send a fax to 0414232050
Everyday up to the end of this month, The New Vision will run a series of stories on wealth creation role models from all over the country for Ugandans who would like to learn from them to generate wealth from our natural resources
Standing next to one of his coffee trees, Misusera Ssekanyo Kiwuli smiles. He looks like a person who is being photographed next to an important personality. “I am proud of you,†he says. But who is Misusera proud of? It is no human being: It is a coffee tree! “This was my first coffee tree,†he says. The tree, even on the day of this visit, was the only one with ripe coffee beans and Ssekanyo had already harvested some from it.
His farm is located in Mawonvu village, Busimbi sub-county, Mityana district. “I started agriculture in the late 70s,†he says.
Difficult start
His ambitions were affected by the liberation war between 1981 and 1986. The area where his farm is located was an operation zone for the National Resistance Army.
“It was terrible. All my produce was destroyed. I had nothing to start with when I came back,†he says. He started over in 1986, when he revived his coffee shamba. “I made four good harvests between 1986 and 1990. I was harvesting an average of 150 bags a season, but then the coffee wilt struck,†he says.
When most of the coffee was destroyed, he resorted to trading in domestic merchandise in Mityana town. “I was not doing so badly, but everything was stolen,†he recalls. He had taken a bank loan to help him develop his business, but when the shop was broken into, he was left with nothing.
“The only piece of wealth I had was my land. I decided to return to it,†he says.
Breakthrough with pepper
This time round, he vowed to make the shamba his daily office. He worked hard on the land and struck gold. “I heard that hot pepper had a big market. So when I prepared my next acre of land, I planted pepper on it,†he says.
He was not disappointed because he earned sh20m from the pepper. Now, Ssekanyo plants hot pepper whenever he tills a new piece of land. He bought more land in Mawonvu, where the current farm is and has another big piece of land in Ssekanyonyi.
Diversifying
He has over 70 acres of land under agriculture. Coffee trees occupy 30 acres, while the rest is occupied by pine trees, bananas, a fish pond and eucalyptus trees.
Future earnings from coffee
“I have 10,000 coffee trees. My projection is to harvest at least 10kg from each tree, then I will earn sh12,000 from each of them,†he says. “The coffee season comes twice a year and my target is to earn at least sh100m per season,†he says. The bulk of the coffee will start producing in two years’ time but at the moment, he only earns from the 1,000 trees that he planted first.
Profitable bananas
To mitigate the costs of maintaining the coffee trees without earning from them, Ssekanyo planted bananas. The shamba is well laid-out and mulched with dry grass.
The plants are well-pruned of dry leaves (esanja). Ssekanyo has over 1,700 banana plants, over 100 of which were given to him by the National Agriculture Advisory Services (NAADS).
“I harvest 20 bunches every week and earn between sh150,000 to sh200,000 or between sh600,000 and sh800,000 a month from the bananas alone,†he says. The money helps him pay his four workers and meet his daily needs.
By the time he starts fully earning from the coffee, he expects to be earning profits since the operational expenses and investments would be already re-couped from the banana sales.
“Most times, people buy the bananas from the farm. However, sometimes they make orders and I deliver the bananas to Mityana town,†he says.
He transports the bananas in his Toyota Corolla Touring, Estate. “I bought this vehicle with the proceeds from this shamba,†he boasts. The car is in good working condition.
Fish farming
Ssekanyo has also started fish farming to widen his enterprise base. The small fish pond is already stocked with fish. He sells some of the fish to residents of the area and uses the rest to boost his family’s dietary needs.
“I am going to expand the fish pond and restock it so that it becomes fully commercial,†he says.
Challenges
One of the biggest challenges Ssekanyo faces is limited resources. “If I had enough capital to invest in this farm, I would be one of the richest farmers in the country,†he says.
The lack of money has meant that he is unable to buy the most effective fertilisers and other farm implements. Though he has ambitions of starting gravity irrigation on his farm, he has not been able to because of limited funds. “This coffee needs fertilisers to grow faster, but these things are so expensive that sometimes I do not have the resources to buy them,†he says.
However, Ssekanyo is a member of a village farmers group, Mpolampola Savings and Credit Society, which has over 30 members. He believes that with this united front, the farmers enjoy more advantages, including getting better markets for their produce.
For the last few years, he has been re-investing most of his earnings back into the farm. But now, he has broken even. “I have just started getting profits. Previously, I was just investing in the land,†he says. He is able to educate his children, service his car and live a generally decent lifestyle, thanks to farming.
Fact File
Name of farmer: Misusera Ssekanyo Kiwuli
Location of farm: Mawonvu village, Busimbi sub-county, Mityana district.
Size of farm:
70 acres.
Enterprises:
Coffee, bananas, commercial trees, hot pepper growing and a fish farm.
How he started:
In the 70s, growing coffee.
How he markets produce:
To consumers in Mityana town.
Winning formula: Supervising work at the farm.
Farmer’s contact 0772857907
If you know anyone who has made money through an enterprising venture, nominate them for recognition in the ‘Ugandans Making a Difference Project’. Write to features@newvision.co.ug, or send a fax to 0414232050