1. Women empowerment

We have made significant progress in women’s engagement in the agricultural sector through the Living Smiles Foundation, in the five domains of empowerment: agricultural production, resources, income, leadership, and time. Despite their critical and potentially transformative role in agricultural growth, Ugandan women are relatively disadvantaged in land ownership and Labor market participation.

SMILES FOR HER    

Smiles for Her is a project by the Living Smiles Foundation that started in 2020 as a savings group led by twenty female farmers in Masaka, and quickly expanded its scope. We trained the members in climate-smart agriculture, enhancing their skills in soil improvement through compost-making, irrigation, ridge-making, mulching, and water conservation techniques.

Women generally engage in less lucrative agricultural activities, such as subsistence farming. But now, they are united as women, they share the money they earn to expand their acreage and diversify their crops. The project focuses on economic activities for women in vulnerable communities. Today, women talk about farming methods, which only men would do in the past. This also encourages youth to join us.’

Making women’s voices heard is not the only achievement of the project, members now have money for their children’s school fees. they farm together and support each other. This makes the process manageable and less straining for one individual farmer.

This project shows how promoting women’s economic empowerment can lead to sustainable agriculture and help communities move forward and address the food security concerns in their communities.

2. Training

Household Development Training

We help rural families achieve economic security In the communities where we operate, household members frequently lack the skills to explore available possibilities for employment, the ability to develop their careers and financial futures, and the essential knowledge of finances required to manage household income and expenditure. The Kelthan development program will increase individuals’ skills and capacity to contribute to the economic security and advancement of their households.

The Kelthan Development Project seeks to empower families, especially youth, women, and farmers, to generate more income, reduce poverty and malnutrition through financial literacy practices, develop their abilities to be entrepreneurs, create and reinforce income-generating activities, and enhance household knowledge and skills on nutritious diets and food decisions.

We are creating economic opportunities to achieve improved security through the following goals:

1. Increase the capacity of women, youth, and farmers to apply money management practices
2. Develop the entrepreneurial potential of women, youth (aged 15-30), in and out of school, and farmers’ groups.
3. Increase the capacity of women, youth, and farmers to implement income-generating activities.
4. Increase households’ adoption of nutritious food choices.