
Harvesting success: A member of the farming group packs up tomatoes ready for market
Off-season vegetable production proves profitable in Uganda
Connie Akware
Inspired by the communal farming groups established in their area, a group of youngsters decided to follow suit and launch their own farmers’ association.
The Creative and Innovative Youth Group noticed that the demand for tomatoes was higher at certain times of the year and decided to work together to increase the production of tomatoes and other vegetables.
They approached ForAfrika for assistance; our extension workers helped them to organise themselves as a group, which included both refugees and members of the host community. The group was provided with training on good agronomic practices and business skills, such as setting up communal loans and savings. They were also given farm inputs, such as seeds and tools.
Gap in the market
The group sells their tomatoes to traders who then transport them to markets in the region. One crate of tomatoes costs about $30 during the off season.

“We started growing tomatoes because of significantly higher prices in the market during dry season,” says Samuel Dramani, chairperson for the group. “With the help of irrigation equipment we got from ForAfrika and with support from UN-WFP, we harvested 245 crates of tomatoes which we sold and got about $7,000!
“Some of the money was used for buying seeds for the next season, while the rest was used for meeting our basic needs. Some members took loans from the group’s savings and set up small businesses that now bring them income on a daily basis.”
Angujeru Annet, one of the group’s members, said that traders have started booking tomatoes from the field for supply before harvest, giving the group hopes of even better business yields this year.
Connie Akware in Monitoring and Evaluation Officer in Uganda