R W A M W A N J A
R E F U G E E S E T T L E M E N T
L O C A T I O N
Turaco is currently based in Uganda where 70% of the population is employed in agriculture, most of which are subsistence-based smallholder farmers. Uganda also hosts 1.5 million refugees.
K A M P A L A
R W A M W A N J A
Uganda’s ‘self-reliance’ approach to policy offers refugees in Settlements access rights to approximately 0.6 acres per household. This land can be used to build a home and cultivate food for household consumption while surplus is sold on local markets. In turn, farming is the main livelihood activity for 73% of refugees in Uganda.
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We currently work in Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement, Kamwenge District. Rwamwanja is home to 79,000 refugees, mostly women and children who fled conflict in the DR. Congo.
People in Rwamwanja have some of the lowest recorded household incomes of any Settlement in Uganda. Nevertheless, it is a traditionally fertile region, with rich volcanic soils and rainfall to support two agricultural seasons. Almost all refugees in Rwamwanja are involved in farming to some degree.
Climate change is placing significant pressure on the mostly rain-fed farming systems and much of the land has become degraded through overgrazing, deforestation and continuous cultivation. There are however a number of refugee-led organisations, farmer groups and humanitarian organisations promoting more sustainable farming practices relevant to smallholder farmers.
This context means each season there is an abundance of food produced in Rwamwanja. Harvest brings lively farmer markets and much trade with the local Ugandan hosting community.
Farming in Settlements has been a key driver for improving the economic integration of refugees and relatively friendly refugee-host community relations. The most commonly grown crop in Rwamwanja is maize, harvested twice per year by 85% of local households. Beans, cassava, millet, rice and banana are other popular crops for the Refugee community, with around 11% of households also keep livestock including poultry, goats and pigs.