Kabarole farmers lead shift towards organic and sustainable agriculture
One of the pioneers of this organic farming movement is Francs Asaba who is locally known as Pastor from Kantemeho in Harugongo Subcounty
KABAROLE, September 25, 2025 — In the rolling hills of Harugongo , a rural subcounty in Kabarole district within Tooro Subregion, a quiet but determined transformation is underway. Farmers are increasingly embracing agroecological practices to restore soil fertility, boost food security and safeguard the environment.
Often described as the “food basket” of Fort Portal City, Harugongo is a home to hundreds of small-scale farmers who combine fertile soils with a strong sense of community. Here, organic farming is gaining ground as households work to produce food that is both healthy and environmentally sustainable.
One of the pioneers of this organic farming movement is Francs Asaba who is locally known as Pastor from Kantemeho in Harugongo Subcounty.
Asaba is the Chairperson of Mugamba Toroorre Hara Farmers Savings and Credit Cooperative Society Limited, a cooperative that has about 100 members.
Mugamba manages more than 40 hectares of banana plantation, using agroecology as both a practical and ethical approach to farming.
“We use goat dung from our own farms and sometimes buy from neighbors. It is natural and it works. We don’t use pesticides; instead we collect human urine from the nearby school, dilute it and spray it on the bananas. It helps control diseases and boost plant health,” Asaba said.
Intercropping and soil conservation
Asaba’s plantation is intercropped with beans grown by other farmers who, in return, help maintain the banana fields.
To fight soil erosion, and conserve water, he has dug trenches across the hilly plantation, though he admits not all members have adopted the method yet.
“About 97 percent of our farming practices are organic. The yields may be lower than those from inorganic farming, but we are producing clean, safe food and protecting our land,” he said.
Traditional inputs and seed saving
Elizabeth Mbabazi, another cooperative member and the group’s harvest store keeper, has more than 20 years of farming experience and also relies on organic inputs like cow dung, goat droppings and rabbit urine to grow beans, groundnuts and onions.
“We don’t buy fertilizers because they are expensive and damage the soil in the long run. We use what we have and it has been working,” she explains.
To keep stored grains free from pests, Mbabazi uses traditional herbs. She adds that farmers have also turned to seed saving to ensure they plant genuine, adaptable varieties after years of struggling with unreliable commercial seed.
From subsistence to commercial
According to the cooperative’s members, their goal is to move subsistence to commercial farming so that they can increase their household incomes.
Through knowledge sharing, cooperative savings and sustainable practices, they hope to improve household incomes without compromising public health or the environment.
While agroecology does present challenges, including lower yields in the short term, farmers like Asaba see it as a necessity trade-off.
“We must have mercy on the environment and on those we feed. That’s why we farm this way,” he said.
A model for the future
According to the Eastern and Southern Africa Small Scale Farmers’ Forum [ESAFF], agriculture is closely linked to food security, rural livelihoods, ecosystems, climate change and public health, making it a critical sector for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs].
By 2050, the earth will need to feed nearly 10 billion people.
ESAFF argues that farmers must transform agricultural and food systems to work with, rather than against nature.
It identifies agroecology as a key approach for addressing hunger and malnutrition because it promotes efficient resource use, reduces harmful external inputs, and improves soil health challenges that small-scale farmers in Uganda are already confronting.
As Harugongo farmers demonstrate, sustainable agriculture is no longer a distant deal. It is a living, growing practice rooted in tradition, strengthened by cooperation and pointing the way towards a healthier, more resilient future.
https://thecooperator.news/kabarole-farmers-and-traders-urged-to-go-digital-for-market-expansion/
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