A demonstration farm is a farm which is designed and run for the specific purpose of instructing people of the community in the ways of raising and caring for certain animals. Participants also gain the knowledge and skills required to produce and sell animal products such as milk, cheese and meat whilst maintaining and increasing the number of livestock at the same time

Reasons for a demonstration farm

As farming is the main job of people within the Buwanume Parish a demonstration farm would teach them how to properly care for their animals, how to increase the number of their livestock and how to get the most out of their animals through sales of the products. This would not only boost their income but the availability of these products and the number of livestock they own also. As we are targeting the youth the income they receive from this venture may also allow them to continue to secondary education as many students drop out due to lack of funds. As the Buwanume Parish is largely a widow based community, targeting the women of the community will better allow them to provide for themselves and their families through an increased income and greater access to these animal products. As there is currently not a large number of livestock within the community, once the demonstration farm begins producing excess stock, the target group will be given the opportunity of loaning the animals for free on a contract, or buying the animals at a subsidized price. Both options would benefit the community, when loaning goats, for example, they would receive an already pregnant female, or if not they would breed the one they do receive. Goats produce multiple kids, once given birth the person loaning the goat would only have to return one kid to the demonstration farm and they would be able to keep the remainder of the kids and the goat which was originally lent. If buying the goat at a subsidized price no kids would have to be returned.

The final blow is the “quick death” which comes as a result of frustration faced by the teenage mothers who start viewing themselves as wasted and  of no value thus not worth living here a girl can choose to commit suicide leaving the child roam around this explains one of the causes for street children in Uganda major towns.

However, with the impact discussed above, something ought to be done to stop the vice of teenage mothers and early preginancies. The following are suggested  measures to have the vice scrapped off;

Girls should be should be taken and kept in schools until their graduation.education helps in preventing  such cases as it occupies the mind  which is said to be the devils workshop if it is also universally acknowledged a nation.

Similarly poverty eradication strategies should be set upto help rise families and girls from the vicious cycle which is responsible for teenage pregnancies. This is because a number of girls fed up of the poor standard of living in their homes resort to prostitution where they end up conceiving at a tender age thus becoming teenage mothers.

In relation to that the teens can be provided with vocational skills so that they can do some thing on there own to earn a living we believe that if these girls have some money on their own they may not fall prey of temptations which may result into teenage motherhood.

Women Economic Empowerment.

Economic empowerment refers to the ability to have financial control over life and situations there in. Economic empowerment for women therefore refers to a struggle to have women financially independent. It is also a pre-requisite to development of women and families at large as discussed below;

Economic empowerment is necessary because a number of women have submissively accepted all forms of torture, exploitation oppression and the like because they are dependant on some men some where.

It is for this reasons that statements such as “I will bear since he provides for me” which proves the acceptance of misery. Such women believe that since they can not meet their demands so they should suffer.

Similarly women’s human rights have been denied because of the high dependence on men who are at times unreliable. As discussed in the point above women suffer injustices such as denial of the right to property ownership from both parents and husbands in case of inheritance after death. Not only that, the high domestic violence rate with low cases of divorce explains this.

On addition to that without economic empowerment, development is delayed as the women sits back and waits for the man to bring something home which would be a different story if both were working. This is because the man and women will all contribute to the families’ income.

However economic empowerment for women means financial independence, development at all levels, less dependence on men, women’s human rights acknowledgment, proper use of leisure time where women are occupied as it is said that an idle mind is the devils workshop.

In a nut shell all the above is possible with women’s economic empowerment. 

The Women’s Initiative for Prosperity (WIP) is a Civil Society Organization with Community based projects in Kamuli, Eastern Uganda.

WIP’s Vision is a society that recognizes the needs and rights of the women and children/youth.

Its mission is to improve the social economic well being of women and children through economic empowerment, health care, human rights awareness and education support.

WIP Mission & Vision are guided with the values of love, care, human rights and new ideas.

You can support us by providing financial and material donations and volunteering on our projects. To donate please refer to the paypal donate button on the left, a small donation goes a long long way.