Bigavu Rural Community Development Initiatives

Megan HarperFSD Intern Summer 2014

Kitovu Mobile AIDS Organization

Kyango Bigavu

• located in the Nkenge parish, Kasaali sub-county, Rakai district of southern Uganda

• 2 acres of land in the community given by Kituvo Mobile with fields, a homestead, and animal pens

• Pilot project to create a sustainable Community Demonstration Farm (CDF)

Kyango Bigavu CDFMembers planting tomatoes into the garden

Members standing outside of the homestead.

Harvesting BeansA major component of the community demonstration farm is teaching sustainabile agriculture while improving food secturity for its members.

•The image shows women sorting beans they had harvested. A majority of the beans will be distributed to the members during the dry season while the remaining beans will be used to plant during the next growing season.

Projects for Summer 2014

• Chicken Brooding Training• Health and Sanitation Project• Renovation of an additional Chicken Pen at

the farm

Chicken Brooding Training-Part 1• 7 members of the

Community Demonstration Farm attended a training on proper care of young chickens as well as basic ways to prepare a brooder for the young chickens

• The members identified items that they could contribute to the practical brooder we were going to create at the homestead

• Each member said that the training was helpful and gave tips for their chickens at home

Chicken Brooding Training- Part 2

• For a hands-on learning experience, 50 local chickens were brought to the farm to be raised by the members

• The picture shows the brooder that was created at the farm and the baby chicks eating

Tippy Tap ImplementationHealth and sanitation are major areas that are lack in the Bigavu community. Many homes did not have a proper way to wash their hands after using the latrine.

•This picture is of the first Tippy Tap built at the Community Demonstration Farm•12 other Tippy Taps were constructed in the Kyango Bigavu community

12 Tippy Taps installed in homes of active community members

More Tippy Taps!

Renovation of a Poultry Pen

• Would increase the amount of space for chickens to be held in a pen instead of free range

• The local chicks being raised in the brooder can be transferred to the new poultry pen

The Transformation

Before the Renovation After the Renovation

Children’s Program• Every Saturday, children from

the Bigavu community gather at the farm to learn about sanitation and hygiene

• This project allows for the children to dream about their futures and be encouraged to remain in school

• Future ideas.. The children really want to play football, but due to schooling, they don’t have time to play during the week-starting a soccer league with the kids on Saturday afternoons would be a great way to get the kids active!

Thank you to Kitovu Mobile on its continued efforts to enhance the

livelihoods of people in Uganda who are affected by HIV/AIDS