Tag Archives: Uganda

Heifer Staff Safe after Uganda Landslides

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Heifer International Uganda country staff are reported safe after heavy rains triggered several landslides in the Bugisu sub-region of eastern Uganda, burying the villages of Namaaga and Bunakasala. Work to determine the impact on communities we serve in this region is under way and will be shared as soon as we know details.

The Uganda Red Cross Society, which has sent a team of volunteers to assess the overall situation, has so far confirmed 18 dead and nine injured. Efforts continue today in search of survivors and to establish the number of people affected.

This is the third time eastern Uganda has been hit by deadly mudslides in three years. In 2011, Buududa district was declared a disaster area after landslides injured eight people and left 420 others homeless. In March 2010, at least 100 people were killed and more than 400 people displaced after a six-hour downpour triggered landslides in several villages on the slopes of Mount Elgon.

Uganda mudslide 2011

Photo by Shamim Okolloh from 2011 mudslide in Bulambuli, Uganda

 

From Northern Uganda: “Please don’t Get Tired of Helping Us”

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Editor’s Note: I believe, at this point, it is impossible to be an organization with field operations in Uganda to avoid discussing our work in that country and our role in helping rehabilitate families affected by the conflict between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), Allied Democratic Forces–both insurgent groups–and the Ugandan government. Over the next several days, we’ll talk here about our work with families in northern Uganda and share stories from families who have gone from being victims of the conflict to thriving in what is actually a very fertile part of the world.


Original story by freelance writer Christian DeVries. Photos by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International.

Christine Akello with her children.

In Peya, a small village outside of Gulu in northern Uganda, Mrs. Christine Akello is rebuilding her life as well as the shattered lives of 12 children. She provides for her own two daughters, her brother’s five children, three cousins and two other girls.

Christine’s husband, Mr. Nono Benson, died in 1997 from an HIV-related illness. Christine later learned that she was also HIV-positive. “When my husband died, his brothers chased me off because I only had girls, and girls weren’t important,” she said.

After being forced off her husband’s farm, she moved to the Koch-Goma internally displaced persons (IDP) camp, where she lived until 2007. “Life was very difficult because we couldn’t farm. We just depended on the food donations,” said Christine. They were only able to eat once a day, and all they had were beans and ugali (corn meal porridge).

One day while working in a field collecting food for their family, Christine and her daughter, Cavin, were captured by rebel soldiers. They used Christine as a porter to carry things they looted from villages they attacked. “Life in the (rebel) camp was very difficult,” said Christine. “We depended on the mercy of the commanders. When you laid down at night, you weren’t sure you would get up the next morning,” she added.

Christine was able to escape two weeks later when the rebels went on a looting run. The Ugandan government had set up an ambush. When the shooting began, she dropped to the ground and prayed. Many people, including rebels, soldiers and captives were killed in the crossfire. “I survived by God’s mercy,” Christine said.

Cavin was not as lucky as her mother. She was raped by the rebels and spent an entire year in their camp. When she came home, she was carrying her baby.

Those years were a nightmare. The family was under constant pressure. “People were living all the time in fear. We didn’t plan for the future, because we weren’t sure we would make it to tomorrow,” Christine said.

The Koch-Goma IDP camp was dangerously overcrowded, and although there was a healthcare center, “There were far too many people in the camp for the clinic to manage,” said Christine. Her health was terrible, because until 2008, Christine was not taking antiretrovirals to combat the HIV, so she was often sick.

Then Christine heard about Heifer International. Heifer was helping families by providing them with bulls and plows so they could clear land to rebuild their farms. To receive a bull, you had to be willing to move out of the camp and start farming. Christine was happy to leave the camp. Her father helped her relocate where she would be able to participate in the project.

With her father’s help, she built two houses and a cow shed. In October 2008, Christine and four other families received four bulls and a plow that they shared. Together they began clearing land and planting rice.

Christine with one of the family’s calves.

On November 27, 2009, Christine received a dairy cow from Heifer. “I had never even dreamed of having a cow,” said Christine. Now she is producing three gallons of milk per day, and that is their primary source of income. Christine also received a variety of seeds: onion, cabbage, tomato, calliandra, eggplant and Napier grass.

Christine sold alcohol made from corn meal when she lived in the IDP camp to earn money, but it was never enough. Everything she earned used to pay for salt, school books and other essentials. Now she earns $860 per year selling milk and additional income from selling peanuts, eggplant, spinach, jackfruit, mangoes and avocado, for a total annual income of about $1,215.

Christine has participated in many Heifer-sponsored trainings: hygiene, HIV awareness, fodder and pasture management, dairy management, plowing, Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones, and others. Christine’s favorite Cornerstone is Improved Animal Management. “If you practice this Cornerstone, your animals will be healthy,” said Christine. “If your animal is healthy, it will provide more milk and live longer.”

Two of Christine’s sons collect fodder for the family’s livestock.

According to Christine, Heifer is a very different type of organization. While other NGOs brought animals in for families in northern Uganda, they just gave them away. “There were a lot of things we didn’t know,” she said. “If the animal was just brought to me without any training, it would have been dead long ago.”

She believes the trainings Heifer provided were a crucial part of her success. “The project is going in the right direction. We have moved from one to three meals each day. It is a sign that things are getting better,” said Christine. While their typical meals are simple, just peanut paste and spinach, they eat chicken every Sunday, beef twice a week, and they have three meals per day. “We now have a balanced diet,” said Christine. Perhaps best of all, Christine feels much healthier. “I have a lot of energy, and I’m now very healthy,” she said.

Two of Christine’s children cut fodder
for the family’s livestock.

Christine is proud to have completed her Passing on the Gift requirements. In 2010, she passed on a bull, and in March 2011, a heifer. “As we received an animal, it is a blessing to pass on to another family,” she said.

Now she has begun to plan for the future. She had to give up her hopes of going to school when she was very young, but Christine wants all of her children and adopted children to finish school. Even though school fees for so many gets expensive, Christine is happy to pay whatever it costs. She pays for their uniforms, pens, books and paper. “If they study, they will get employment and become self-reliant,” she said.

She knows firsthand that Heifer’s assistance is transforming lives, and she sees it in her community. “For the people who have already received, there has been a big change in their life, but there are still many families who have not yet benefited, and their lives are still very difficult,” said Christine. “People were in the camps for such a long time, and they lost their property, so if more support can come, it will help them to resettle.”

Christine has a modest request: “Please don’t get tired of helping us.”

Two of Christine’s daughters wash dishes
outside their home.

Heifer Project Rebuilds Trust in Northern Uganda

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Editor’s Note: I believe, at this point, it is impossible to be an organization with field operations in Uganda to avoid discussing our work in that country and our role in helping rehabilitate families affected by the conflict between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), Allied Democratic Forces–both insurgent groups–and the Ugandan government. Over the next several days, we’ll talk here about our work with families in northern Uganda and share stories from families who have gone from being victims of the conflict to thriving in what is actually a very fertile part of the world.


Original story by freelance writer Christian DeVries. Photos by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International.

Mr. Olum George Patrick was born on his grandfather’s land, just two and a half miles from where he lives now. He left his family’s land in 1980 and purchased his own land in 1985 in Peya, Gulu District.

Olum George Patrick in his garden.

But trouble started for the Olum family in 1986. George Patrick was a tanner by trade. He bought skins and hides from people in the villages around Gulu, then tanned and sold the hides in town. The rebel army did not want people doing business or going into town, so they came to his house.

The rebels accused George Patrick of spying for the government. The rebel soldiers beat him mercilessly, only stopping when they thought he was dead. George Patrick was unconscious for a long time, and the beating severely damaged his mouth and jaw.

The rebels took all of George Patrick’s livestock and money. “We lost all our property,” said George Patrick. Over the years, the rebels killed many of his relatives. They took everything from him.

Later, when they found out he was still alive, the rebels came back and arrested him. They took him to their camp for interrogation. The rebel commander fined him two goats and ordered George Patrick to stop selling hides, or he would be killed. He knew they meant it.

George Patrick had to find day labor to earn money, which was nearly impossible. In 1987, the rebels found him a third time. They accused him of attending militia training and working with the Ugandan army. They marched him back to their base where he was given a trial. George Patrick thought the trial was just for show; he was certain they had already made their decision. “Before you got there, they had already talked, and you would find they had already passed judgement,” he said.

He thought they probably had spies at the meeting, so George Patrick confessed to attending one training to learn about the government, but he had refused to join and hadn’t taken the gun they offered. “Because I didn’t take the gun, they didn’t kill me,” said George Patrick. They released him, and he knew he was lucky to be alive.

His family’s life had become a nightmare. “Every morning, every hour, every day you saw someone get killed. Killing was rampant,” said George Patrick. The rebels kidnapped his younger brothers. His family had suffered so much, so in 1989, they moved in with a niece who lived just outside Gulu. At first it was safe at her house, but soon the rebels grew bolder. In 1996, George Patrick moved his family to the Ongako internally displaced persons (IDP) camp, where they lived until 2008.

In 2000, George Patrick met Esther while doing road construction.

Esther Olum picks peppers.

From 1986-1996, Esther lived with her family on their farm. During the war years, they would sometimes sleep at home and sometimes in the forest. “Things were so unpredictable. Sometimes we would spend a whole week or a whole month sleeping in the bush,” she said. Her family was eventually ordered by army soldiers to move to Ongako IDP camp in 1996. They were told that anyone not in the camp would be considered a rebel.

Life in the camp was only marginally better. “The only advantage of the camp was being able to sleep inside a house away from the beating rain,” said Esther.

In the same camp, George Patrick and his family were sleeping in a small hut surrounded by 15,000 other families. Crowded together so closely, it was inevitable that diseases would be widespread, and malaria, diarrhea and scurvy were just part of the problem. “Sickness was too rampant,” said Esther. “Sanitation was the worst,” said George Patrick. Over the course of two months in 2000-2001, Gulu and the surrounding area was hit with Ebola.

Esther was constantly worried for her family. A relief organization came once a month to give them ground maize, sorghum and cooking oil. She saw the people tried hard to help the IDPs, but it wasn’t enough. They could only eat one meal per day, and they never had meat, unless someone killed a wild pig, deer or antelope. Esther and George Patrick managed to borrow some land near the camp where they planted a small kitchen garden, making them luckier than most.

While still in the IDP camp, Esther and George Patrick heard about an organization that was helping farmers who wanted to rebuild their lives through agriculture. Heifer International was providing families with bulls and plows so they could return home and clear land. Esther and George Patrick were excited to join and began attending Heifer trainings every Tuesday in 2007.

Esther and George Patrick with one of the family cows.

They continued to live in the camp until 2008, when they moved home and began clearing their land. Heifer partnered them with four other families who lived nearby, and together, the five families shared four bulls and a plow. Over the war years, the forest had recaptured the land, so the farmers spent much of their time during those first months creating pasture and crop land. They also had to build new homes, because the old ones had been burned to the ground.

One of their first priorities was building a shed and corral for the dairy cow that Heifer had promised. Once each family had a shed and grew grass to feed a cow, they were given a purebred Frisian Holstein.

It took them an entire month to build their cow shed, but ultimately they did it, and in June 2009, they received a dairy cow as promised. They named her Mama Samba, which means Mother of the Garden, because her manure makes everything grow so well. “She is the flower of my compound,” said George Patrick.

Esther and George Patrick’s daughter and grandson
feed fodder to one of the family’s cows.

Esther was really excited to receive a dairy cow. She knew that the milk would be good for her children to drink, and they would be able to sell extra milk to earn income. Esther and George Patrick now have seven children: four sons and three daughters. Their fifth son, Owiny Stephen, died at age 4 of meningitis while the family still lived in the camp. They also have five grandchildren, one of whom lives with them on the farm.

The trainings from Heifer have been incredibly important as they rebuild their home and farm. “I’m a modern farmer. I can teach other people,” said George Patrick. Esther agrees, “I have learned a lot from this project,” she said. “I got a lot of knowledge on agriculture and animals. I know when my animal is sick or ready to be bred.”

They have participated in many trainings, including home hygiene, gender awareness, planting, Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones, and others. George Patrick loves the Cornerstones training. “I’m now basing my life on these,” he said. He believes, “If you follow the Cornerstones, you will achieve development both physically and spiritually.” He thinks this is part of what makes Heifer so successful. “Other NGOs don’t have this idea of Cornerstones.”

Their favorite Cornerstones are Sharing and Caring and Passing on the Gift. “If you pass to a friend, and your friend passes on, then the gift multiplies very quickly,” said Esther. She is proud that they have passed on both a heifer and a bull. “In the Bible it says to love your neighbor,” said George Patrick. “If you have nothing, then your friend can help provide it for you. When I have many friends, my mind is settled,” he added.

Esther, her daughter and grandson work around one of the
family’s orange trees.

The Olum family has plenty of milk to drink and food to eat thanks to their cow. Every Sunday they eat chicken, and once per week they each eat an egg. When they lived in the camp, “I could not even dream of milk,” said George Patrick. Now they have no problem getting all that they need. “I eat three times a day, and I take milk daily. It gives me health. I am meeting all the necessary requirements for my body to function,” he said. “When I was in camp, I didn’t know my HIV status. Now I know I’m negative.”

They now earn about $800 per year selling milk and cabbages.

While they lived in the camp, they didn’t have any room to keep livestock, but now they have nine local cattle (for meat), two Frisians, 30 chickens and two goats. Their animals produce lots of manure, which helps to produce more crops. “There is a big change,” said George Patrick. When you apply manure, the crops grow faster and with good health.” The manure has increased their cabbage yield 67 percent.

The Heifer project has made changes at a deeper level, as well. During the war years, families didn’t know who to trust, and everyone was suspicious. The project is helping restore trust in the community. Family relationships are also changing. Before the project, George Patrick didn’t get water or wash clothes, and Esther didn’t plant crops. They had specific gender roles, but now they help each other whenever possible. “We are united because we are moving together. We have trust in one another,” George Patrick said.

George Patrick knows Heifer International will be able to spread this type of success to many other families. “The resources that Heifer has given are not wasted,” he said. “With Heifer it is the clients who benefit directly. With Heifer there is so much transparency and accountability. Heifer is trusted.”

Of the project, George Patrick said, “It has had a permanent impact on my life. I only wish the project can continue so that others can benefit.”

Former Ugandan IDPs Reclaim Lives on the Farm

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Heifer Uganda’s office in Gulu, Uganda.

Editor’s Note: I believe, at this point, it is impossible to be an organization with field operations in Uganda to avoid discussing our work in that country and our role in helping rehabilitate families affected by the conflict between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), Allied Democratic Forces–both insurgent groups–and the Ugandan government. Over the next several days, we’ll talk here about our work with families in northern Uganda and share stories from families who have gone from being victims of the conflict to thriving in what is actually a very fertile part of the world.


Original story by freelance writer Christian DeVries. Photos by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International.


Coo Pe is a small village in Gulu district in northern Uganda. Today, Coo Pe has a population of only a couple thousand people, but during years of conflict (1986-2008), the population was as high as 62,000.

At the beginning of the war, this area had no name, and there were only a few families living in scattered huts. When rebels came to “recruit” men from this area, the women would tell them “Coo pe,” which means “No men,” and so their village was named. Later, Coo Pe became an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp.

Mrs. Lawac Florence (25) was only 7 years old when her father was killed by rebels for no reason other than he was a man. when her mother died of cancer a few years later, Florence went to live with her uncle, who was later also killed by rebels.

In 1998, she moved to Coo Pe. She had no one to pay her school fees, and no school to attend anyway, so her education ended in Primary 6 when she was 12. She spent the next eight years living in the IDP camp. “Life in the camp was not easy,” said Florence. But she made friends and even met her husband. In January 2001, Florence and Mr. Otema Fred (27) were married.

Fred was also 12 when his family moved to Coo Pe. The rebels had raided his village and burned his family’s house. During the raid, his uncle was killed, and Fred was shot in the leg and back. He spent the next month in a hospital recuperating before moving to Coo Pe. His older brother was taken by the rebels and forced into service for two years. Even after the raid, his family didn’t want to leave their farm. They tried sleeping in the forest and working the land, but it was too dangerous. When they fled to the camp, they took only the clothes on their backs, a few pots and pans, and blankets.

“We lived in that camp for 10 years, and it was not easy,” Fred said. Even after moving to the IDP camp, Florence and Fred didn’t feel safe. The rebels frequently raided Coo Pe and the surrounding area. They abducted children, burned and looted, and took any food they found. In Coo Pe alone, they kidnapped around 5,000 children between the ages of 9 and 15. “They said that those age groups were easy to indoctrinate and wouldn’t be as likely to escape,” Fred said.

Soon after they were married, Florence gave birth to their first child. “Raising children was difficult. Sometimes food aid was delayed,” she said. Aid workers provided them with beans and maize, but it was only enough for them to eat once per day.

Florence and Fred now have three children, and Fred’s younger brother also lives with them.

Peace talks began in 2006, and although the war was still going on, Florence and Fred were among the first group of people to risk leaving the camp. Fred felt that they had no choice. They needed to feed their children.

They moved back to Fred’s parents’ land, but had to completely restart the farm. “We didn’t have anything when we moved back here,” said Fred. The huts had been burned, there were dead bodies and bones form the fighting, the land was overgrown. But worst of all, they had to clear landmines before they could begin planting. They began by planting cassava, maize, beans and sweet potatoes, but farming wasn’t easy.

Fred didn’t know much about farming, so things were only slightly better living outside the camp. “When we moved to the camp, I was still a young boy. I was still learning how to farm, so my knowledge of farming was interrupted,” he said. Fred struggled to pay school fees and medical bills for his family. “They would fall sick quite often,” he said. Food was always scarce. “Even buying them clothing was very difficult,” Fred added.

Twice a day they could eat vegetables and beans, and three times per month they had a little meat, but these meals weren’t balanced, and it was never enough. It seemed like they were always hungry. “If you visited us before, you would have seen the children dressed in rags and crying for food,” said Fred.

Florence and Fred’s oldest daughter feeds the family cow, Flora.

On April 23, 2010, Florence and Fred received a Frisian heifer from Heifer International. They decided to name her Flora, after Florence. Since her arrival, Flora has produced two bull calves and lots of milk. “Before, my children didn’t even know what milk looked like,” said Florence. “This cow has made my family happy.” When the bulls are old enough, they will be sold, and the money will be used to buy a heifer that can be passed on to another family. In addition to the heifer, their family also received cement, seeds and medicine for tick control.

As part of the Heifer project, Fred participated in a variety of trainings, including livestock management, environmental protection, soil and water conservation, gender and HIV/AIDS awareness, vegetable growing, hygiene, and Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones. While Fred doesn’t have a favorite Cornerstone, he is a big believer in Passing on the Gift. “The first step in Passing on the Gift is passing on your knowledge to someone else. Your neighbor needs to have the knowledge that you have acquired so their life can also be changed,” he said.

Before participating in the project, Fred and Florence owned no animals. Now they have 31 animals (one cow, one bull, one local cow, three goats and 25 chickens) and lots of manure. “The manure has helped me in my vegetable garden and on my fruit trees,” said Fred. The orange and mango trees Fred planted were barely growing and produced no fruit until he started using manure, and they have tripled their onion harvest.

Florence and Fred pose with their three children.
Florence and her son work in the family garden picking okra.

Now they are able to grow a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, and they get lots of protein from milk, beans and peanuts. They eat three meals per day, typically consisting of sweet potatoes and vegetables with milk. Eating properly has improved the children’s health. “The milk they are taking now is boosting their immune system,” said Florence. “The problem of malnutrition is no longer there,” said Fred.

The dramatic increase in their income has also been a large impact of the project. “This project has really helped to fight poverty in my family,” said Fred. Prior to the project, Fred worked as a laborer to earn money. “Before it was very challenging. My wife was always pushing me to find work and get money. It caused a lot of quarreling,” he said. Florence remembers how hard Fred worked to try and provide for his family, but “even clothing the family was difficult for him,” she said.

A full day of clearing land earned Fred only $1, and even that work was hard to find. In a good year, Fred earned a total of $116 working as a laborer and selling some maize and cassava.

Now, Fred earns $1,290 a year from selling milk. “There is now a very big milk market here,” he said. He grows and sells onions, maize, okra and eggplant. In total, Fred earns $1,566 per year. Florence is glad for their increased income. “He is not so stressed,” she said. “Now he is a happy man.”

Fred attaches a container to his bike to
transport his goods to market.

Florence and Fred have used this new income to pay for food, school fees for all of their children, to buy a bicycle, chairs, a local cow (for meat production), chickens and goats. Education is very important to Fred and Florence. “A person who is educated has a lot of information and can get a good job,” said Fred.

“I’m now trying to forget the past,” said Fred. “The worries and the pain we felt is going. The bitterness is gone.”

“I want to say thank you to Heifer, because your support has really helped me,” said Fred. “Your support has not been in vain.” Unfortunately, there are many more families who need Heifer’s help. “The people who were affected by the war are too many,” he said. “Heifer is currently able to help a small portion of the total number affected.” He added, “If there was more support, then more people could be helped out of this dire situation.”

In Fred’s opinion, when donors choose to support Heifer International, they are giving to a unique organization. “When I compare Heifer with other organizations, I see a very big difference in sustainability,” said Fred. “The people that Heifer trains can sustain themselves and become totally independent.”

Heifer’s Work in Northern Uganda Continues

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Editor’s Note: I believe, at this point, it is impossible to be an organization with field operations in Uganda to avoid discussing our work in that country and our role in helping rehabilitate families affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). Over the next several days, we’ll talk here about our work with families in northern Uganda and share stories from families who have gone from being victims of the conflict to thriving in what is actually a very fertile part of the world.


Heifer International began the Gulu Women Dairy Farmers Heifer Project in 2007, approximately a year after LRA attacks on Ugandan soil ended. In 2009 Heifer began the Promoting Small Holders Food Security and Income in Lira, Gulu and Amuru Districts of Northern Uganda through the Dairy Value Chain Project.

Photo by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International

The armed conflict of the past decades in northern Uganda widened and deepened the physical, mental and economic impoverishment of the population in many areas. The vast population took up long-term residence in internal displacement camps; and as a direct result of the conflict, much of the greatly treasured livestock were killed. Many families have been caught in a downward poverty spiral, characterized by declining food intake, poor education and health services, degraded and disappearing grasslands for their herds, and little-to-no access to commercial market systems.

However, northern Uganda is very fertile with a stable rainfall pattern suitable for both forage establishment and livestock management. Crop production is the main form of economic activity, with average land access at four acres per family. The major crops grown in this district include beans, millet, potatoes, sesame seeds, rice, sunflower and cassava. The wastes from rice and sunflower can be used in making animal feed.

Nevertheless, through agricultural production, households are often unable to generate enough funds to meet the basic necessities of life. Consequently, women and children suffer most from malnutrition.

Despite the continuing constraints, smallholder dairying remains a durable strategy to increase household income, as it provides a secure livelihood, promotes women’s social and economic status, conserves ecosystems and respects cultural values. In addition, the economic climate in northern Uganda is favorable for integrating smallholder dairy farmers into the formal marketplace and supply chain, as milk consumption increases. Therefore, Heifer has worked with smallholder farmers in community groups to increase their resilience and ability to ensure food and income security at the household level, through the purchase and placement of pure-breed dairy heifers among poor smallholder farmers, coupled with continued training, follow up on proper management and breeding of the heifers. These efforts have strengthened the capacity of families to provide for their nutrition and earn significant and reliable cash income to be able to meet their household needs. Furthermore, provision of draft animals to these families has increased crop production through enhanced acreage, thereby ensuring food security and more income from crop sales.

Later this week, I’ll introduce you to a family who suffered greatly for years, living in displacement camps and watching their loved ones be abducted or killed. After participating in a Heifer project, however, they now grow enough food to feed their family three times a day, with surplus that’s sold to pay for school fees, transportation and more livestock.

Beatrice Biira Shares Gifts and Passion in Her New Role with Heifer

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Editor’s Note: A commitment to empower women is embedded in Heifer International’s core values for sustainable development. In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8, this week we’re sharing the stories of Heifer participants who take the gifts of animals and training and run with them to extraordinary results for themselves and their communities. Through hard work and innovations, each woman secures her rightful place in the family, the marketplace and the world. One of Heifer International’s ‘greatest successstories, Beatrice Biira, today begins a new chapter in her and in Heifer’s effort toengage more individuals in the campaign to end hunger and poverty.

BeatriceBiira, whose life was forever changed by the simple gift of a goat from HeiferInternational, as told in three videos produced by Dick Young Productions andin the best-selling children’s book, “Beatrice’s Goat,” by Page McBrier, isbeginning a new chapter of her life—as a Community Engagement Officer for thehunger and poverty ending organization.


“BeatriceBiira is one of Heifer International’s greatest success stories,” said Pierre Ferrari,Heifer’s president and CEO. “Her path, from her village in Uganda to hergraduation from Connecticut College and The Clinton School of Public Service,in Little Rock, Arkansas, and now back to Heifer International is, for us, atrue homecoming.


“Andthough many of us who work here can recount the stories we have experienced inthe field, few of us can tell them as Beatrice can, as one who lived it and nowhas the chance to give back, to help other girls fulfill dreams,” said Ferrari.

Photo credit: Robert X. Fogarty,
“Dear World, Write Our Future”

Asa Community Engagement Officer, Biira will support events in New York City andthe greater New York area to help increase awareness of Heifer Internationaland its work and to engage and nurture volunteers and volunteer groups. Shewill also represent Heifer International at public and private events, andengage with major donors and other audiences of influence.



“I am so pleased by my new role with HeiferInternational,” said Biira. “My journey began with Mugisa (which means Luck inLukonzo language), the goat my family received, but it was Heifer’s trainingthat gave me the tools I needed to make my own way. Moving from the village school in Kisingavillage to Gayaza High School in Kampala helped fulfill my dreams. Heifer friends supported me in every part ofthis journey. My first experience in theU.S. was attending Northfield-Mt. Herman School for a transitional year. It was so rewarding that after thateducational experience I was admitted to many colleges in the U.S.”

In an interview with the CBS news show, “60 Minutes,”Biira once said her dream was to see herself helping others, “maybe a farm withcows or goats, and giving those children milk. And I’d love to see them gethealthier, all by my work.” Now, she says, “I can do that, I can live thatdream.”

When Biira first learned about Heifer International, shewas a young girl performing adult chores and responsibilities in her village ofKisinga. She had little to eat and little hope, but she yearned to go to school,to learn, but her family could not afford the school fees. And school, at thetime, was largely exclusive to boys.

Then, Heifer gave 12 goats to 12 families in Kisinga, andBiira’s family was fortunate to be among them. Soon, Biira’s mother was able tosell enough goats’ milk to send her to the local school.
From there, she won a scholarship to a high school inKampala, Uganda’s capital. Then, she went on to earn her Bachelor’s degree fromConnecticut College, and her Master’s from the Clinton School.

Heifer supporters first met Beatrice at the 1998Conference on World Hunger when Dick Young premiered “The Promise” andintroduced “the little girl in the red dress.’ It was not long after the conference when she was asked by Simon andSchuster to do a book tour for “Beatrice’s Goat” and she visited 13 states anddid 128 presentations in 40 days, including an interview with Charlie Gibson on“Good Morning America.”

The last query from Gibson was “Beatrice, I understand youlike pizza?” “I do,” she replied, “but Ilike goat’s milk best.” Hercommunication gifts are well known and in March 2011 she was a keynote speakerat the Harvard Social Enterprise Conference on Sustainability.

Prior to joining Heifer International, she worked with TheMillennium Promise Alliance Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to ending extremepoverty through implementation of the Millennium Development Goals,international development goals adopted by the United Nations and a host ofinternational organizations to eradicate extreme poverty, reduce childmortality and prevent disease epidemics. She was the Program Associate for the Connect to Learn Global EducationInitiative.

Biira’s story has been featured in TheNew York Times and People magazine, and on The Oprah WinfreyShow. She is also featured in the book “Half the Sky,” byNicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, as well in several of Kristof’s columns in The New York Times.

“No one better understands the power of Heifer’sCornerstone of Passing on the Gift than Beatrice,” said Ferrari, referring toHeifer’s requirement that a family that receives an animal pass on the firstfemale offspring of that animal, along with training in its care, to anotherfamily in need. “Now, she is fulfilling that promise, passing on her own gifts,with us at Heifer and with the families we help.

“Itis the perfect fit.”

Connecting with Africa as Kwanzaa Begins

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I won’t pretend to know a lot about Kwanzaa. From what I’ve learned online, it’s an African-American and Pan-African holiday celebrated from December 26-January 1. While the holiday is rooted in ancient African history and culture, the modern iteration of Kwanzaa was established in 1966, making this year the 45th anniversary celebration. Kwanzaa was created to help reconnect African-Americans with traditional African culture. It was also intended to be a holiday to celebrate and reinforce the bonds between Africans as a people. And it was created to introduce and reinforce the Seven Principles, which are the communitarian African values of Unity, Self-Determination, Collective Work and Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity and Faith.

The Seven Principles really resonate with me as a Heifer employee and supporter, because they align well with our 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development.

In honor of Kwanzaa, I thought I’d share this video about our work in Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, where families have seen their lives transformed through our East Africa Dairy Development Project.

Heifer Uganda Farmers Pass on the Gift to Ugandan Youth

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Would you be surprised if I told you Ugandan kids don’t want to be farmers? Probably not. Kids in the United States don’t often mention agriculture as a career goal, either. Unfortunately for us, we’ve had kind of an “oops” moment as our farmers grow older, retire and die off, having passed on little or none of their agricultural knowledge. Granted, much of the farming done in the United States is on huge (huge!) farms using enormous machinery, so we’re already far removed from the time when most of our population was directly involved in agriculture. In fact, agriculture only comprises 1.2 percent of our Gross Domestic Product and accounts for less than 0.7 percent of our labor force.

In Uganda, however, agriculture makes up 22.5 percent of the GDP and occupies 82 percent of the labor force. In a country with more than a third of its population living in poverty and one of the highest population growth rates in the world, being able to feed its own people needs to be a priority for Uganda.

So what’s Uganda to do when the reality is that their youth are showing a declining interest in agriculture?

That’s the question taken on by Shamim Okolloh, a Clinton School of Public Service student. In her most recent blog post, she wrote:


The Challenge: How do we get the youth interested in farming vs. office jobs and change their perception from viewing it as a dirty job for old people deep in the village to one that can be a source of livelihood and food security, a means to create jobs, and opportunity to make Uganda a food basket for the region?


The Idea: Get the students out of the classroom where agriculture is theory based (and mostly geared towards just passing exams) and have them meet with farmers in the area (peri-urban) who can share their stories on the benefits, opportunities and challenges of farming.


Heifer farmer demonstrates banana plant propagation.

Two wonderful Heifer International project participants–Mrs. Makoba & Mr. Wamimbi were more than happy to Pass on the Gift of knowledge to the next generation of 33 students and nine teachers. Here is a little of what the six-hour experience was like.


What gift are you passing on to the next generation?

~Shamim O.

Ugandan Family Moves From IDP Camp to Self-Reliance

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Story and photos by Dan Bazira


While many families in northern Uganda are still traumatized after 20 years of brutality by the Lord’s Resistance Army, Fred and Florence Otem have overcome this harrowing situation.

The couple lives in Coopee village, Bungatira Sub County in Gulu District in Uganda. They have three children: Atimango Winnie (10), Omony Phillip (8) and Ogik Simple (6). All of the children attend St. Martin Primary School in Lukome.

On life in the camp for internally displaced people (IDP)

Life was difficult during the war. I lost my relatives while young and dropped out of school since I had to be a caretaker for my five siblings. One day, I witnessed my relatives being scythed to death by the rebels. After being frustrated with my life, I decided to get a wife at the age of 17 years; this was to be a source for comfort,” Otema said. 

But to his surprise, this added more burden to him in terms of sustaining the two independent families: his and the one of his late father.

Being jobless and living in an IDP camp, his children were not going to school since he had no money to pay for their school materials.

We would eat one meal a day. Paying for hospital bills and clothing for the family was not easy. I had no hope of getting any monthly paying job. I tried to work on a per-day wage job as a potter at house construction sites, but the payment could not meet my family needs.

On the journey to self-reliance

Upon our return from the IDP camp in 2009, I developed an interest in a local women’s group that had established links with Heifer International in Uganda. I started going for training and preparing to receive an animal along with my wife. We had hope in this project in terms of changing our livelihood. 

Indeed God answered our prayer. We received a cow in March 2010, which had a calf and started milking. The cow gives us 22 liters (5.8 gallons) of milk per day. Today we are proud that we are no longer beggars of food and basic requirements, but we are donors within our community.

Thanks to Heifer, we earn $240 per month from milk sales. Imagine a poorly educated man like me earning that much per month! Today, our children go to better schools. We eat a very good and balanced diet. This job is easy to do, and we do it as a family.

My wife is an inspiration. 
Describing her husband, Florence said:

He is an understanding, loving and caring husband. He will never make decisions without involving us as a family, and with trainings received from Heifer Project International on family planning, we resolved to only have three children and provide for them up to university level. We currently opened up a joint savings account as a family, an indication of unity.

Living beyond the borders
To date, the family has more than 1,500 pine trees, 100 budded oranges and other varieties of fruit trees like avocado, jackfruit, tangerines and lemons. They also have harvested a lot of onions, which they expect to sell and earn more than $800 this year. The kitchen gardens around the home are a source of vegetables throughout the year, including selling in the local market and donating to those in need.

Florence said:

The use of energy saving stoves now saves my time because I no longer waste a lot of time looking for firewood. My husband now even helps in cooking food. Before it was difficult to convince him to cook food because he would complain of a lot of smoke from the traditional three stone cook stove. 

We suffered in the camp, entirely depending on relief aid, but today we move around the village mobilizing and training youths at no cost on sustainable agriculture practices because we do not want them suffer, too.

Looking forward

The future for this family is bright; they have already secured iron sheets to construct a permanent house and graduate from a semi-permanent house. They also intend to construct a domestic biogas plant for lighting and cooking after the permanent house construction. The family further intends to open up more land to grow vegetables and also increase their dairy herd. Many times when donations are given, it may appear to be meager, but the impact they bring to the families in terms of rebuilding their lives will never be regretted.

The family is grateful to Heifer International for the support. The Otema family is a living testimony of how Heifer ends hunger and poverty and cares for the Earth through sustainable approaches. “We thank Heifer International for having provided unto us this animal and the psycho-social support that has helped us forget the past and focus upon the future,” concluded Otema.