For the last 8 years, Rebda has been directly implementing community level activities aimed at improving access to food and nutrition, household incomes and decent employment.
Entrepreneurship/business Development
Between 2020 and 2021, Rebda supported/facilitated 76 farmer groups/organizations in South western Uganda to access market for their beans (seed and grain). The organisations sold beans to Grow more seeds and Chemicals funded by Abitrust. The support included training in bean agronomy and post-harvest handling, mentoring, facilitating negotiations and provision of marketing information.
2017-2018, REBDA trained and coached over 18 farmer organisations in Kisoro and Kabale and Rubanda in agribusiness management practices and market linkage. The organisations were also linked to financial service providers and output markets.
Figure 1 training session
Rebba has also supported the formation, registration and strengthening of over 331 FGs (over 8,000 farmers), 76 FG clusters, 19 Sub County Agribusiness Clusters and 1 district potato traders association. Over 100 Farmer Groups were trained in Farming as a Business (FaaB) and supported to undertake collective actions (produce marketing, input purchase and savings and credit).
Rebda is providing mentorship and practical hands-on business Skills Training to a total of Four Hundred Forty-Five (445) refugees, asylum seekers and most vulnerable Ugandans this year in Kampala – Nakawa and Nsambya, who are currently undergoing a business fundamental course
Figure 6 completion of the entrepreneurship training in the catering class
6 groups of refugee farmers with a total of 425 participants in Isingiro were trained by Rebda in 2016 through the Farming as a Business (FaaB) project for Humanitarian Initiative Just Relief Aid (HIJRA).
In 2016, Rebda participated in the preparation of a concept note for a livelihood and skills development project for refugees and host communities in mid and South Western Uganda. In this project REBDA developed a detailed proposal for funding from European Trust Fund which is still ongoing.
Climate Smart and Nutrition sensitive Agriculture and Food Security
In 2021, REBDA supplied agro-inputs (bean seed, fertilisers, pesticides and post-harvest handling and farming equipment) and provided advisory services to and individual farmers engaged in maize, coffee and beans value chains in selected districts under the e-voucher system for the Agricultural Cluster Development Project (ACDP) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF). A number of farmer organizations were also facilitated to put in place the documents that there needed to get grants for value addition under the same project.
Trained 60 Apples farmers in the Districts of Kabale and Rukungiri in Advanced apple orchard management. The training covered crop care, integrated soil fertility management, post-harvest handling and irrigation.
Inclusive Financial Services
Between 2015 and 2016, Rebda also supported the formation and strengthening of 205 VSLAs in Kabale District. These VSLAs were linked to financial institutions through the IFDC CATALIST project for potato value chain actors
Figure 2 VSLA and FG Training in kabale district
REBDA trained and supported 235 Farmer Groups in Kisoro District and Rubanda in business planning, marketing and networking, investment, loan management and personal financial management. These FG were also trained in VSLA.
Figure 3 VSLA training in kisoro
In 2021, REBDA in association with Vida Management Consult and Acholi Private Sector Development Company was assigned by Ministry of Water and Environment to enhance Farmers and farmer groups in finance accessibility & financial management in 5 catchment areas of Wadelai, Tochi, Mubuku II, Doho II and Ngenge Irrigation Schemes. REBDA developed training materials that were used to train 250 VSLAs and 30 SACCOs. These VSLAs and SACCOs were linked to formal financial institutions (FFIs). REBDA also developed digital financial platforms for the FG, Farmers, VSLAs and SACCOS.
Figure 4 Farmers attending a financial literacy training session in Wadelai:
Rebda has been contracted by ILO to manage 20 Financial Education Workshops for 500 refugees and host communities in Nakivale, Imvepi Rhino Camp between 2022 and 2023. Over 500 business owners/entrepreneurs have been trained in Financial Education (FE) and about 20 Trainers have been certified by ILO to conduct/roll out financial education training
Green Manufacturing and Cottage Industry
2018, REBDA trained 118 Farmers in Potato Crisps and Chips Production and business skills with in Kisoro district
2020-2021, REBDA enabled over 50 SMEs in the Rwenzori region to secure funds needed to execute their green business Ideas through the” Support of enterprise selection and provision of business development services to green small and medium enterprises (green manufacturing, clean energy, Waste management, sustainable tourism and sustainable transport) in Uganda to obtain (growth-focused) debt capital” project for Adelph Research GmbH and in association with SEED
Sustainable tourism & hospitality
7.2.6 Business Incubation and acceleration
REBDA has, for the last 5 years, been having a subgrant from adelphi research gemeinnützige GmbH (in association with SEED) to implement the European Union funded Uganda Green Enterprise Finance Accelerator (UGEFA) program in Western Uganda. REBDA provides business incubation and acceleration support to selected Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) engaged in green manufacturing, clean energy, waste management, sustainable tourism and sustainable transport. Over 116 green SMEs have been assisted to become ready to obtain (growth-focused) debt capital and grants through training (Investment & Growth Management, Organisational Development and Job Creation and Scaling Green and Social Impacts), coaching, linkages, networking and technical support/assistance in financial management, investment/growth analysis and business planning among others.
7.2.7 Digitisation of SACCOs and VSLAs
As part of the financial management/accessibility contract from Ministry of Water and Environment, REBDA supported the digitisation of VSLAs and SACCOs in colloboration with FINTECs and Stanbic Banks under the ewallet platform. The VSLAs were provided with the training, information and tools to use to digitize their operations
