
Every day Evon Nanteza, a resident at Twojwe Village in Nairambi Sub County wakes up early in the morning to water her crops, a routine she as well undertakes in the evening.
A single mother of two children is among the few residents in the village who are still maintaining a backyard garden where she grows greens, eggplants, cabbage, and tomatoes. Nanteza mastered the art of growing easy garden crops giving good yields two years back after the introduction of alternative livelihood by the government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
The garden minimized my grocery budget, especially on the sauce for food but also contributed to the family's health and nourishment. I used to spend so much on buying sauce besides living an idle life.” She reveals. Backyard gardening at least brought back the life she had lost after losing her fishing gear. Nanteza was a famous fish smoker in the area as well as known for owning a boat and fishing gear which she admits were all illegal, confiscated, and destroyed by Uganda Fisheries Protection Unit-UFPU.
At least every after three days she still has something to harvest from the garden, sell, and also support some of her neighbors and fellow church members with sauce. Every harvest, Nanteza earns Shillings 10, 000 from the sales. The backyard earnings supplement her daily earnings from the Kral. In the Kral she owns one cow able to produce at least twelve cups of milk on a daily basis. The money earned added together enables her to pay off school fees and basic requirements for her two children in primary one and six approximately Shillings 400, 000 in a boarding section.