BFI Kitanga

Bwengye family initiative (BFI) Company limited Kyondo Mubende zero-waste farming

My name is Edward Bwengye Kahororo, a male Uganda. I used to work for UNICEF in Uganda, Partly Somalia, Republic of South Sudan and Iraq and took an early retirement in July 2020.

I constituted my family, into the Bwengye Family Initiative (BFI) Company Limited and registered with Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) in 2017, with the goal of keeping the family intact in line with the presidential advice related to non- property fragmentation. The company focus on 4 broad areas, namely:
- Zero-waste and unconventional farming with value addition,- Eco Tourism including faith-based (FBs) spaces.- Forestry with Value addition.- Natural path directly linked to Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).BFI works in Uganda and current efforts are concentrated in Rukiga and Mubende Districts.  Forestry, African cultural heritage and Eco tourism are in Rukiga District in place known as Kibayu in Hakatuntu Village, Kitanga Parish, Kashambya Sub-County. Zero-waste farming is in a place known as Kyondo, Kijumba West Village, Kijumba Parish and Kiyuni Subxounty, Mubende. Naturalpath is in both districts. Natural resources management and vocational institute not started on yet.

BFI currently employs 9 people (2 women and 7 men) in Rukiga District and 11 (2 women and 9 men) in Mubende.
- Zero-waste and unconventional farming in MubendeOur mission is to farm with nature – sunlight, air, soil microorganisms and turning weeds into crop nutrients. We try to minimise use of chemical pesticides and herbicides. We grow bananas, rosemary, vegetables, chilli, coffee and fruit trees mainly black jack, amla, oranges, lemon, bitter guard, macadamia nuts, mangoes and other trees – eucalyptus, pine.

We make the manure and pesticides from food residues, weeds and shrubs. We also trap, and cultivate beneficial microorganisms that are used in facilitating composting of plant and animal excreta to improve soil fertility.

The plan is to grow more bananas, add value – make and pack juice, flour, wine and utilise the remaining pseudo stem into biodegradable sanitary pads, toilet paper and resultant residues into briquettes for soot less and smokeless cooking. This will go a long way to create employment opportunities both directly for youth – girls and boys working in the small scale factories and indirectly for those selling the products.