Kalwanga sells his crops through the year

Having had a farming background, David Lukyamuzi Kalwanga’s interest in farming did not rise from the blue, it is a business even his father ventured into years ago.
In 2008 the Member of Parliament for Busujju constituency in Mityana District decided to start up a demonstration farm that occupied about two and a half acres in Nawanjiri, his home village.
“I saved and bought my own land at Shs9m on which I set a demonstration farm. I later bought more land thus totalling to four acres and I have oranges mixed with matooke, the guavas and cassava,” he says.
As time went by, the legislator acquired more land in different areas outside Busujju constituency. He currently owns 90 acres of land.
Setting up a farm, Kalwanga aimed at being an example as well as helping the constituents with knowledge as well as skills in growing different crops. However, what started as a demonstration farm has since then expanded into a mixed farm with oranges, cassava, matooke and guavas which he produces for both commercial and home consumption.
“When I started farming, I wanted to teach people how they could benefit in case they got involved in farming. I invite people from within and outside the constituency at my farm and share practical knowledge,” Kalwanga recalls. He employs 11 diligent workers who take care of his plantations. He pays them between Shs25,000 and Shs350,000 depending on the volume of work done.
“I pay them well, treat them as part of my family and with that, they do everything whole heartedly and they never mishandle or misuse anything,” he discloses, adding, “I dont employ wage earners because in most cases they take stuff from the farm which may in the long run affect production.”
Crop segmentation
Kalwanga says apart from the oranges that sit on about nine acres in total, the rest of the crops are mixed. For example cassava and guavas, matooke and oranges among other seasonal crops like beans and maize. His reason for having mixed crops is to avoid wasting space.
Before planting, he looks for genuine planting materials like cassava cuttings and orange seedlings. He imports the guava seeds from Nairobi, Kenya. Kalwanga purchases the banana sackers from AGT farm in Buloba.
However, for other crop materials like sweet potato stems, maize or beans seeds, Kalwanga uses the material that is distributed by government, this serves as an example to the constituents who also receive the same samples.

Yields and market
“I used to supply the oranges to juice factories including Riham but I now sell them to traders who export directly to Nairobi at a fairly better price since I harvest through the year,” he reveals.
Locally, he supplies the oranges among other crop produce to markets such as Nakasero, Wandegeya, Kibuye, Kalerwe and Busega. Last season (February to April) he harvested 127 sacks and sold each sack cost Shs140,000.
Kalwanga does not only sell oranges and matooke or other crops in a given season, the supply is on throughout the year given the good care executed by the workers.
Last year around December, he recalls selling about 812 bunches of matooke and sold each at Shs12,000. He earned about Shs2m from sweet potatoes, Shs2.7m from cassava, 34 bags of maize each 50,000, 10 sacks of beans and sold a kilogramme at Shs2,000. On average, Kalwanga makes about Shs40m from his farming business.

Management
“Managing this farming business starts from knowing what I get from where, how much and how I invest per given time,” he reveals.
Kalwanga adds that knowing the source of money that funds the projects and opening different accounts for each farm produce is key as this has helped him know what he earns from what.
Employing hardworking people is another attribute, these who are permanent employees are always on ground to oversee and take good care of his projects in his absence.
“I only use two days of the week to visit my projects but I am always in touch throughout,” Kalwanga clarifies. Unlike most farmers, Kalwanga quantifies everything he gets from his farm for home consumption.
“I value everything and whenever I reach home, I account for every farm product be it banana leaves and I pay for them and deposit the money on the farm account because the business has to keep running. It also helps me to know how much I invest, earn and spend on each crop from planting to harvest time,” he explains.

Trials
Kalwanga is puzzled by stubborn people who take advantage of his position, these steal his produce from the farm and walk away knowing he cannot approach or do anything to them. Another challenge he can’t leave unmentioned is the diseases that affect the crops as this affect the flowering as well as the production especially for fruits like oranges.
Starting this venture was not a bed of roses for the legislator. He recalls losing more than Shs20m after investing in fake seedlings among other inputs.
“I bought seeds that were meant to cover two and a half acres of land expecting high yields but instead this turned into a nightmare when the crops dried up three months after planting. It is not until a knowledgeable friend helped me out though I had to redo everything which meant incurring more costs,” he discloses.

Achievements
Despite the shortcomings he has encountered, Kalwanga has enjoyed some benefits the 12 years he has practiced farming.
“I have been able to provide employment to people from within and outside my constituency. Educating and imparting knowledge is another achievement as well as supplementing my salary.” Being able to feed his family through his sweat and making his late parents dream come to reality are other things he is proud of.