By Madeleine Scordellis, Restoration Partnerships Manager
I am excited and honoured to share the phenomenal work our partners Alpha Women Empowerment Initiative (AWEI) have achieved in Rukoki, Uganda over the past year.
AWEI is a remarkable women-led community-based organisation based in Kasese, Uganda, formed by local women in 2009. They continue to support the women of their local communities with a focus on health, wellbeing, the environment and addressing domestic violence. The dedication of the AWEI team is inspiring, and their work in Rukoki, a subcounty of Kasese, this past year is no exception. It has been an absolute joy and privilege to partner with them and to hear how their work is transforming women’s lives.
From their unique, ‘on the ground’ perspective, AWEI designs projects that address the complex challenges faced by women in the area in a deeply holistic way. In addition to all their staff being members of the local communities, they also carry out Radical Listening (link to HIH) to align their projects with the real needs and solutions coming from those they serve.
Rukoki is a particularly vulnerable area, with steep slopes in the foothills of the Rwenzori Mountains that are prone to landslides. In 2022, a tragic mudslide killed 16 residents of Kasika village and impacted many more. Kasika is one of the four villages where AWEI projects took place, supporting both recovery and building resilience for the future. The area is also susceptible to flooding, which damages crops grown near rivers and streams. The environmental challenges faced in this extreme landscape mean that many families live in poverty, with malnutrition a significant issue especially among children. As AWEI shared with us, low harvests and hunger also increase tensions within households, contributing to domestic violence in the region.
AWEI’s Rukoki project tackles these challenges with an integrated approach, weaving tree and bamboo planting, landscape restoration, kitchen gardens for nutrition and income , eco-stoves and leadership training for vulnerable women, particularly widows, single mothers and women living with HIV.
The project began by building two robust tree nurseries, where local women were trained in nursery bed management and tree grafting, going on to grow seedlings for the project. The women received further training in landscape management, tree propagation and planting, and agroforestry, and with AWEI support, they planted an incredible 28,457 trees and 10,196 bamboo. The trees provide numerous benefits: stabilising soils, providing fruit and firewood, improving soil fertility from fallen leaves, as well as serving as windbreakers. AWEI told us that trees are now in high demand in Rukoki, as women are learning about their benefits, especially native agroforestry and medicinal trees for disease treatment.
The bamboo is planted along riverbanks, stabilising the soil and reducing the risk of flooding. To further protect the landscape, the project also supported women in setting up Setaria Anceps bulking gardens, planting grasses on their lands that improve soil stability and reduce the risk of landslides.
The women of Rukoki enthusiastically welcomed these activities, with 361 women planting trees and bamboos on their lands and 132 women setting up Setaria Anceps grass bulking gardens, where they can cultivate and sell plants to supplement their income.
In addition, AWEI introduced kitchen gardening based on organic principles, enabling 329 women to set up their own kitchen gardens, often creatively reusing old containers for growing and producing compost from animal manure. This allows the women to grow vegetables to nutritiously feed their families and sell the excess for income. Many women also adopted community seed-saving practices from their first year’s crops, reducing the cost of buying new seeds.
"I and some other women are lucky that we were selected and trained by Alpha Women Empowerment Initiative on good methods of planting and managing trees, bamboo, and Setaria Anceps grass. I am using this knowledge and skills to maintain these trees." – Kabugho Gladys, Rukoki
"I thank Alpha Women Empowerment Initiative which remembered we the women in this area and supported us with trees and bamboo grass. I received 103 bamboo grass seedlings which I planted near River Rukoki. The bamboo is doing well and I hope it will protect my crops and garden from flooding." – Mbambu Janet, Rukoki
"The solution for controlling soil erosion has been brought by Alpha Women Empowerment Initiative. They gave me 900 Setaria Anceps grass suckers which I planted. My Setaria Anceps grass is growing well, and I will expand it to my garden to control erosion." – Muhindo Judith, Kasika Village
Eco-stoves were another popular part of the project. Women were trained to install energy efficient stoves, using local materials, and many have already installed these in their kitchens. The stoves offer multiple benefits: reducing smoke and improving health, lowering demand for firewood (saving time and arduous journeys collecting firewood and reducing deforestation) and enabling quicker cooking, freeing up time for other activities such as kitchen gardening.
The impact from these activities is clear, with many women reporting increased skills, confidence and empowerment. The project also offered leadership training, where they had the opportunity to learn about effective leadership, overcoming challenges faced by female leaders, gender-based violence and prevention, and strategies for becoming impactful leaders. As a result, some of the women are now expressing interest in running for leadership positions in their villages and in Rukoki sub-county, while others have already taken on leadership roles in the area.
"As a widow, I went for an exchange visit with Alpha Women Empowerment Initiative. We learnt about making and using organic manure. This has helped me increase food production, raise my income, and improve my family’s nutrition." – Mbambu Marion, Rukoki
"After being trained by Alpha Women Empowerment Initiative about leadership skills, this training became my eye opener. I expressed interest to become the head of Karongo Catering Services and I was selected." – Muhindo Yosinta, Rukoki
In addition, 40 women were trained as gender champions to advocate for women’s rights, support and provide counselling and guidance to families facing gender violence, and collaborate with the local council to provide further support where needed.
It is truly phenomenal to witness how AWEI seamlessly weave all these activities to truly uplift and support the women in these communities, all while planting over 28,000 trees and 10,000 bamboo plants. It is such an incredible achievement and we are so grateful to AWEI for their ingenuity, care, dedication, sense of humour and all round beautiful partnership along the journey.
We also extend our thanks to Daughters for Earth for funding this one year project, and the International Tree Foundation for providing technical support. Now it’s up to all of us to ensure this vital work continues. AWEI regularly shares with us the high demand for their support, but without your donations, we can’t continue to support this life-affirming work. Please consider making a regular donation to TreeSisters, or explore a partnership with us to directly support this project. Thank you for your support, and thanks to all the women of Rukoki for their dedication and incredible results of this beautiful project.
