Women leading change in the disaster risk management
Women farmers like Kalenda Jane are using practical anticipatory actions to protect fragile hillsides
Kalenda Jane Florence, a farmer from Bududa District is among the women farmers applying soil conservation methods, savings practices, contour digging, and land management skills to better protect their gardens and household livelihoods.
Farming in the steep hills of Bududa often requires patience, strength, and a constant effort to work with the land. Many women farmers had limited knowledge about controlling runoff, protecting soil, or managing gardens during heavy rains.
While the slopes were fertile, they were also fragile, and farmers were often affected by heavy rains that damaged crops, reduced household incomes, and left many families uncertain about how to recover after periods of severe weather.
For Kalenda, this uncertainty once felt inevitable as she relied on traditional knowledge passed down overtime, but with a limited understanding of how to protect the land as rainfall grew more intense. She planted and hoped for the best yet hope alone could not prevent erosion.
“I used to just plant and wait to see what survived,” she says. “Sometimes you worked hard and still lost what you had grown”
The training introduced new farming practices and helped her better understand how to manage the land during periods of heavy rainfall.
Through training supported by the ECHO-funded project, Kalenda was introduced to anticipatory actions like contour digging and tree planting that could slow water, hold soil, and help the land recover.
At first, the new practices appeared simple. A contour line here. A row of trees there. But over seasons, the soil remained in place and crops responded. Over time, she began noticing improvements in both her gardens and her approach to farming.
“We have seen improvements in the garden compared to before,” she says, tending to her garden. “Now it holds what I plant.”
That knowledge has also been strengthened by a savings group Kalenda joined through the project, giving her a stronger cushion against shocks and helping her invest gradually in her farm and household. For Kalenda, protecting her land, saving regularly, and improving her farming practices now work together to support her household.
Farming against the odds
Muduwa Mary is applying contour digging, mulching, and other farming practices to reduce soil erosion, protect crops, and manage runoff from the surrounding mountains.
For many families in Namisuni Village, farming is closely tied to the mountain landscape. During dry periods, the land supports crops and livelihoods, but when heavy rains come, runoff, flooding, and loose soil begin moving downhill, affecting gardens, homes, and footpaths across the community.
Muddwa Mary, a farmer, Bulambuli District does contours
Over time, landslides, soil erosion, and runoff from the surrounding mountains became recurring challenges for many households. These damaged crops, washed away fertile soil, and sometimes affected homes and community infrastructure. For farming families, each rainy season brought uncertainty about what losses might follow.
For Muddwa Mary, these challenges shaped how she approached every planting season. Heavy rainfall often reduced harvests even after months of work in the gardens, affecting the food and income her household depended on.
Each season brought uncertainty, forcing her to carefully consider what to plant, how much to invest, and how to recover when severe weather damaged her crops.
“There were seasons I planted everything and harvested very little,” she says. “Sometimes it felt like farming was a struggle you simply endured”
Through training under the ECHO-funded project, Mary learned practical methods such as contour farming, mulching, and improved water management practices designed for steep and fragile terrain. These techniques help slow runoff and keep soil in place.
With time, her fields began to improve, the soil remained in place after the rains and her crops began to grow better.
“My coffee and bananas started responding and that is when I knew these things were working.”
Mary says the improvements have influenced how she approaches farming. While challenges remain, she feels better equipped to manage some of the risks that affect agricultural production in her area.
She no longer approaches each season with the same fear of loss, but with a growing sense that the land can be protected and improved with the right practices.
About the project: With funding from the European Union Humanitarian Aid, Oxfam in consortium with Caritas Tororo and Uganda Redcross Society (URCS) are implementing the Early Warning Early Action, Strengthening Multi-Hazard Disaster Preparedness in Mt Elgon Subregion project to enhance community resilience to shocks and stresses through effective and participatory multi-hazard anticipatory action and Preparedness measures.