PROFILE

Bukonzo East Change agent branch had transformed itself into a training team which did the work of advocacy. It was called then Bukonzo East Training team. As Baluku Paineto led the savings and credit, Eric and I led the sustainable trainings. There were other trainers though and it was a team of seven people.

Human beings have a natural weakness of wanting recognition if one performs exceedingly well. So is what befel Umoja bee-keepers. Because they were gaining recognition, the original members of Kanyatsi parish felt those new members as alien. This was a danger to our progress. We held several meetings and out of them, we felt a unifying name would help us further ahead together. In this year, 2004, we were known as “‘Alpine Honey Producers”. As the saying goes, “Unity is strength”, so is what we became. Our honey production went as high as 6 tonnes and we managed to buy our own plot at Musasa trading center. Besides bee keeping, we incorporated in coffee as a second product. Our partners, mentioned earlier, linked us to HIVOs but through BBC. Our capacity they said is not yet strong to handle big monies. We build a honey center on this plot we had secured with our shares.

Alpine had become a regional name and membership had grown from 68 to 180. Many vied to join this fast growing organisation. Coffee production had also rised up. The plain truth was that new members were performing better than the old members. The old members came out with a suggestion to value the assets of the organization and add them to their old shares. It took us alot of time to explain that it would be paying them double for its actually their original shares that were buying these assets. It was at this same time that members felt that since our membership covers almost the whole river valley of R.Nyamughasana and to let our products be related to the locality, we should be known as Nyamughasana Valley Farmers Cooperative. The conservative like members did not like this but many felt it fine for Alpine is named after the Alps of Central Europe.

Mixed blissom is how they described our honey and one had said of it as “Toffee” honey when he tasted it. These praises led many of our members to reflect one of the indiginous physical features to reflect our products. Nyamughasana fitted well and was agreed on. Right from Kanyampara, Rwempya, Kabiri, Dunguluha, Mughete all being tributaries of Nyamughasana fitted well the membership which covers the sub-counties of Kyondo, Kyalhumba, Mahango, Kisinga, Munkunyu and L.Katwe.

In 2008, we were faced with the problem of crop finance. We had been relying on members deposits and shares to pay the delivered produce but after incorporated in coffee and castor oil processing, we needed extra funds.The commercial institutions gave loans at an interest rates which equaled ours, 2%. This prompted us to uphold a savings and credit, a fully pledged service offered by the cooperative. Our members gave a positive response and indeed shares increased by two fold as did savings which was relief enough to hold us in business. More so, the members were encouraged because we have made it a culture to give dividends at the end of every financial year.In addition, we give presents to the best performers like best saver, best producers of honey and those of coffee.