Our project team has commissioned the first two pilot projects in Uganda from late May to mid July. Additionally, we have founded the local joint venture Wamala Energy Co. Ltd.
We had a lot of impact there and gathered many impressions. Since Fabian had already been in Uganda once in October 2017, he could see that a lot has changed in the African country during the last two years: In this period, for example, the Entebbe-Kampala Expressway – a four-lane motorway that connects Entebbe International Airport with the Ugandan capital Kampala – has been built and opened.
In the last month and a half, Fabian and Sebastian got to know many open-minded people and were able to get a good picture of the current situation in Uganda. What caught the eye were the many children. In 2016 every woman in Uganda had five to six children on average. With an average age of about 15 years, Uganda is the country with the youngest population worldwide. A country like this exceptionally depends on perspectives and opportunities.
New opportunities for dairy farmers
We have successfully implemented our MyDairy at two locations in Uganda. This allows dairy farmers to increase their income by up to 40 percent. Normally, the cows are milked in the morning and the milk is immediately brought to a collection station. As most farmers live far away from the collection points, the delivery of milk in the evening is not an option. MyDairy creates a cold chain that allows dairy farmers to milk in the evening and deliver the milk together with the morning milk to the collection point the next day. For the collection points, the increased delivery volume also has a positive effect, as the capacities are utilised in a more effective manner. This means that our system benefits everyone who is involved in the value chain. In addition, the solar-powered MyDairy provides our partners with two lamps for light and USB slots for power supply.
Foundation of the WE Company
Together with our partners Benard Mbane, Benard Sembatya and Eric Young we have founded the company Wamala Energy Co. Ltd. (WE Company) in Uganda to operate the rental of agricultural ice production and electrification systems. With these systems, farmers can increase their productivity by means of an effective cold chain and also have access to electricity without leaving the farmland. This way, we are pursuing our goal of strengthening Uganda’s rural areas with innovations. Fabian and Sebastian have spent a lot of time in the Ugandan capital Kampala and found that the city might reach its limits soon. The active support of the growth of smaller cities in different regions of Uganda is important for developing of the “world’s youngest country”.
During our time in Africa we could “just” help a handful of people, but we know that we are not alone. We look forward to future projects with the WE Company and will continue to work on win-win-win situations. There is still a lot to do to make the world of tomorrow a more beautiful place.
