Empowered lives. Resilient nations.
KAYONZA GROWERS TEA FACTORY Uganda
Equator Initiative Case Studies Local sustainable development solutions for people, nature, and resilient communities UNDP EQUATOR INITIATIVE CASE STUDY SERIES
Local and indigenous communities across the world are 126 countries, the winners were recognized for their advancing innovative sustainable development solutions achievements at a prize ceremony held in conjunction that work for people and for nature. Few publications with the United Nations Convention on Climate Change or case studies tell the full story of how such initiatives (COP21) in Paris. Special emphasis was placed on the evolve, the breadth of their impacts, or how they change protection, restoration, and sustainable management over time. Fewer still have undertaken to tell these stories of forests; securing and protecting rights to communal with community practitioners themselves guiding the lands, territories, and natural resources; community- narrative. The Equator Initiative aims to fill that gap. based adaptation to climate change; and activism for The Equator Initiative, supported by generous funding environmental justice. The following case study is one in from the Government of Norway, awarded the Equator a growing series that describes vetted and peer-reviewed Prize 2015 to 21 outstanding local community and best practices intended to inspire the policy dialogue indigenous peoples initiatives to reduce poverty, protect needed to take local success to scale, to improve the global nature, and strengthen resilience in the face of climate knowledge base on local environment and development change. Selected from 1,461 nominations from across solutions, and to serve as models for replication. PROJECT SUMMARY KEY FACTS
Operating adjacent to Bwindi Impenetrable Equator Prize Winner National Park, one of Uganda’s oldest rainforests 2015 and home to 50 percent of the world’s mountain gorillas, Kayonza Growers Tea Factory is a for-profit Founded community enterprise, 100 percent owned by its 7,229 1964 smallholder tea farmers. Facing deforestation, wetland encroachment, soil degradation, and water shortages, Location the initiative has worked to ensure that at least 70 percent of the population is involved in a landscape- Kanungu District, in south-western Uganda, on the scale, community-led climate change adaptation buffer zone of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, which and mitigation strategy that addresses energy borders with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) efficiency, food and income security, and natural Beneficiaries resource management. Over 4,800 smallholders have benefited to date through the introduction of new 7,229 smallholder tea farmers and their families staple or cash crops -including beans, banana, Irish Areas of focus potato, and ground nuts- and kitchen gardens. Across several ecosystems, more than 4,000 farmers have Sustainable agriculture and food security; community- been trained in conserving wetlands, riverbanks, and based adaptation to climate change; community advocacy natural forests. Over 20,000 indigenous trees have for environmental justice and climate change solutions; been planted on farm borders and degraded hillsides. innovative partnerships with government or the private The initiative is a model of smallholder-led adaptation sector to promote sustainable development to climate change, integrated ecosystem restoration, reforestation, and ecoagriculture. Sustainable Development Goals addressed
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