Every human being aspires to live a dignified life. Yet for millions around the world, circumstances beyond their control such as conflict, violence, and instability, forces them to make abrupt and painful choices–abandoning homes, livelihoods, and dreams in search of safety. For decades, Uganda has stood as a place of refuge, offering sanctuary to those fleeing conflict and persecution across the region.
Education on an empty stomach
As of 2025, Uganda hosts approximately 1.95 million refugees and asylum seekers across 13 settlements, according to UNHCR. One of the largest of these is Kyangwali Refugee Settlement, located in Kikuube District in western Uganda. The settlement is home to over 130,000 refugees and asylum seekers, primarily from the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. Women and children make up 81% of the population, while youth aged 15–24 account for about 19%. Recent instability in the region has driven a sharp increase in arrivals, with over 600 new refugees entering the settlement each day, compared to fewer than 50 previously.
Education is fundamental to a child’s growth, dignity, and future. It equips children with knowledge, life skills, and hope - enabling them to rebuild their lives, break cycles of poverty, and contribute meaningfully to society. For displaced children, education also provides protection, stability, and a sense of normalcy amid uncertainty.
In Kyangwali, most refugee children are enrolled in government schools alongside learners from the host community. However, persistent food insecurity and household poverty mean many children attend school hungry - or are forced to stay away altogether. Hunger and malnutrition severely affect concentration, attendance, health, and academic performance.
Despite the presence of schools, lack of food remains one of the greatest barriers to consistent education and positive learning outcomes.
Karuhinda Primary School: The Turning Point
The rapid growth of the settlement has placed immense pressure on education infrastructure. Maratatu Primary School, once serving over 10,000 learners, became overstretched, leading to the establishment of Karuhinda Community Primary School in 2020. By end of 2025, Karuhinda served 5,353 learners supported by 32 teachers, with an average daily attendance of 2,500–3,080 learners, where children walk up to two kilometres to reach the school.
Before 2025, hunger was a persistent challenge. Many learners missed classes due to lack of food both at home and at school, negatively affecting school attendance, performance, and curriculum delivery. Tensions grew within the school community, with strained relationships between learners and teachers – leading to vandalism of school gardens and tools causing frustration and disengagement.
Nourishing bodies, minds, and futures
In response to these challenges, the Biodigesters for Agriculture and Nutrition in Schools (BANS) Project was launched in February 2025. The initiative supports schools in Kyangwali Refugee Settlement to become food self-reliant, while improving nutrition, education outcomes, while utilising environmentally friendly solutions for sustainability.
The project uses organic waste to generate clean energy for cooking and organic fertiliser, strengthens school-based farming, and provides nutritious meals that improve children’s diets and reduce long-term risks of non-communicable diseases. Through BANS, schools established maize, tomato, onion, cabbage, and other vegetable gardens, and were equipped with essential agricultural tools such as knapsack sprayers, watering cans, hand hoes, seedlings, and technical trainings. Biodigesters were installed to convert waste into clean biogas for cooking.
The impact was immediate and visible. Learners became actively engaged in farming activities, school attendance improved, and morale among teachers and parents increased significantly.
Rebuilding trust and motivation through practical learning
“The project has made a notable difference, learners are now finding meaning in agriculture. They take skills home, plant gardens with their families, and attend school more consistently. Because agriculture is practical, their academic performance has improved. They no longer vandalise tools or gardens because they see the benefits and take ownership of the gardens and tools. The project has bridged the gap between learners, teachers, parents, and the wider community. With continued support, we foresee attendance increasing to over 5,000 learners in the next 24 months.”
Monday William, Head Teacher of Karuhinda Primary School.
Learners echo this transformation
“I enjoy the practical agricultural lessons. They motivate me to come to school, help me pass my agriculture exams, and build skills for the future. I hope to become a doctor while practising farming.”
Baraka Ndahura Primary Five
“I used to attend school irregularly, but since the BANS project started, I come every day. After harvest, I received cabbage and seedlings, which I planted at home. I hope to sell some and eat the rest. I want to be a farmer in the future.”
Isaac Diemercie Primary Six
“I have learned horticulture skills and now grow tomatoes and onions at home. This will help me earn money. My dream is to become a nurse.”
Sarah Nyango Primary Six
Expanding impact at Ngurwe Primary School
The school with 1,244 learners and 20 teachers, is also benefitting from the BANS initiative and is driving remarkable change. Initially engaging 60 learners, the programme expanded to 700 learners from Primary Three to Six, ensuring continuity and long-term impact beyond examination classes.
“Learners are gaining practical skills in horticulture and transferring this knowledge to others,” notes . “During the harvest season, we distributed cabbage to nearly 900 learners, which greatly impressed parents. The biodigester is fully operational, allowing us to cook with clean energy.”
Christine, Deputy Head Teacher at Ngurwe Primary School
The programme complimented the school’s feeding programme for Primary Seven learners, integrating the vegetables grown at school into meals to improve their nutrition. Teachers benefit as well from the feeding programme which has improved their attendance and commitment. Parents have shown strong buy-in, increasingly supporting school gardens and participating in activities.
“A recent learning visit to schools using bio toilets and clean energy for cooking was extremely enlightening for our teachers. It is preparing us to become self-reliant and to address hunger—which is one of the biggest challenges in the settlement.”
Christine, Deputy Head Teacher at Ngurwe Primary School
Partnership for Sustainable Outcomes
By strengthening local systems and placing schools and communities at the centre of change the Novo Nordisk-funded BANS Project implemented through a consortium partnership between CARE, AVSI Foundation, Joint Effort to Save the Environment (JESE), and Biogas Solutions Uganda is improving nutrition, supporting learning, and reinforcing dignity and resilience for refugee children in Kyangwali.
“Each time I visit schools in the settlement and I find learners and teachers having a meal, its evidence that this programme has woven itself into the district’s plan to improve school feeding programmes for learners and teachers. What used to be a struggle for survival has become a journey of growth and sustainability.”
Deogratias Byamagaba - District Education Officer, Kikuube
Early results from the programme indicate a strong potential for sustained improvements in attendance, nutrition, and learning outcomes for children in vulnerable communities. With continued implementation and scale-up, participating schools anticipate stable enrolment consistency, expanded feeding coverage, and strengthened self-reliance, demonstrating how integrated school food systems can support the dignity, resilience, and long-term opportunities for refugee children.
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