Their touching story as refugees begins in January 2009, when they settled in Rwenyawawa Village, Kyangwali Refugee Settlement in Western Uganda. Sifa Domina and her family had challenges on how to survive and provide the basic needs for the family, especially food and school requirements and fees, because only two of the seven children attended school. The Office of the Prime Minister provided them with one acre of land while the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees provided them food (maize and beans), porridge, salt, and cooking oil.
Despite her hard work, the 33-year-old’s efforts were in vain due to her husband, Christopher Mufabure’s incessant alcohol consumption and recurrent gender-based violence. They rented a small piece of land for farming, but the profits from the harvest were mishandled by Christopher’s constant alcoholism, leading to gender-based violence in the family, which exhausted Sifa.
“We worked together in the garden but whenever we harvested, Christopher spent all the money on alcohol which led to gender-based violence because he beat me,” explains Sifa.
She reported to the Refugee Welfare Council I who counselled them and warned Christopher that he risked ending up in jail if he didn’t abandon his actions. “I felt threatened about the misuse of money and instigating any form of violence so I decided to drink alcohol and return home to sleep without disturbing the children or my wife,” clarifies Christopher.
The difficulties in their household were relentless–they had no business with no capital so it was hard to start one, no improved house structure–two rooms with a tarpaulin roof, no clothing–each member had a pair of clothing they would wear interchangeably and lack of access to health services and clean water. They tried out casual labour, earning UGX 5,000 (1 Euro) in order to purchase a few necessities. They cultivated maize and beans from which they usually harvested three 100 kilogramme bags of maize and one 100 kilogramme sack of beans, earning them UGX 190,000 (47 Euros) per season. This was not sufficient for their household.
In July 2023, Sifa and her household were enrolled in the Sustainable Market Inclusive Livelihood Pathways to Self-Reliance (SMILES) project and were able to jointly participate in various project activities such as coaching, Farmer Field and Business School, Village Saving and Loans Association, Financial Literacy, Enterprise Selection Planning and Management. They also received a mobile phone and a monthly cash stipend for food worth UGX 13,000 (3 Euros) per household member for eight months.
“We received UGX 117,000 (28 Euros) altogether, from which we saved UGX 50,000 per month, except for one month where we spent UGX 70,000 (17 Euros) on medical services,” says Sifa.
Sifa and her spouse found great value in coaching topics, including self-efficacy, self-reflection of their lives, parenting, conflict management and negotiation, sharing household roles and responsibilities, taking decisions jointly in the interest of their family, Water Sanitation and Hygiene, food and nutrition, and the basics of gender.
“Currently, we agree jointly what to venture into; all our children attend school, and we ensure the household consumes three meals a day and a balanced diet,” states Sifa.
“Presently, I sit and play with the children and spend more time with my wife. We agreed to employ individuals in the garden so that we can perform other tasks together. We live in harmony with the family, and I cook when Sifa is unable to,” clarifies Christopher.
Sifa also saves five shares equivalent to UGX 10,000 (3 Euros) weekly in the project Village Saving and Loans Association, where she obtained a loan of UGX 200,000 (50 Euros) to expand her goat business. “We were in possession of one goat; however, we used the loan to purchase a female goat, which delivered two young ones.” Meanwhile, Christopher participates in a community savings group where he saves UGX 40,000 (10 Euros) weekly, and the accumulated amount of money is shared out annually.
“We also learned better farming practices especially kitchen gardening. We planted vegetables such as spinach, Amaranthus and cabbage. We also learned how to make organic fertilisers and pesticides,” says Sifa.
From the business cash grant of UGX 262,500 (65 Euros) that they received in March 2024, the couple started a pork-butchery selling business in Rwenyawawa and Kagoma markets with UGX 150,000 (37 Euros). They also invested UGX 50,000 (12 Euros) in the silverfish business Sifa had started through their farming venture in November 2023 and utilised the remaining cash to cover basic needs.
“Sifa sells three basins of silverfish per week, which earn UGX 90,000 (22 Euros). The butchery makes a profit of UGX 90,000 (22 Euros) per market day. We recently acquired one goat worth UGX 270,000 (67 Euros) from the pork selling business and have currently increased to five goats from the profits of both businesses,” enlightens Christopher.
Sifa and her husband plan to improve and expand their house structure after the Village Saving and Loans Association shares out at the end of the year. They also plan to increase their goats to ten in number so that they can sell them and buy a cow. In the long run, the couple wants to diversify their income by purchasing a motorcycle to start a boda-boda business.
“I would also like to officiate our marriage while we continue understanding each other in order to live in peace and harmony,” declares Christopher.
About the SMILES project
The Sustainable Market Inclusive Livelihood Pathways to Self-Reliance (SMILES) project is a five-year (November, 2022 – October, 2027) initiative funded by the IKEA Foundation. The project works with 14,000 households (extremely poor refugee and host community) comprising 70,000 individuals in Kyaka II and Kyangwali Refugee Settlements in Western Uganda with the aim of supporting them to become resilient.
The project delivers a graduation model integrated with a Market System Development approach targeting women and youth and their household members. Key sectors include livelihoods, agriculture, food security, protection, energy and environment. The project is implemented by AVSI Foundation in partnership with UNHCR and the Office of the Prime Minister and in a consortium with Innovations for Poverty Action, Renewable Energy, Powering Agriculture and Rural Livelihoods Enhancement (REPARLE), Makerere University Kampala, and DAI Global LLC.
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