Pastor Robert Kayanja and wife Jessica of golden farm in Kiryandongo receive a special recognition award from Victoria Ssekitoleko (right), one of Vision Group’s Best Farmer Awards judges. COURTESY PHOTO.
Pastor Robert Kayanja and his wife Jessica Kayanja were recognised Tuesday for their contribution to the agricultural sector in Uganda.
The duo received a certificate of recognition and an award during the seventh edition of the Best Farmers Competition organized by Vision Group in partnership with the Netherlands Embassy, DFCU Bank, KLM Airlines and Koudijs Nutrition BV.
The competition which begun in 2014, brought together a total of 13 exceptional farmers in the country who were honored during the virtual event held at the Vision Group head offices.
For Pastor Robert Kayanja, the dynamic change in seasons, prompted him to venture into a diverse variety of animals and crops on 1 square mile of land area in Kiryandongo, in the western region of Uganda.
The initiative has since become a source of employment for new Christian converts and former street children participating in rehabilitation projects at Miracle Centre Cathedral – Rubaga.
“We had a need of rehabilitating young people, those who are coming off the streets, and those who are getting saved, and have no jobs and skills,” he said.
“We dedicate this award to everyone that has worked hard to bring this into being. However we choose to honor the Holy Spirit who is indeed the Power of God and who gives strength for a new day,” Pastor Jessica remarked on Facebook.
Barbara Kaija, editor-in-Chief at Vision Group explained during the event that the competition has enabled many farmers adapt better agricultural techniques and technologies.
“People are going into value-addition,” she said.
“When we started this competition in 2014, we had about 700 entries and in 2020, we had 1,870. That is a sign that many Ugandans have gone into farming,” she said.
