Johnson Basangwa from Kamuli, Uganda came to Aeres in 2017 to attend the poultry management course. Since his return from his one month stay in Barneveld, his farm has grown exceptionally: from 30.000 hens in 2017 to 100.000 hens in 2024. The production has grown, the chickens are healthier and the farm is in an overall better condition. Next to the farm, Johnson has his own training centre for youths and he helps ATCI with organising trainings at his farm.
Johnson Basangwa, who was educated as a professional Civil Engineer, chose to make a career change when his career didn’t fulfil him. He decided to try his hand at farming. He started his farm in Kamuli town in 2007 with a small amount of just 500 birds. With the income he generated by selling the eggs that these 500 hens laid, he bought more chickens. This made his farm rapidly grow to a total of 3000 hens.
Growth in the amount of hens in his farm, made him think about acquiring a bigger plot, which he bought about a year later. He built a bigger farm in Bukwenge, not far from the capital city Kampala, which he called Jeka poultry farm. In 2015 Jeka poultry farm was awarded with the title ‘Best Farmer’ in the Uganda Best Farmers Competition.
‘I’ve gained a lot of knowledge about management and production planning, which made my business grow exponentially’
Basangwa was clearly skilled at his job as a poultry farmer, with a title reflecting this. He also has a successful training centre for the next generation poultry farmers, which he started in 2016. “We train youth from 18 years old and up about poultry farm management and production planning. With this knowledge they can start their careers with a better base and have a better functioning poultry farm, whether they already have one or want to start one.”
Still, Basangwa realised there was room for improvement of his knowledge and skills. He wanted to gain knowledge about the management of his farm, to give it grow potential and be an overall better farmer and businessman. This is why he decided to travel to Barneveld to attend the course Poultry Management at ATCI in 2017. “In the course I learned a lot about the management of the farm and how important it is to focus on production planning. In Uganda we don’t really do production planning. We don’t look at our farms in that much detail. It is not a habit to keep record on for example stock. But I learned in my training at Barneveld to use schedules, to plan ahead and also to look differently at the quality of feed in the farm.”
His training at ATCI helped Basangwa to understand what was needed to have a high functioning, growing poultry business. Now he keeps track of the production of the hens and of the stock, so he can easily see differences in the production and he tries to keep it as stable as possible. “It is more work, but in the end it will make your business better and more profitable, so it is absolutely worth it.”
Basangwa has a special bond with the Netherlands. Not just because of the time he spend in Barneveld a couple of years ago, but also businesswise. “I get my one day year old chicks from a supplier in the Netherlands, called Verbeek. They supply me with my layers. I also import concentrate, an important part of the chicken feed, from the Dutch company Solprovit products. So in that way I am always in contact with the country. I also have some friends in the Netherlands.”
In 2019 Basangwa organised a joint training with ATCI at his farm, for farmers from Congo. “That was a very good experience, for me and for the people who participated. So I hope we can do it again someday.”
Although Basangwa likes the country, the Dutch people, and their way of working and communicating, he will not likely pay a visit to the country during the colder months of the year. “During my time at Barneveld, there was snow. And it was so cold, I have never experienced anything like that. I was really struggling with that, it was too cold to enjoy it, although it was beautiful to see. All considered, I have very good and special memories about my time at Aeres.”
Johnson Basangwa from Kamuli, Uganda came to Aeres in 2017 to attend the poultry management course. Since his return from his one month stay in Barneveld, his farm has grown exceptionally: from 30.000 hens in 2017 to 100.000 hens in 2024. The production has grown, the chickens are healthier and the farm is in an overall better condition. Next to the farm, Johnson has his own training centre for youths and he helps ATCI with organising trainings at his farm.
Johnson Basangwa, who was educated as a professional Civil Engineer, chose to make a career change when his career didn’t fulfil him. He decided to try his hand at farming. He started his farm in Kamuli town in 2007 with a small amount of just 500 birds. With the income he generated by selling the eggs that these 500 hens laid, he bought more chickens. This made his farm rapidly grow to a total of 3000 hens.
Growth in the amount of hens in his farm, made him think about acquiring a bigger plot, which he bought about a year later. He built a bigger farm in Bukwenge, not far from the capital city Kampala, which he called Jeka poultry farm. In 2015 Jeka poultry farm was awarded with the title ‘Best Farmer’ in the Uganda Best Farmers Competition.
Although Basangwa likes the country, the Dutch people, and their way of working and communicating, he will not likely pay a visit to the country during the colder months of the year. “During my time at Barneveld, there was snow. And it was so cold, I have never experienced anything like that. I was really struggling with that, it was too cold to enjoy it, although it was beautiful to see. All considered, I have very good and special memories about my time at Aeres.”
Basangwa has a special bond with the Netherlands. Not just because of the time he spend in Barneveld a couple of years ago, but also businesswise. “I get my one day year old chicks from a supplier in the Netherlands, called Verbeek. They supply me with my layers. I also import concentrate, an important part of the chicken feed, from the Dutch company Solprovit products. So in that way I am always in contact with the country. I also have some friends in the Netherlands.”
In 2019 Basangwa organised a joint training with ATCI at his farm, for farmers from Congo. “That was a very good experience, for me and for the people who participated. So I hope we can do it again someday.”
‘I’ve gained a lot of knowledge about management and production planning, which made my business grow exponentially’
Basangwa was clearly skilled at his job as a poultry farmer, with a title reflecting this. He also has a successful training centre for the next generation poultry farmers, which he started in 2016. “We train youth from 18 years old and up about poultry farm management and production planning. With this knowledge they can start their careers with a better base and have a better functioning poultry farm, whether they already have one or want to start one.”
Still, Basangwa realised there was room for improvement of his knowledge and skills. He wanted to gain knowledge about the management of his farm, to give it grow potential and be an overall better farmer and businessman. This is why he decided to travel to Barneveld to attend the course Poultry Management at ATCI in 2017. “In the course I learned a lot about the management of the farm and how important it is to focus on production planning. In Uganda we don’t really do production planning. We don’t look at our farms in that much detail. It is not a habit to keep record on for example stock. But I learned in my training at Barneveld to use schedules, to plan ahead and also to look differently at the quality of feed in the farm.”
His training at ATCI helped Basangwa to understand what was needed to have a high functioning, growing poultry business. Now he keeps track of the production of the hens and of the stock, so he can easily see differences in the production and he tries to keep it as stable as possible. “It is more work, but in the end it will make your business better and more profitable, so it is absolutely worth it.”
