If You Ate Today, Thank a Farmer; Roots Africa Monthly Field Notes, February 2026.
Theme: Community Ownership | Tagline: Training Farmers is Our Business
February reminded us why we exist: to build systems where young people lead, communities own, and farmers increase yield and income without dependency.
This newsletter is written for:
Our internal community (changemakers, change agents, mentors, coordinators, and chapter leaders)
Our partners and supporters (donors, institutions, ecosystem builders)
New readers discovering Roots Africa for the first time
If you follow these updates from January to December, you will have a clear record of what Roots Africa accomplished this year, and what we are building toward. At the end of the year, these posts will be compiled into our annual report, supported by verified numbers and visuals.
What We Accomplished This Month
1) Impact Story Spotlight: From Changemaker to Ecosystem Builder
A few months ago, we spotlighted Bazira Tadeo Apuuli as a Roots Africa changemaker turned peer mentor and then Country Coordinator for Roots Africa Uganda. This month, we celebrate another chapter in his leadership journey.
Apuuli is also the CEO and Founder of Abamu Agripreneurs Uganda Limited, tackling one of the most overlooked foundations of agricultural wealth: soil health.
As Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “A nation that destroys its soil destroys its wealth.”
Through Abamu Agripreneurs, Apuuli is helping farmers test their soils using accessible soil testing kits and providing expert recommendations so farmers can make informed decisions.
Healthy soil leads to healthy crops. Healthy crops strengthen households. Strong households build sustainable wealth.
Watch the documentary:
From Changemaker to Founder: Bazira Tadeo Apuuli (Abamu Agripreneurs Uganda Limited)
For soil testing and expert recommendations:
Bazira Tadeo Apuuli
Email: baziratadeo@gmail.com
Phone: 0768332056
2) Announcement: Roots Africa Impact Trip 2026
For over a decade, Roots Africa has built a living bridge between students, farmers, extension systems, and markets across Africa.
Every year, we travel to Uganda. Every two years, to Liberia.
Why? Because impact must be seen, measured, and strengthened.
This month, we are officially announcing the Roots Africa 2026 Impact Trip to Uganda, with a select group to Liberia included in our biannual rotation.
This is not a conference. It is immersion.
You will visit university-based pods, engage directly with farmers, and witness what happens when students become extension leaders and agriculture becomes an enterprise.
Learn more here:
https://lnkd.in/gVF5DvcF
3) The Harvest Is Here: Gulu University Eco Garden Pod
What started as an idea within the Eco Garden Pod of the Entrepreneurship Club at Gulu University is now producing real results.
This is more than produce. It is proof that when students take ownership, communities grow.
Through cocoa tree planting and sustainable practices, these changemakers are investing in long-term wealth creation, environmental restoration, and farmer resilience. Cocoa is not just a crop. It is a statement: the future is green, strategic, and community-owned.
The harvest is here. And it belongs to the community.
4) Partnership Highlight: Mountains of the Moon University
For over five years, our partnership with Mountains of the Moon University (MMU) has continued to grow in strength, trust, and impact.
Last year, MMU hosted the Roots Africa Annual Symposium, Pitch Competition, and Graduation. It became one of our strongest convenings, bringing together students, farmers, researchers, employers, and global partners around one mission: practical innovation that increases farmer income and food security.
This month, we celebrate another milestone: several Roots Africa changemakers graduated as MMU celebrated graduation, and the university magazine spotlighted the symposium and our partnership as a model of academic collaboration and international exchange.
This is what real partnership looks like. We do not operate in parallel to universities. We embed within them, co-design programs, and strengthen agricultural extension systems by training students to serve farmers directly.
5) People of Roots Africa: Elly Kasirye
Elly Kasirye, our Regional Coordinator for East Africa and Chairperson of Wakiso Human Rights District, continues to champion the rights of farmers and communities across Uganda.
As a lawyer in training and human rights advocate, Elly is advancing:
The right to land
The right to food
The right to adequate nutrition
At Roots Africa, we remain committed to SDG 2: Zero Hunger. Training farmers is our business. Protecting their dignity and rights is part of our responsibility.
6) Opportunity for West Africa: WACSI Research Fellowship
Changemakers and Change Agents in Liberia, please share this with your networks in West Africa.
Applications open: 2026 WACSI Research Fellowship (May–Oct)
Deadline: 13 March 2026
Apply Here
What We Are Launching Next Month
1) Roots Africa Changemakers Program 6.0 (2026 Cohort)
We are proud to announce the official launch of the Roots Africa Changemakers Program 6.0, 2026 Cohort.
Theme: Community Ownership
Tagline: Training Farmers is Our Business
Across Liberia and Uganda, our model exists to close the extension gap by training university students and young professionals to become extension leaders in their own communities.
This cohort goes deeper. Community ownership means farmers are not beneficiaries. They are partners. Co-creators. Leaders in their own transformation.
Seven-week training sequence (overview):
Week 1: Orientation and Pod Formation
Week 2: Project Planning and Management
Week 3: Financial Literacy and Business Development
Week 4: Record Keeping and Reporting
Week 5: Time Management in Projects
Week 6: Extension Principles and Community Engagement
Week 7: Pod Assessment and Evaluation
This is not charity. This is an enterprise. This is leadership. This is a measurable impact.
2) Documentary Initiative 2026: Owning the Story, Showing the Impact
This year, we are making ownership visible through documentation.
From March to May (and an additional window in July), our communications team will visit selected university chapters to film documentary-style videos showcasing:
Changemakers owning their enterprises, farms, services, or solutions
Change agents leading and scaling innovations
Pods operating as real businesses
Communities owning and implementing solutions
We will ONLY visit institutions that have:
At least 10 confirmed changemakers
At least 1 confirmed change agent
Clear enterprises, projects, farms, services, or pod businesses ready to be filmed
Why this matters:
These documentaries will serve as lifetime portfolios for global opportunities (visas, research, internships, jobs). They will also serve as a real-time, visual record of your support, donations, and measurable impact in the lives of real farmers and students building community-owned solutions.
Book your slot here:
https://forms.gle/2BehX4WJyWrEgpkb8
Inspiration examples:
Changemakers In Action 2026– Liberia & Uganda
What We Are Building
As we move into March, our direction remains clear.
We are shifting from programs to ownership.
From implementation to enabling founders.
From short-term wins to community-led systems that last.
If you are new here, welcome.
If you have been with us, thank you for believing that agriculture can become an enterprise and that youth can lead lasting change.
Thank you for engaging with us.
Yours sincerely,
Dough Onah: For Roots Africa Team
Sowing seeds of change
This is awesome and it is inspiring to see what is being done. I will be in touch before you leave for August! Thanks Dr.U