Angella Atero, Nutrition, Communication, and Advocacy Specialist, Uganda
Walter Odongo, a 31-year-old farmer from Dokolo district in Northern Uganda, has only praise for vitamin A orange sweet potatoes (OSP). He was previously a rice
Walter is married to Judith Adongo, and they have two children aged 9 months and two years. Walter was part of a group of farmers trained in agronomy and nutrition by World Vision, a HarvestPlus implementing partner in Northern Uganda. There, Walter learned that the vitamin A OSP promoted by HarvestPlus is fast maturing, drought tolerant and higher in vitamin A than the traditional white and cream varieties. More than a quarter of preschool-aged children in Uganda suffer from vitamin A deficiency, which can lower resistance to common childhood illnesses like
After the training, each farmer received half a bag of vitamin A orange sweet potato vines. Walter planted his in a small garden and harvested about 1.5 bags of roots. In the second season of
In one acre of
“I now earn more than twice the amount of money I used to earn from my acre of land when I used to plant paddy rice. I earn from both the vitamin A orange sweet potato roots and the vines,” recounts Walter with a grin of satisfaction. Walter has used some of the proceeds from this venture to buy land especially to expand his OSP garden. He has also bought some goats that he plans to multiply, sell, and buy oxen for
HarvestPlus thanks World Vision and the many other nongovernmental organizations partnering with us around the world to ensure those most in need can benefit from biofortified crops.