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jesse

Food systems and resilient livelihoods

Promoting climate-smart agriculture, agroecology, nutrition, value chain development, financial inclusion and resilient household livelihoods.

Agroecology
  • JESE promotes agroecological farming systems that enhance food production while conserving natural resources. By integrating ecological principles into agriculture, we support farmers to improve soil health, increase biodiversity, reduce dependence on external inputs, and strengthen resilience to climate change. Our approach empowers communities to produce healthy food sustainably while protecting the environment for future generations.
  • Key Focus: Agroecological practices • Soil fertility management • Organic farming • Integrated pest management • Climate resilience
Integrated Farm Planning
  • JESE supports farming households to develop integrated farm plans that optimise land use, diversify production and improve household resilience and promote gender equity in resource use. By combining crops, livestock, trees and water management, farmers increase productivity, reduce risks and build sustainable livelihoods tailored to their local environments.
  • Key Focus: Farm diversification • Agroforestry • Soil and water conservation • Climate-smart farming • Household resilience
Coffee, Cocoa and Vanilla Value Chain Development
  • JESE strengthens inclusive and sustainable coffee, cocoa and vanilla value chains by improving production practices, promoting quality standards, supporting certification, and linking farmers to profitable markets. Through value addition and business development, farmers increase incomes while adopting environmentally responsible production systems that meet international market requirements.
  • Key Focus: Sustainable production • Quality improvement • Value addition • Market access • Certification (Organic & EUDR) • supporting Farmer cooperatives  as collectives.

Overview: For more than three decades, JESE has strengthened inclusive and sustainable agricultural value chains that improve household incomes, enhance food security and promote environmental sustainability. Through strategic partnerships, the organisation has supported thousands of smallholder farmers to transition from subsistence production to market-oriented enterprises, particularly in the coffee, cocoa, vanilla and banana value chains.

Building Competitive Agricultural Value Chains

JESE has strengthened the entire agricultural value chain—from production and post-harvest handling to value addition, market access and enterprise development—ensuring that farmers capture greater value from their agricultural produce.

Empowering Smallholder Farmers
  • Mobilised and supported more than 13,800 smallholder farmers to adopt sustainable production practices.
  • Trained farmers in Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), climate-smart agriculture and agroecology.
  • Promoted integrated farm planning to improve productivity, profitability and resilience.
  • Supported women and youth to participate actively in commercial agriculture.
Strengthening Coffee, Cocoa and Vanilla Production
  • Promoted sustainable production of coffee, cocoa and vanilla through improved agronomic practices.
  • Distributed quality planting materials and promoted improved crop management.
  • Supported farmers to comply with international sustainability standards, including Organic Certification and the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
  • Georeferenced hundreds of cocoa and vanilla farms to enhance traceability and market compliance.
Improving Post-Harvest Handling and Quality
  • Trained farmers in proper harvesting, fermentation, drying, grading and storage techniques for both cocoa and vanilla.
  • Reduced post-harvest losses through improved handling and processing technologies.
  • Promoted quality assurance systems that enable farmers to access premium markets.
  • Supported the adoption of improved processing facilities for coffee, cocoa and vanilla.
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Promoting Value Addition
  • Encouraged local value addition through processing, grading, packaging and branding.
  • Strengthened community-based enterprises engaged in processing agricultural products.
  • Improved product quality and competitiveness in domestic and international markets.
  • Promoted entrepreneurship and agribusiness development among producer groups.
Strengthening Farmer Organisations
  • Built the capacity of farmer groups, cooperatives and producer organisations in governance, leadership and financial management.
  • Supported collective marketing and aggregation to improve farmers’ bargaining power.
  • Strengthened producer organisations to negotiate better prices and access larger markets.
  • Promoted inclusive participation of women and youth in producer organisations.
LIVELIHOOD
Expanding Market Access
  • Linked farmers to local, regional and international buyers.
  • Promoted compliance with export market requirements and sustainability standards.
  • Strengthened partnerships with private sector actors across agricultural value chains.
  • Facilitated access to premium markets through certification and improved product quality.
Enhancing Financial Inclusion
  • Strengthened Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) and community savings groups.
  • Improved farmers’ access to savings, credit and financial literacy services.
  • Supported enterprise investment and expansion through community-based financial systems.
  • Increased household resilience by diversifying income sources.
Promoting Climate-Resilient Value Chains
  • Integrated agroforestry into coffee, cocoa and vanilla production systems.
  • Supported restoration of degraded farmland through tree planting and Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR).
  • Promoted sustainable soil and water management practices.
  • Improved resilience of farming systems to climate change while increasing productivity.
Results and Impact

JESE’s value chain development interventions have contributed to:

  • Increased agricultural productivity and product quality.
  • Higher household incomes through improved market participation.
  • Reduced post-harvest losses and increased value addition.
  • Stronger farmer cooperatives and producer organisations.
  • Greater participation of women and youth in agribusiness.
  • Increased compliance with international market standards.
  • Enhanced financial inclusion through strengthened VSLAs.
  • More resilient farming systems through agroecology and climate-smart agriculture.
  • Sustainable management of natural resources integrated into agricultural production.
  • Improved livelihoods and food security for thousands of rural households.

JESE continues to strengthen sustainable value chains by promoting innovation, digital traceability, climate-smart production, carbon market opportunities and private sector partnerships. Through these investments, the organisation aims to build competitive, inclusive and environmentally sustainable agricultural enterprises that create lasting economic opportunities for farming communities across Uganda.

Nutrition

  • JESE promotes nutrition-sensitive agriculture and healthy diets to improve household food security and well-being. We support communities to diversify food production, establish kitchen gardens, improve maternal and child nutrition, and strengthen nutrition education, ensuring families have access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food throughout the year.
  • Key Focus: Household nutrition • Kitchen gardens • Dietary diversity • Maternal and child nutrition • Food security
Microfinance Support and Capacity Strengthening to Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs)
  • JESE strengthens community-based Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) to enhance financial inclusion, household resilience and local enterprise development. Through financial literacy, governance training and business mentoring, members increase savings, access affordable credit and invest in productive livelihood opportunities that improve household incomes and economic security.
  • Key Focus: Financial inclusion • Savings mobilisation • Access to credit • Financial literacy • Governance strengthening • Women’s economic empowerment
Enterprise Development
  • JESE promotes inclusive enterprise development by supporting individuals, youth groups and producer organisations to establish and grow sustainable businesses. We provide entrepreneurship training, business incubation, market linkages and technical support that enable communities to create employment, increase incomes and build resilient local economies.
  • Key Focus: Entrepreneurship • Business incubation • Market linkages • Value addition • SME development • Green enterprises