For the tenth year running, Vision Group, together with the Embassy of the Netherlands, KLM Airlines, dfcu Bank and Koudijs Animal Nutrition, is running the Best Farmers Competition.
The 2025 competition will run from April to November, with the awards in December. Every week, Vision Group platforms will publish profiles of the farmers. Winners will walk away with sh150m and a fully paid-for trip to the Netherlands.
At 40 years old, Jozonia Mbambu is one of Kasese’s most respected rice farmers. She is widely known in Kyondo Cell, Kasese municipality, as ‘Maama Rice’.
With a bachelor’s degree in community development, Mbambu has worked extensively with grassroots organisations, such as the District Union of Persons with Disabilities and Kiima Foods.
While working with Kiima Foods, a non-government organisation supporting coffee and maize farmers, she observed that although rice was a staple food in Ugandan homes, there was not as much investment in the enterprise compared to other crops.

Mbambu drying rice before hulling it. (Photos by Umar Nsubuga)
Driven by this observation, Mbambu opted to venture into rice farming. Her goal was to demonstrate the crop’s potential for food security and economic empowerment.
Today, through improved practices and community mobilisation, she is spearheading the transformation of local rice production and inspiring others, especially women and youths, to grow the crop.
How she started
Mbambu’s journey began in 2015 with a dream to transform rice growing in Kasese.
Using sh2m from her savings and support from her husband, Paul Baluku Kule, she rented a piece of land in the government-managed Mbuku Irrigation Scheme.
Mbambu did not quit her job, but coordinated the farm remotely, hiring workers and paying regular visits to oversee operations.
Her first harvest was disappointing, which she attributes to limited technical knowledge, but she did not give up.
She consulted experienced farmers on practices such as seed selection, spraying, fertilisation and the best post-handling practices.
Kule, her husband, explains: “What started as trial and error, gradually became a knowledge-driven enterprise. This foundation paved the way for Mbambu’s growth into the well-known ‘Maama Rice’ brand, built on experience and dedication.”
Turning point
In 2022, Mbambu quit her job to concentrate on rice farming.
Her dream was to set up a business that would not only support her family, but also uplift an entire community through agriculture.

To add value, she purchased a small hulling machine using a bank loan.
She also bought a plot of land. Her turning point came when she was selected for the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) Hi-Innovator accelerator programme, which targets small and growing businesses, especially women-led ones.
The initiative offer financial and technical support to help scale impactful ideas.
In September 2022, she received sh30m in the first phase of funding. She used sh25m to buy a bigger hulling machine and sh5m to support farmers who supply her. Later, she received sh40m in the second phase of the programme.
From this, she spent sh10m to install a three-phase power line to run her machines, while the rest was used to improve operations and expand her market reach.
In total, she received sh70m from the programme in two phases, which significantly boosted her capacity and helped transform her agribusiness.
She has also since built a warehouse, a store and her office. In September 2023, she got an additional boost through a$10,000 (sh35m) grant from USAID under the Women in Agriculture Impact Investment facility.
This enabled her to construct a drying yard and purchase a tricycle for the transportation of goods, further improving efficiency and productivity.
By the end of 2023, her business was registered as God’s Care Rice Processors Limited with Uganda Registration Services Bureau and Uganda Revenue Authority.
She also registered her workers with NSSF. It was a sign that her venture had moved from a small initiative to a fully established enterprise.
Community members like Grace Kabugho have witnessed the transformation.
“Her rice is in demand and her business has grown in both equipment and reach,” she says.
Mbambu did not stop there, she improved her packaging and also began supplying rice to schools and local shops.
Empowering the community
Mbambu says her enterprise is more than just a business, it is a community initiative that uplifts farmers and promotes sustainable agriculture.
Through a structured outgrower model, the company partners with smallholder farmers, providing tools, seeds and training.
The company works with 726 outgrowers. These farmers receive training, certified seeds and financial support.
Input loans are provided at planting and later recovered after harvest, easing the farmers’ financial strain.
“Our extension workers guide them from land preparation, teach best farming practices, ensure correct input usage and help manage pests and diseases. We offer these at no cost. Our goal is to empower them to produce high-quality rice and improve their incomes,” Mbambu says.

The hulling machine that Mbambu purchased to help add value to her rice.
Agnes Nabugere, who hails from Kasese, says farmers in Mbuku Phase 1 cultivate highland rice that is suited for dry regions, while those in Phase 2 grow lowland rice, which flourishes in wet conditions.
The company ensures each farmer gets the right seed for their area to ensure excellent returns.
Mbambu explains that she employs eight workers during peak seasons, with a monthly wage bill of about sh2m, ensuring fair pay and consistent productivity.
Market
The company’s clients include wholesalers, retailers and direct consumers. The company is exploring partnerships with wholesale shops and hopes to brand and package its rice for wider distribution.
“We market research to ensure farmers are paid a fair price,” she says.
Best practices
The best practices in rice farming, Mbambu says, include timely planting, proper spacing, weed control, water management and harvesting at the right time to ensure high yields and good grain quality.
Rice farming generally requires minimal biosecurity measures compared to livestock farming.
However, the main physical threat comes from birds that feed on the rice, especially during the grain-filling and harvesting stages.
To address this, Mbambu takes several steps to ensure the physical security of her rice farm.
She employs trusted workers who help her keep watch over the fields, particularly during critical growth periods when birds pose the highest risk.
At the start, Mbambu admits she made mistakes, like focusing too much on production before understanding the market.
But each misstep was a lesson. Today, she encourages other aspiring agripreneurs to do thorough research, seek training and learn from failure.
Earnings
Mbambu says she earns about sh15-18m, from which she deducts costs like labour, seeds, irrigation and postharvest handling, which leaves her with a profit of sh5m to sh10m per season.
Family involvement
She explains that while her husband does not engage in daily garden work, he supports her with planning, marketing, decisions and financial management, making it a strong family-led enterprise.
Achievements
Mbambu says she started with one rented acre, but now rents up to four.
God’s Care Rice Processors’ impact has not gone unnoticed.
She says the company has partnered with organisations like USAID’s Inclusive Marketing for Agriculture and Women in Agriculture Investment Facility.
Mbambu highlights key milestones, such as setting up a rice processing plant, expanding into markets like Fort Portal and Mbarara cities and launching well-packaged rice products.
The enterprise’s commitment to empowering women and youths through employment and training further underscores its social impact.
For Mbambu, reaching 726 farmers is a remarkable achievement, each one supported, trained and regularly supplied, leading to better livelihoods for families and enhanced agricultural productivity across the region.
Challenges
“Running this business is not easy, we are up against stiff competition from imported rice, which is often cheaper than local products like ours,” Mbambu admits.
One of her biggest hurdles is storage.
“Without proper storage facilities, we have not been able to secure Uganda National Bureau of Standards certification, which is required to prove the quality and safety of our products. This certification is crucial for accessing bigger markets, especially supermarkets and export opportunities,” she explains.
Human resource turnover also slows down operations.
“We train staff, but many leave for better-paying jobs once they gain skills. It means we are always starting over with new people,” Mbambu says.
Quelea birds pose a major threat to rice fields, feeding in large flocks and destroying crops overnight. Farmers like Mbambu must wake up early to chase them with stones, a tiring and ineffective method.
Plans
“We plan to expand our processing plant and add packaging facilities and eventually export the crop,” Mbambu says.
She also plans to introduce organic rice farming to promote healthier food production, protect the environment and create sustainable income, while empowering youth through training and employment opportunities on the farm.
To bridge market gaps, a mobile app is being developed to link farmers directly to input suppliers and buyers.
A certified storage facility that meets Uganda National Bureau of Standards is also planned to ease entry into larger, more competitive markets.
The company is embracing environmental sustainability by converting rice husks into briquettes and fertilisers, reducing waste while offering eco-friendly alternatives to traditional fuels and synthetic fertilisers.
Value addition
Understanding the importance of value addition, Mbambu invested in a rice hulling machine and established a processing plant.
The facility not only processes rice, but also utilises by-products like rice husks and bran to produce poultry and fish feeds.
This initiative addresses waste management and provides additional revenue streams.
Mbambu says she sells her animal feed to local farmers, retail shops and cooperative groups.