By Jumah Kakomo
In a bid to fight against environmental degradation, Sistema bio a non-governmental Organization (NGOs) launched a programme to provide farmers globally with the technology used to produce bio-gas to enable them save and conserve the environment with its associated benefits.
Biogas is a gaseous renewable energy source produced from raw materials such as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste, wastewater, and food waste. Biogas is produced by anaerobic digestion with anaerobic organisms or methanogens inside an anaerobic digester, bio digester or a bioreactor.
A bio digester is a special container where organic waste, from both humans and animals, is fermented to produce fertilizer and biogas. It is like a mechanical stomach or a much larger version of a cow’s stomach. A bio digester can be made from plastic, metal, or concrete depending on the application and is an anaerobic environment where the microorganisms in the waste decompose the matter.
Sistema bio, works with smallholder farmers to address the challenges of poverty, food security and climate change. They have identified the right products and skills farmers need to become more financially secure, productive and climate smart.
They provide access to innovative technology, training and financing to help farmers produce clean energy, maximize local resources, and increase their productivity. By building packages that adapt to local conditions, they allow farmers to have the highest return on investment and the best environmental and health impacts.
Sistema bio operates globally with the potential to bring clean-energy and sustainable agricultural practices to 100M farmers on over 15% of the world’s farmland. Their strategy and technology has been proven to scale, and they are ready to accelerate growth to reach more farmers.
On 27th -28th Sistema bio exhibited how farmers are benefiting from the technology, the impact on climate, environment and health from the areas of mid-Western Uganda specifically in cities like Fort portal and Mbarara.
During the tour, Ahimbisibwe Martha from Sistema bio technical department highlighted that they reach farmers by establishing agricultural training HUBs that demonstrate the best regenerative agricultural practices for the region. From there, local farmers are hired as technicians to promote and install technology.
“We work with partners such as local farmer organizations, financial institutions, renewable energy companies, NGOs and enterprises with ESG strategies to multiply their impact. Each new HUB is established in regions with the potential to reach hundreds of thousands of farmers,” Martha said.
One of the beneficiaries of Sistema bio technology, the former Resident District Commissioner RDC of Kyegegwa District and now a proficient farmer at Fortportal Cox Apuuli said ever since he commenced using bio-gas, he has completely distanced himself from poverty due to its multipurpose.
“Using bio gas has saved me from cutting trees to get firewood for cooking on a daily basis which destroys the nature of our environment for daily use. I used to cut more than three trees monthly but now I nolonger cut any,” Apuuli stated.
He adds that getting a bio digester spent only Ugx2.5m which he asserts is little depending on what someone could spend on firewood with its associated problems.
Gladys Akiiki the wife to Cox Apuuli says the biological matter that’s used to produce biogas will naturally decay anyway, so capturing the gases produced by this decay, and using them as an energy source, causes less harm to the environment than allowing them to escape into the atmosphere.
She says it is now time for the government to work with agencies like Sistema-bio to educate and provide people with the use of bio-gas as it reduces environmental damage.
Abel Nabimanya a resident of Rwejeru ward, Rwendama zone, Mbarara city north who also uses bio gas says if the government makes it a policy for at least 80% of Ugandans use bio gas, it will help on keeping conserving environment and also eliminate on other natural disasters such as drought among others.
Ketuvire Beatrice, a wife to Nabimanya applauds Sistema bio for coming up with such technology which she says has boosted their lives; however she implores others Ugandans to also embrace this technology due to its benefits.
Felix Okello Atube the Sistema-bio relationships Manager Mid-Western region says since the introduction of the Sistema-bio gas system in Uganda in 2022 in areas like Fort-portal city, Mbarara city, Mitooma district among others, citizens no longer cut down trees to get firewood for cooking instead diverted to raising cattle for the reasons they provide dung used to produce biogas which also used as fertilizer in their gardens.
“Now over 50 people in the eastern region of Uganda are changing their lives and they expect by 2025 more farmers will be using bio-gas.
Herbert Mulungi, team leader rural environmental sustainability initiative (RESI) highlights the importance of using bio gas such as fueling vehicles – if biogas is compressed it can be used as a vehicle fuel, as a replacement for natural gas – if biogas is cleaned up and upgraded to natural gas standards, its then known as biomethaneand can be used in a similar way to methane; this can include for cooking and heating among others which he says Ugandans should immediately adopt with the system.
Key Awards.
2010 BiD Challenge International Winner, 2011 Ashoka Fellowship and Iniciativa Mexico, 2012 New Ventures Scholarship, 2013 Clinton Global Initiative Recognition, 2014 MIF IDB Technical cooperation, 2016 USB-Visionary Finalist, 2017 Buckminster Fuller Institute Finalist, 2017 Endeavour Fellowship, 2019 Ashden Award winner, category for clean cooking, 2019 Schwab Foundation Social Innovation awardee by the World Economic Forum, 2019 UN Leadership Award for SDG7.
About Sistema bio.
Headquarters Mexico City, Mexico Headquarters-Africa: Nairobi, Kenya HUBS: Colombia, Kenya, India Operations: LATAM & the Caribbean, East Africa, Asia, Europe (31 countries) Africa Footprint: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, Senegal Established 2010 Impact Areas: Agriculture, Clean Tech & Energy Director-Africa: Eng. Madrin Maina.
