Lira | In the heart of Lira district, Northern Uganda, Richard Obua, a 52-year-old resident of Bolnyapo village in Akangi parish, Ogur sub-county, is reshaping the future of rural livelihoods through a powerful mix of environmental consciousness, financial resilience, and community impact.
From sewing clothes to harvesting fish and honey, Obua’s journey illustrates how determination and innovation can transform adversity into sustainable success while offering a timely local solution to climate change and environmental degradation.
Once a practicing tailor, Obua today stands out as a champion of climate-smart enterprise. Armed with a craft certificate in tailoring, he launched an artisanal training school that empowered unemployed youth with practical skills; his first major step toward building community resilience.
Instead of expanding his tailoring business with the sh10m he raised, he invested in tree planting, signaling his deep commitment to environmental sustainability.
His transition deepened in 2019, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to close his tailoring shop and return to his rural roots. But rather than give up, Obua reimagined his future. He opted for smart agriculture while heeding to President Yoweri Museveni’s call to productively utilise wetlands and, in 2021 secured a permit to operate on wetlands while embracing fish farming.
With technical guidance from a sub-county fisheries officer, Obua established a 10-by-20-meter fish pond, stocked with 500 fingerlings. He invested sh1.5mn that year to launch his aquaculture venture. Though early signs were promising, seasonal floods, predators, and theft caused setbacks worth an estimated sh1.78m in 2019 and 2020.
Land disputes with neighboring communities in Alebtong district added to his challenges, but Obua remained undeterred. He further diversified into beekeeping, an environmentally friendly activity that complemented his green ambitions and helped protect surrounding ecosystems.
By 2022, his resilience began to pay off. He earned sh3.75m that year from 1,000 fish fingerlings. In 2023, his income surged to sh4.8m after selling about 1,240 fish fingerlings, and in 2024, he harvested sh4.3m due to losses he encountered due to theft at the fish pond. He has invested 1,240 fish fingerlings.
From a bee project established in 2024 containing 75 bee hives, Obua harvested 80 liters of honey (30 liters in the first production and 50 liters in the second production), selling each kilogram at sh10,000. This earned him sh800,000.
His ventures are not only elevating his household income, they are also championing sustainable environmental practices and offering a clear alternative to destructive economic activities such as sand mining, which has devastated parts of Bolnyapo village in Lira district, and several Northern Uganda’s wetlands and riverbanks.
Obua says he has deliberately refused to engage in sand mining, despite the growing profitability and demand. He considers it a short-term gain with long-term environmental costs, such as wetland degradation, water pollution, and the loss of biodiversity.
“I tell fellow community members: don’t destroy what gives you life. There are better options that can feed your families and protect our environment,” he says.
Instead, he encourages youth and smallholder farmers to embrace ecosystem-based livelihoods such as aquaculture, apiculture, tree planting, and vegetable farming all of which not only generate income, but also protect natural resources.
With high hopes of higher earnings in the near future, Obua hopes to install solar pumps to support his fresh vegetables project, and most notably, he hopes to support his children through university and vocational studies.
In a region often struggling with poverty, youth unemployment, and climate-related challenges, Obua’s eco-friendly enterprise offers a blueprint for rural transformation rooted in resilience, sustainability, and innovation.
According to Solomon Eimu, the fisheries officer attached to Ogur sub-county, Lira district, Obua’s fish farming initiative has not only transformed his household but also created a ripple effect within his community.
“His work has boosted both household income and nutrition. Obua has even managed to educate his children; one of them is yet to join University, all from proceeds of his fish and honey projects,” Eimu noted.
But the impact extends beyond personal gain. Eimu is positive that Obua’s environmentally friendly methods will in future encourage other residents particularly those near wetlands and water points to embrace aquaculture as a sustainable livelihood alternative to harmful practices like sand mining and charcoal burning.
“His fish farming requires small scale irrigation which in turn will support kitchen gardening and animal farming, making it a well-rounded approach to sustainable living,” he added.
Eimu, however, says local fish farmers like Obua have continued to grapple with challenges such as access to quality fish feeds and fingerlings, often relying on distant suppliers in Kampala, Busia, or Entebbe. In response, government extension officers are promoting locally accessible alternatives.
“We are training farmers to use maize and soya beans to formulate homemade fish feed. It’s cost-effective and enhances fish nutrition,” Eimu explained.
Climate unpredictability and theft are two other challenges faced by small-scale aquaculturists. Seasonal floods have threatened pond infrastructure, while incidents of theft remain common in rural communities.
“To mitigate flooding, we advise farmers to build strong embankments around their ponds. As for theft, mindset change through community sensitization is key,” Eimu said. “While many farmers can’t afford CCTV cameras, they can use affordable methods like barbed wire fencing to secure their ponds.”
Eimu is confident about aquaculture’s future in Northern Uganda. “Fish farming is more sustainable than bricklaying, sand mining, or charcoal burning. Communities living near wetlands should consider it a better option and form farmer groups to access both government and NGO support.”
Francis Ogwali, Production Officer of Lira District, emphasised that support for rural entrepreneurs like Obua comes partly through sub-county budgets and farmer linkages with stakeholders.
“Obua was equally helped through district efforts,” Ogwali said, underscoring the role of the government in creating enabling conditions for climate-resilient farming.
The district is also working to scale up practices such as fish farming, beekeeping, and vegetable production through sustainable land management, improved seed distribution, post-harvest handling, and value addition.
Ogwali noted that environment-conscious producers are integrated into agricultural value chains through sensitization campaigns and targeted support, including bee-keeping initiatives in areas like Apok Parish.
Replicating Obua’s model across other sub-counties, Ogwali suggested farmer exchange visits and training of extension workers. He called on communities near wetlands to stop encroachment, warning that tree cutting and other destructive activities are degrading water sources and the wider ecosystem.
Experts have since agreed that local innovation is crucial to addressing Northern Uganda’s environmental and economic challenges.
Otike Pabious, Natural Resource Officer of Lira district, notes that instead of growing crops in wetlands, Obua chose fish farming and harvesting honey. The practices, Otike says, aligned with President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s Executive Order on wetland preservation.
The order, which criminalizes environmentally harmful activities such as sand mining, charcoal burning, and brick laying in wetlands, echoes Obua’s values of environmental responsibility.
“Sand mining in Bolnyapo Village is illegal and is destroying the ecosystem. Obua’s choice to avoid it and engage in fish farming and beekeeping is commendable,” said Otike.
The wetlands in question are part of the broader Moroto Wetland System, a critical ecological zone under siege from unregulated sand mining, wetland cultivation, and drainage. According to district authorities, these practices not only degrade biodiversity but also threaten long-term water security and climate resilience.
Lira District’s Natural Resources Office, in collaboration with the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), is working to balance short-term economic activities with long-term sustainability goals. The district’s environmental task force leads enforcement while community engagement teams promote participatory planning of ecosystem use.
“As a Natural Resources Officer, we guide communities toward manageable ecosystem planning. Activities like sand mining affect the entire Moroto Wetland System, and we must act,” Otike noted.
To encourage environmentally friendly alternatives, Otike has confirmed that landowners in the sub-counties of Ogur, Agweng, and Ayami are benefiting from conservation funds provided by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The funds aim to support transitions from harmful practices to nature-based livelihoods such as fish farming and beekeeping.
“These funds are meant to shift people away from cultivating, infilling, constructing, or opening drainage channels in wetlands. We promote restoration over degradation,” he echoed.
According to Otike, Obua’s model is already influencing local development planning noting that his practices have been integrated into community sensitization efforts through agricultural extension services. Fish farming and beekeeping are not only eco-friendly but also economically viable for rural households.
Otike says Lira district currently has 86 licensed fish farms legally operating in wetland areas while 52 more are not yet cleared. “We encourage them to register and get licensed so that they can be able to access technical support in pond construction, beehive management, and environmental compliance.”
Putting together aquaculture, apiculture, tree planting, and small-scale irrigation—is regarded by some experts as a blueprint for climate-smart agriculture and ecosystem-based adaptation.
According to Isaiah Ndungo, the Country Coordinator of Join For Water, a study conducted between June and September 2024 revealed that population growth, poverty, weak land ownership rights were working against the environment. In addition, destructive practices such as deforestation, bush burning, and artisanal mining were driving widespread degradation.
“These pressures have left the sub-catchments extremely vulnerable to soil erosion, natural disasters, and even conflicts over the use of natural resources,” Ndungo explained. “Both local and national stakeholders already recognize the urgency of protecting water resources, and the Aswa Catchment Management Plan gives us a strong foundation. This creates the enabling environment we need to implement community-driven interventions.”
He noted that the challenges were both socio-economic and environmental. Poverty and limited livelihood opportunities force many to exploit fragile ecosystems, while gender inequalities and patriarchal norms continue to limit women’s land rights and decision-making power.
Climate change, he added, is making things worse through recurrent floods, droughts, crop failures, and soil depletion.
To address this, Join For Water is rolling out interventions that combine ecosystem restoration with community empowerment. The focus will be on restoration through catchment-based water resources management.
Sustainable aquaculture
Eng. Tonny Olanya Olenge, a natural resources researcher, says aquaculture is a promising livelihood, but it must not come at the expense of degrading wetlands.
“Integrated fish farming with minimal wetland disruption, coupled with regular monitoring and community education, can allow wetlands to thrive while supporting food security.”
Beyond aquaculture, Olanya highlighted the role of apiculture in promoting biodiversity and generating income. Citing Obua’s 75 beehives, he recommended policies that provide subsidies for beehive setups, farmer training in sustainable apiculture, and market access for honey products. “Beekeeping conserves the environment while improving household incomes,” he says.
Addressing climate risks, the researcher emphasized the need for resilience strategies to protect smallholder fish farmers from floods, droughts, and unpredictable rainfall.
Practical measures include constructing reinforced pond embankments, adopting drought-resistant fish species, and developing water harvesting systems for irrigation during dry spells. He also stressed the importance of weather forecasts and affordable insurance schemes.
On sand mining and charcoal burning, Olanya advised governments and communities to promote sustainable livelihood models. He pointed to aquaculture, apiculture, and agroforestry as viable alternatives.
“These activities should be scaled up through subsidies, training, market linkages, and microfinance support to create community-based cooperatives,” he noted.
“Obua’s model is about resilience, environmental protection, and sustainable livelihoods. If replicated widely, it can transform rural economies while safeguarding our natural resources,” Olanya concluded.
Olanya says supporting environment training, subsidized inputs, and irrigation are critical. He added that community sensitization campaigns led by local leaders, demonstration farms, and peer-to-peer learning networks would accelerate adoption.
One of Obua’s most loyal clients, Robert Acwera, from Otino Waa Children’s Village, advocates for more support to eco-conscious entrepreneurs like Obua.
Obua’s dual enterprise fuelled by fish ponds and buzzing beehives is a model for how rural innovation, environmental care, and community support can work hand in hand to build a better, sustainable future.
The story was produced with support from InfoNile and in partnership with Join for Water.
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