Heifer International, the Mott Foundation, and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation have announced a groundbreaking multi-stakeholder partnership to enhance access to productive solar energy services in Uganda’s agricultural value chains.
The project, named the Distributed Renewable Energy Ecosystem Model (DREEM) HUB, is a three-year initiative running from 2024 to 2026. It aims to mobilize a diverse network of partners to deliver skilled workforce and entrepreneurship development services, sustainable financing, and ecosystem coordination and support services.
Flavia Nalubega, the Heifer Uganda publicist, stated, “This will, in turn, empower 1,500 farmers as well as provide solar skills, jobs, and entrepreneurship development opportunities to 1,000 underserved youth and women entrepreneurs across the value chain of four dairy farmer cooperatives in Nakaseke District, fostering sustainable incomes, providing access to safe water, and strengthening resilience to climate change impacts.”
“The project will also establish a self-sustaining DREEM Hub in Uganda to continue advancing the productive use of solar energy in Uganda beyond the project period,” Nalubega added.
According to Surita Sandosham, Heifer International President and CEO, Heifer, with the support of the Ugandan Government and the Mott Foundation, will establish the DREEM Hub as a platform to bolster the implementation of existing policy mechanisms for increasing the adoption and utilization of renewable energy, thereby harnessing scalability and replicability within and beyond the sector.
Project Scope and Goals
With nearly $3 million in expected investment, the DREEM HUB project will focus on greening the dairy value chain—from production and processing to the distribution of dairy products—by demonstrating the use of solar energy at the farmer, cooperative, and processor levels.
“We are committed to creating opportunities for farmers to enhance their income while protecting the environment. This is our shared goal with the Mott Foundation: to care for the earth by promoting sustainable farming practices,” affirmed William Matovu, Heifer International Uganda Country Director.
Empowering Farmers with Sustainable Solutions
The DREEM HUB project aims to reach farmers and underserved women and youth, enabling them to adopt climate-smart agriculture through the productive use of solar energy services. This initiative will result in sustainable incomes, a safe water supply, and increased resilience of smallholder farmers and other value chain actors to climate change impacts and shocks.
As part of the greater DREEM Hub work, Heifer International will use funding from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to support the dairy sector to increase safe water supply for both household drinking and dairy use. Heifer International will use the funding from the Mott Foundation to develop the DREEM Hub as a self-sustaining multi-stakeholder platform that encourages public-private sector investments and partnerships for productive energy use in the dairy value chain.
Collaborating with a range of actors, Heifer aims to strengthen Uganda’s renewable energy ecosystem for the dairy sector, promoting scalability and replicability beyond dairy farming.
Heifer International’s Legacy in Uganda
Since 1982, Heifer International has worked with the Government and different strategic partners to support six million families across Uganda through agriculture and environmentally sound economic development programs. Currently active in 40 districts across the Central, Eastern, West Nile, and Northern regions, Heifer Uganda continues to drive sustainable development and community resilience.
About Heifer International
Since its founding in 1944, Heifer International has collaborated with over 46 million people worldwide to end hunger and poverty sustainably while caring for the Earth. Operating in 19 countries across Africa, Asia, and the Americas, Heifer supports farmers and food producers in strengthening local economies and building secure livelihoods that provide a living income.
About Mott Foundation
Established in 1926, the Mott Foundation is a charitable organization based in Flint, Michigan. The Foundation supports global projects that promote a just, equitable, and sustainable society, aiming to increase civic engagement and improve communities.
About Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
International hotelier Conrad N. Hilton established the grant-making foundation that bears his name in 1944 to help people living in poverty and experiencing disadvantage worldwide. The Foundation continues to focus on efforts to ensure healthy early childhood development and sustainable livelihoods for youth and refugee populations, support young people transitioning out of foster care, improve access to housing and support services for people experiencing homelessness, identify solutions to safe water access, and lift the work of Catholic sisters.
