Rhyne Cureton’s invitation to experience in Ugandan agriculture came at a crucial moment in his life: He was dealing with depression and a low sense of self-worth that stemmed from some personal failures he endured. The agricultural mission trip he took in summer 2017 was just what he needed, and he is collecting donations through a GoFundMe page to return to the sub-Saharan African nation to again make a positive impact in 2018.
Cureton is a pig farmer from North Carolina, and his mission trip was done through a program called EATBETA, which stands for Evangelizing Africa Through Business Empowerment and Transformative Agriculture. The nonprofit organization, founded by Dr. Julius Sonko, sets out to transform rural livelihoods by alleviating unemployment and food shortage in sub-Saharan Africa. Sonko believes that empowering smallholder farmers, with skills in business and agriculture, would eventually help to transform rural livelihoods.
That’s exactly the potential that Cureton saw last year. Reflecting on his 2017 experience, Cureton said:
“To know that my knowledge could not help those pigs because these farmers were just too poor was heartbreaking. But the problem wasn’t how the pigs were raised, the problem was these humans are living in poverty with little assistance and training. It was a sobering moment to get my head out of my pig-loving ‘self’ to see that I needed to help solve a more pressing issue. With the hand plows that are being welded for this community, we hope to see an improvement on the villagers crop farming. Maybe that can translate into a better life for their sows … but I know it will translate to a better life for each villager.”
As of Monday afternoon, Cureton has raised $2,350 of his $3,500 goal.
Cureton said that many agricultural practices that are standard in the United States are not commonly placed with Ugandan farmers. Among the skills he hopes to teach are:
- Livestock husbandry (basic care)
- Livestock nutrition
- Livestock breeding
- Manure management
- Biosecurity and food safety
- Livestock to crop rotation
On his GoFundMe page, Cureton talks about many of the things he’s seen and the lessons he has already been able to impart.
“The better their farming practices the better the animals will be, the safer their food will be to eat, and the more money they can save from farming wisely,” Cureton said.
Follow Cureton on his Instagram page or visit his GoFundMe page to donate.
