From lake to land: How solar irrigation is changing fishermen’s lives in Kaliro district

KALIRO, July 20, 2026 – Nawampiti village is located about 82 kilometres away from Kaliro Town in Bukamba Sub-county, Kaliro district. Here, the cold breeze from Lake Nakuwa once carried the familiar smell of fish drying outside homes. Today, however, it carries a different sound—the gentle hiss of sprinklers watering lush green fields. Nawampiti, home to the Nawampiti Fishermen and Fish Traders SACCO, is also hosts the Lugonyola Solar-Powered Irrigation Scheme, a project that is steadily redefining the identity of this once-impoverished fishing community. For decades, fishing was virtually the only source of livelihood. Families endured unpredictable incomes, dwindling fish stocks and chronic poverty, with little hope that tomorrow would be any better than today. Today, that story is changing. A community transformed The irrigation scheme was introduced after Kaliro district leaders identified overdependence on fishing as the root cause of persistent poverty in the area. As fish ...