“Everyone needs the opportunity to lead and to feel responsible for something that can impact the whole community. We aim for inclusion, meaning we don’t make decisions on behalf of those around us but let them take ownership ... Instead of just being beneficiaries, we believe in everyone's uniqueness. By involving others and giving them the responsibility to lead, they can innovate in ways I might not have thought of and contribute positively to our community.” Paulinho Muzaliwa
Paulinho Muzaliwa is a social entrepreneur passionate about regenerative agriculture, and founder of the Unidos Social Innovation Center in Uganda, Africa. As a refugee facing personal setbacks and challenges, Paulinho’s dream is to transform refugee camps into regenerative communities where every refugee can access clean water, abundant food, and quality education. In our conversation Paulinho emphasizes the importance of moving beyond reliance on humanitarian aid by fostering local leadership and sustainable practices.
Stephen Matini: Growing up, were there any specific person, people, or events that somehow impacted who you are today?
Paulinho Muzaliwa: Not really. I grew up in a modest environment, not very poor but not rich either. My dream was to be a pilot. When I couldn't go to university, I chose to become an accountant. In secondary school, I studied business and administrative administration. After finishing, it was quite hard to keep going. All my dreams really disappeared, so I gave up on them. Being a refugee is like starting a new life.
SM: Going through challenges and life in general, how do you keep the hope?
PM: How I stay positive is by understanding that my whole life has been challenging. To be successful or have a decent life, I need to be satisfied with what I have, cherish it, and stay connected to myself.
The most important thing is that if things are not good right now, as long as I work hard, I expect something positive will come, no matter how long it takes. I try to be optimistic because the worst part of my life is behind me. I just want to be more positive so that I can cherish all the moments I'm having right now.
SM: Entrepreneurs must have a vision and constantly fight self-doubts, challenges, insecurities, and problems. How did you get into social entrepreneurship, and what attracted you to it?
PM: There are many factors that have motivated me to jump into this, based on the challenges I encountered as a refugee. The first one was the language barrier, which has greatly affected young people in refugee settlements in accessing employment.
Four percent of refugees are unemployed, due to the language barrier, lack of experience, and a rigid education system. All of this prevents people from gaining access to jobs. The job market is also quite low in Uganda. So, while learning entrepreneurship, we realized that instead of relying on the system, it's better to create our own system and opportunities as refugees.
In my country, the education system especially makes us slaves to the system. You might have almost 100 people studying business and administration, but there are only two companies in the city. If you or your parents are not well-known, you never get a job. This motivated me to think, "Let's create our own opportunities instead of relying on the system.”
I got an opportunity to learn entrepreneurship at Idea for Africa and through different centers here in the refugee settlement to build my experience. This is where I started and founded Unidos Social Innovation Center.
SM: Could you share your experience of living in a refugee community?
PM: It's quite hard. Psychologically, it's really challenging to let go of the life you had in your home country and start anew in a refugee settlement. This trauma affects most people, making it difficult to move on and start a new chapter.
Economically, living in refugee settlements, especially where I am in Nakivale Valley, Uganda, is tough. As I mentioned, 44% of refugees are employed, but most people run small businesses that don't generate enough profit to sustain their lives. People are struggling due to the continuous decrease in humanitarian aid.
In 2018, when I arrived here, we used to receive food from the World Food Program. Currently, there is no food assistance. During COVID, the aid transitioned from food to money, but this amount keeps decreasing. Now, they provide $3, which is roughly enough to buy two liters of cooking oil. This is given as a monthly ration. Can someone sustain themselves on $3 a week or month? It's quite hard.
In terms of education, we have one secondary school and some private primary schools, but they don't provide quality education. Some parents with a bit of money send their children to schools outside the refugee settlements.
This is how life is in refugee settlements. People have relied heavily on humanitarian aid, and as this aid keeps decreasing, life becomes harder. Food prices keep increasing, making life even more difficult. Some people decide to go back to their countries and start hustling, despite the insecurity they face there.
SM: Your LinkedIn profile; it says, "I dream about transforming refugee camps into regenerative communities where every refugee can have access to clean water, abundant food, and quality education." Would you mind explaining what regenerative culture is?
PM: I define regenerative culture in two ways. First, it means having access to abundant food, being able to grow food in an environmentally friendly way while taking care of the soil, and growing organic and plentiful food. Why food? Because it is currently the first need for refugees since humanitarian aid keeps decreasing. We need to ensure that we can sustain ourselves by growing food instead of relying on humanitarian agencies.
Second, access to clean water is crucial. I've seen people go a week without bathing, young girls getting raped while looking for water, and people unable to cook because they don't have water. Typhoid and malaria are rampant due to the lack of clean water.
Regarding education, it's not just about learning. It's about being able to co-create something that will impact at least two people based on what you have learned. Education should boost someone by providing the resources that enable them to shift from their current life. When you return, you should see a significant difference; this person should no longer be dependent on someone else.
In summary, regenerative culture means shifting from humanitarian dependency to being able to sustain your life no matter where you are.
SM: What are the most important skills refugees need to address unemployment in the camp?
PM: I think vocational skills are the most important. They can help refugees learn and start co-creating something that will impact their lives and the community as a whole. When I say vocational training, I mean handmade skills like soap making, for example.
Teaching people how to grow their own food or how to do carpentry can be incredibly beneficial. These skills allow them to generate income. For example, soap making empowers women, enabling them to sustain their families and save for future needs.
SM: You’ve mentioned that refugees should rely on the system and need to move from dependency to independence. Why do you believe it’s important to have a flat and decentralized approach to leadership?
PM: Everyone needs the opportunity to lead and to feel responsible for something that can impact the whole community. We aim for inclusion, meaning we don’t make decisions on behalf of those around us but let them take ownership.
We want people to feel like they are part of that project or solution that will change their lives. Instead of just being beneficiaries, we believe in everyone's uniqueness. By involving others and giving them the responsibility to lead, they can innovate in ways I might not have thought of and contribute positively to our community.
SM: Do you think that everyone could be a good leader?
PM: Everyone can learn to be a good leader. The opportunity to provide this space is there. It's a transformation process, and it always takes time to become a good leader. The passion is what most people lack. The reason someone may not be a good leader is often because they haven’t had the time or willingness to learn.
SM: Would you mind telling me a little bit more about your project, the Unidos Social Innovation Center? Where did you get the initial spark for the idea?
PM: We initially started as an English club because most of us came from countries where English is not the first language. In Uganda, you need to speak English to navigate daily life, like shopping at the market. So, we began with an English club and then started sharing stories to connect with each other.
Nakivale Valley Refugee Settlement hosts almost five different communities: Congolese, Burundians, Somalis, Ethiopians, and South Sudanese. To connect, we needed to learn about each other's backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures to practice nonviolent communication and cohabit peacefully. Sharing stories and understanding each other's cultures helped us improve our interactions.
After I completed my entrepreneurship training, I added sessions on turning problems into solutions, creating opportunities, and viewing challenges as chances to benefit the entire community. This is where Unidos began.
During COVID, we faced a challenge with accessing food. The World Food Program decided to reduce food rations due to a lack of funds, and the lockdown prevented people from collecting food from their fields. We received a small grant of $200 to buy COVID prevention toolkits. I told them that while toolkits were fine, hunger would kill people before COVID would. They allowed us to use the funds as we saw fit, so my team and I bought maize, flour, sugar, and soap to distribute to the most vulnerable people in the settlement.
This distribution led to many people coming to the center, which created a dilemma when our funds ran out. Instead of just providing food, we decided to teach people how to grow their own food. We realized that distributing food would only make people dependent, but teaching them to grow food would make them self-sufficient.
None of us had experience in agriculture, so we sought out someone who could teach us. I was connected to Morag Gamble, a permaculture expert with experience in regenerative agriculture. She trained me, and I also connected with a community called Warm Data. In 2021, I introduced the Permaculture Design Course to Nakivale Valley Refugee Settlement, trained the first cohort, and saw great results. People started growing food regeneratively in small spaces, which motivated me to continue training others.
We also focused on soil regeneration because we found that using chemicals depletes soil health over time. We began producing organic fertilizer through vermicomposting, which involves decomposing food waste with worms to create organic fertilizer. This method regenerates the soil, balances the pH, and enhances microorganisms, making crops more resistant to climate change and producing nutritious food. We built two vermicomposting sites and community demonstration sites to showcase the benefits of organic fertilizer. This has inspired the community to see the advantages of regenerative practices over chemical methods.
Additionally, we started a mushroom-growing project. Mushrooms are nutritious and grow quickly, providing food in a short period and offering a way for women to generate income. We also have projects in soap-making, specifically organic soap, to empower women to be financially self-sufficient. Women and children are the most vulnerable in refugee settlements, so these initiatives aim to help them become sustainable and contribute to positive change in the community.
SM: You wrote, "Our goal is to transform these young refugees into change makers who will drive the community and make sure that everyone will be heard when it comes to creating a better tomorrow for all of us." What are some of the attributes of someone who becomes a change maker?
PM: A change maker, to me, is someone who sees a problem and takes the opportunity to create a solution that transforms the issue and drives impact. I believe that if we can develop 100 change makers in refugee settlements, each bringing diverse innovations that positively impact people, we will be able to move beyond relying on humanitarian aid or begging for support. With this level of commitment and vision, we can achieve significant progress.
SM: How do you define independence in terms of creating your own opportunities rather than relying on others?
PM: In reality, being a refugee means you are directly or indirectly a victim of many issues. For example, when we received food, it was often insufficient, and getting just $3 required spending an entire day in the sun waiting in line. If you missed out, you got nothing.
Dependency is also a significant problem. Being dependent means you have little control over your own life because decisions are made for you, possibly without considering your concerns. This can affect you either positively or negatively. People often focus on the aid they provide without considering how it impacts the recipient. They may feel good about giving help, but the actual needs might not be addressed.
We have seen many issues with local organizations. They often come to refugee camps, provide things like soap without consulting what is truly needed, and then take photos to report their work. This discrepancy between reported aid and actual needs has motivated refugees to start their own initiatives.
Local organizations sometimes misunderstand the real needs of refugees. For instance, they might provide unnecessary services like a salon when what is truly needed is different. Refugees understand their own struggles and can come up with solutions that genuinely benefit their communities.
For big organizations like the World Food Program to work effectively, they need to trust refugees in decision-making. Last year, we partnered with UNHCR to train people in regenerative agriculture and ecological practices. This partnership has made significant progress, and there are now many initiatives supported by UNHCR that come from within refugee settlements.
SM: You’ve demonstrated how applicable and crucial a sustainable mindset is. For those listening to this episode, what would you say is the key point they should focus on from our conversation?
PM: From the perspective of refugee settlements and how people view refugees, there are so many incredible individuals, initiatives, and courageous communities here doing exceptional work that deserves support and recognition. Unfortunately, this work often goes unnoticed.
I would recommend that if people want to support meaningful causes, they should focus on refugee communities. These people are making a significant impact despite their challenges.
For example, when discussing hunger, I understand what it means personally. Many advocate for hunger relief, but have they experienced the feeling of telling your children that there is no food for them today, and they must go to sleep unsure of what tomorrow will bring? As a parent, you spend sleepless nights figuring out how to ensure your children will eat the next day.
Change makers and entrepreneurs within refugee communities speak from their lived experiences of these problems. At the Unidos Social Innovation Center, we focus on soil regeneration to prevent hunger crises in refugee settlements by growing ambient and organic food. We also empower women through various entrepreneurial skills to become self-reliant, contribute to the local economy, and be part of the positive change they want to see, benefiting not only their own communities but also the countries that host them.
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Become a partner of Unidos, an NGO dedicated to regenerative agriculture and women's empowerment, to help address the refugee hunger crisis in Nakivale, Uganda. By providing training and resources, Unidos enables refugees to grow food sustainably and equips women with business skills to support their families.
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