Before joining the WeWork project, Mumbere Misaheri was earning a living by selling eggs, chapatis, bread and offering catering services for Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the neighbourhood. Although he had always wanted to rear poultry, he never knew how or where to begin.

“From when I was young, I always thought I would rear poultry, but I did not know how to start,” he says.

When he heard about the WeWork – green and decent jobs for youth project through friends, he applied and was selected. Implemented by Enabel in partnership with Ile de Paix and The Association of Rwenzori Community (RCA), with funding from the European Union and the Government of Belgium, the project gave him the opportunity to attend a five‑day bootcamp in Fort Portal, where he learnt business planning, time management, and diversification.

“The bootcamp motivated me to start because I saw that poultry could become a profitable business,” he says.

Using money from his small business, he started with 100 birds and later shifted from broilers to kroilers, which grow quickly and have strong market demand. Today, his poultry enterprise operates alongside a small restaurant where he sells roasted chicken, eggs, and other foods. Through the project, he received 32 trays of eggs as a start‑up kit and later a UGX 1,000,000 micro‑grant (€239), which he used to buy 300 birds. Ile de Paix carries out an assessment of youth after the bootcamp while they are undergoing mentorship sessions, and those identified as having strong potential to grow their businesses are selected to receive the micro‑grant. The assessment, evaluation, and selection are conducted by an independent firm to ensure fairness and transparency.

He now runs the business in cycles, selling birds and restocking regularly.

“I sell, buy more birds, and sell again,” he explains. At his peak, he managed 500 birds and currently keeps about 220. “Right now I can earn about UGX 750,000 (€179) or more per month. My goal is to reach 1,000 birds and earn about UGX 1.5 million (€359) per month,” he says. With part of his earnings, he has already purchased land where he hopes to build a larger poultry enterprise in the future.