Katwe, The Garden Of Salt

There is a story that speaks of a king who threw a great feast to show off his beautiful princess. He asked for a moment in front of his merry guests to show off his daughter n asked her how much she loved her father the king. She simply answered “more than all the salt in the world”. The king got mad and ashamed and threw his daughter the princess out of the palace having been compared to simply salt. One day after many years, she sneaked into the palace and as the king wined with his guest, she begged the cooks to cook the food without salt, so when dinner was served and everybody began to eat, they all asked for salt. The king realised and out of anger, asked that the head chef be beaded. At that moment, the princess appeared in rugs and reminded her father how he disowned her for comparing her love for her father the king with the love of salt. The two broke down in front of the guests n cried and forgave each other and lived happily ever after.

But for Lake katwe located in Western Uganda, kasese district, .Salt is much more than a happily ever after ending for the miners or seller and buyers or a big smile for the chef that has all his food and spices blended up with salt in one amazing meal. Lake katwe is the salt "garden in Uganda”, an environmental economical approach towards life. It’s a semi-arid region and soil does not favour agricultural activities apart from salt farming or mining from the 60% salty water carrying 3types of salt mined. 1) Crude salt for animal leak. 2) Edible salt or Sodium chloride. 3) Unwashed salt. These are mined from small "plots" which are called "ponds”about 10 by 12 feet or wider and 3 to 5 feet deep. Around the lake shores privately owned by individuals or families and even end up inherited from one generation to another. Mining in the centre of Lake Katwe is only done by licensed individuals who extract rock salt from the middle of lake as licensed by "The Association For Rock Salt Extraction”Which enables an orderly approach without causing extinction, the so called win, win approach to both the environment and society.

a miner in lake Katwe, the lake is too salty to support any animal or plant life

The women scrap the bottom of the garden to scoop the salt as use feet to crash salt to form fine crystals than wash the crystals forming edible salts .both men and women mine the salt as a 3days a week job or a daily for the brave. To extract about 1000kgs per day of salt about Ugandan shillings or USD 1.50, The salt farmers face environmental challenges and mostly medical challenges with the nearest hospital, kilembe hospital being miles away. Health challenges like uterus complications among the women due to regular contact with salty water around the female reproductive organs and the male itch cause of contact of salty water around the male reproductive organs that causes wounds. All theses have no permanent solutions so far. The lake got its name after a community known as "aha katwe" settled around it hence named it "LAKE KATWE" so next time your children demand for salt or your searching for salt, ask yourself where your salt comes from.