Little Ones Around

It is unfortunate to usually find very little children wandering around the school kitchens.

The sad reality is that women preparing the children’s meals do not have other option than to bring them along. Childcare is very limited and unaffordable.

Bringing their children to the school kitchen allows mums to continue earning an income while still keeping them close and under her watch. Since the kitchen is their workplace, n for long hours every day, the children spend much of their time there, playing nearby, resting, or helping with small chores, which makes their presence seem normal to both staff and learners.

This also reflects the strong family-centered culture in many Ugandan communities, where children are often included in daily work activities rather than separated from them.

However, it increases the risks because young children may move too close to open flames, hot cooking pots, knives, or slippery surfaces while their mother is busy preparing food and may not be able to supervise them constantly.

A kitchen with institutional improved cook stoves can drastically reduce accidents like burns. Nevertheless other incidents can still occur for many other reasons, showing the need for safer childcare arrangements or protected spaces away from the cooking area.

Safety Inside The Kitchen

A school kitchen is one of the busiest and most demanding places on the compound. It often starts working long before students think about food—fires are lit early, large saucepans are filled with water, and cooks prepare meals for dozens or even hundreds of children. The space quickly becomes intense: heat rises from firewood stoves, smoke fills the air, and heavy pots of posho, beans, or porridge are lifted and stirred with effort and care.

This situation can become extremely dangerous for children, and in humble government aided schools, it is not unusual to see children walking around without shoes.

Picture the scene during meal preparation. Several cooks move quickly around each other, carrying firewood, tending flames, and balancing large, boiling pots. The ground may be wet or slippery from spilled water, and tools like knives, ladles, and metal lids are in constant use.

That is why we continually train schools to place strong rules around keeping students out of the kitchen while cooking is in progress. It’s not meant to be harsh or unfriendly—it’s about safety and responsibility. The cooks need space to work efficiently without worrying about children underfoot, and students need protection from dangers they may not fully recognize.

This is why we introduced the buckets to get food served outside the kitchen building. Food is moved from the saucepans into the buckets or serving containers, which are then carried either outside, to the classrooms or to the dining area, where each plate is served.

School Vegetable Gardens

Many schools in Uganda turn available outdoor spaces—compounds, unused plots, and shaded areas—into vegetable gardens to supplement school meals and teach practical agriculture; teachers, students and sometimes parent‑teacher associations prepare beds or raised rows, plant fast‑growing, nutrient‑dense crops like kale (sukuma wiki), spinach, beans, tomatoes and onions, maintain them through watering and mulching during dry spells, and harvest produce to add fresh greens and protein to the midday porridge or stew, while students learn crop management, nutrition and food security skills that reinforce classroom lessons and reduce food costs for the school.

Here below we share a picture of one of our participating schools, Busega Community Primary School. They planted sukuma wiki in bags, a very simple and effective approach for those with limited space, recycling and using the strong sacks from the maize flour they purchase on a monthly basis.

Outdoor Office

The weather in Uganda always invites its people to spend much of the day outdoors. The weather is warm and humid year‑round; daytime temperature often varies between 24–30°C, especially in lowland areas close to lake Victoria.

It is no surprise to find teachers marking papers and homework under a mango tree, children having their lunch on the open courtyards, or attending a lesson under the shade of an avocado tree, that always make attractive, year‑round shade canopies with the bonus of amazing fruits!

Conversion to LPG: Is That An Option?

One of our participating schools in Kampala last year communicated to us they would adopt LPG for their cooking activities. LPG push can rapidly reduce indoor air pollution, improve health and time savings, and reduce localized deforestation pressure — but it requires careful handling of affordability, safety, supply stability and long‑term climate strategy to avoid locking schools into a costly fossil‑fuel dependence.

As we approach the end of the first school term, we decided to pay a visit to our former supported kitchen, to hear about their experiences, and also talk to the school bursar about their fuel expenditures.

Cooks were really pleased about the smoke free environment, and praised the time savings achieved. Nevertheless, the school administrators were complaining about the affordability, as they are currently spending 20% more that what they did during their previous years with the energy efficient firewood stoves.

At Simoshi we decided to introduce institutional induction cook stoves, because of 2 very important an decisive factors:

1) With the current approved special cooking tariff of UGX 390 per kGh, fuel expenditures become 30% cheaper than when compared with firewood consumed by energy efficient cook stoves

2) 99% of the electricity in Uganda is renewable (hydro), where as LPG is a fossil fuel

We continue to monitor the different fuel approaches to ensure that such transition can be a total win for the schools, and we will share all the lessons learned that can also support all Ugandan players when designing and executing coordinated actions across policy, markets, infrastructure, finance, safety/regulation and social programs to replace traditional biomass.

Saucepans and Frying Pans

Our institutional improved biomass cook stoves (IICS) are already designed to handle both traditional saucepans and frying pans.

Frying pans are often wide and heavy, especially with oil. The IICS top ring support holds the pan level to prevent tipping. The distance between the pot stands and the bottom of the pan allows a frying pan base to sit closer to the flame for better heat transfer.

Frying needs medium, steady heat, not just strong flames. The IICS lateral air inlets help regulate temperature.

Here below is an example of one of our schools frying the traditional mandazi commonly eaten as a breakfast snack or with tea. It is made from wheat flour dough mixed with ingredients like sugar, water or milk, yeast or baking powder, and sometimes coconut milk or cardamom.

Audit Site Visit

This past week we visited 14 schools that participate under Simoshi’s registered Project Activity with the Gold Standard “Institutional Improved Cook Stoves for Schools and Institutions in Uganda”. We have closed our Monitoring Period 01/01/2025 until 31/12/2025 and the external auditor randomly selected 14 schools to perform the mandatory site visit to check on the use of the institutional improved cook stoves (IICS).

It has been a busy week with the local expert Doctor Aziz Wakibi, interviewing the kitchen staff, and school Head Teachers and Directors, to find out how the IICS are performing, and how Simoshi has been supporting the schools and the kitchens during such monitoring period.

This audit is what we call in the sector a “verification exercise”, a mandatory activity for any registered carbon project aiming at issuing carbon credits. Since the registration of the Project Activity, Simoshi has been systematically conducting verification exercises every single year, and all Monitoring Reports can be accessed here for public view, if you are interested at learning more at all 9 Sustainable Development Goals achieved, between many other impacts on the ground collected 6 times per year.

From Tree To Bench

Yesterday I came across young children playing and arguing, a little girl in tears because her brother would not let her climb the trunk of a tree.

In Uganda, wood from trees is commonly used to make school furniture such as desks, chairs, tables, shelves, and cupboards. Common trees used for timber in Uganda include pine, eucalyptus, musizi, and mahogany.

When the trees are mature, they are cut down carefully to provide wood for construction and furniture making.

Many schools in Uganda depend on local carpenters and small workshops to produce furniture, which also helps create jobs in communities.

But although many trees are replanted, unsustainable cutting still happens in some areas, which is the case in this school in Bulenga where they have been cutting their compound trees not only to make their school furniture, but also to feed their stoves for cooking the children’s food.

Busy In Class

Almost all children are now back at school. As we monitor the use of the institutional improved cook stoves in our 120 participating schools, we are happy to hear from the Head Teachers that enrolment numbers are high. We have seen crowded classrooms throughout this month of February.

A significant portion of the population lives below the poverty line. Many families struggle to meet basic needs, making it difficult to prioritize or afford school fees. Thankfully, schools provide payment plans and children are allowed to commence even if only a small percentage was paid towards the school term fees.

Back To School!

Since Monday, traffic jam in Kampala has been maniac. You could see children and parents riding the local boda Boda’s (motorcycles) loaded with their luggage and school items, ready to get started with school’s first term.

At Simoshi, throughout the past two months, we have been busy making all necessary institutional improved cook stove (IICS) repairs, so school kitchens can start with their cooking activities without any inconveniences and saving the maximum amount of firewood.

Our work now and for the upcoming months will be focused on monitoring the use of all IICS to ensure cooks properly operate the IICS efficiently and achieve the highest safety and hygiene standards.

The Risk of Handling Charcoal

Handling charcoal is common for street vendors and cooks in Uganda (especially food sellers), but it does come with some real risks, and little children are too often also exposed. This is not only about hygiene issues, but for other three big concerns:

🔥 Health dangers

• Smoke inhalation: Burning charcoal releases carbon monoxide and fine particles. Breathing this in over long hours can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea, breathing problems, and long-term lung issues.

• Carbon monoxide poisoning: In poorly ventilated areas (stalls, tents, indoors, or calm wind days), CO can build up quickly and be life-threatening.

• Charcoal dust: Handling dry charcoal can create dust that irritates the lungs and eyes and may worsen asthma.

✋ Physical injuries

• Burns: Hot charcoal can cause serious skin burns, especially when adding fuel or cleaning grills.

• Cuts and abrasions: Charcoal pieces can be sharp and rough on bare hands.

• Eye injuries: Sparks, ash, or dust can get into the eyes.

🧪 Chemical exposure

• Toxic additives: Some charcoal (especially treated or low-quality types) may contain chemicals that release harmful fumes when burned.

• Food contamination: Ash or chemicals can settle on food if grills aren’t managed carefully.

Problems That Lead to Corrosion

A broken saucepan can corrode a stove due to several factors:

1. Exposure to Moisture: If the saucepan retains moisture or has food residue, it can lead to rust formation if the stove is made of metal. The moisture can accelerate corrosion, especially if the stove isn't made of stainless steel.

2. Chemical Reactions: Certain foods, particularly acidic ones like tomatoes or vinegar, can react with the metal of the saucepan and potentially create corrosive substances that may damage both the saucepan and the stove surface.

3. Heat Damage: A broken saucepan might not distribute heat evenly, leading to overheating in certain areas, which can cause both the saucepan and stove surface to degrade over time.

4. Metal Fragments: If the saucepan is very damaged, pieces might break off and remain on the stove. These metal bits could oxidize or react with the stove's surface.

This is why we put a lot of efforts throughout the year to educate the school cooks on how to best take care of the institutional improved cook stoves (IICS), how to avoid corrosion, while also reminding the office and administrators to buy bigger saucepans to avoid overfilling.

Right now we are fixing (free of cost)11 IICS top rings that got corroded for several of the above reasons mentioned, and will be delivered back to the schools this coming week to ensure the kitchen is all set for Term I commencement, on Tuesday 10th of February.

Extra Week For Repairs

Presidential elections took place last week, and found us all in a very unusual situation because Internet has been shut down countrywide for almost a whole week. The government has just announced that school classes will commence a week later, on Tuesday 10th of February.

This means we will have an extra week to use for institutional improved cook stove (IICS) repairs, which is very much welcomed because we had to slow down our schools’ visits for IICS maintenance during the elections, due to security reasons.

Below are some images of our current repairs events that have been taking place at different schools during January. Remember all these IICS repairs are free of cost to all 120 participating schools, and take place every year, to ensure that IICS are performing and saving the maximum amount of firewood achievable.

Upgrading To Induction

As we start the new year, we wanted to share some of the three biggest challenges we will likely face in 2026 when working with schools in Uganda that want to adopt electric cooking, based on the local context, energy systems, and institutional realities found during last year’s trial with induction cookers in one of our participating schools:

1. Unreliable Electricity Supply

Many schools, especially in rural and peri-urban areas, experience frequent power outages and voltage fluctuations. Electric cooking requires stable and sufficient power, and interruptions can disrupt meal preparation schedules, affecting students’ welfare and school operations.

2. High Upfront Infrastructure Costs

Electric cooking often requires:

• Electrical upgrades (transformers, wiring, three-phase power, stabilizers)

• Purchase of high-capacity electric induction stoves of 259 liter capacities.
  These initial costs may be too high for schools with limited budgets, even if long-term savings exist.

3. Electricity Tariffs and Operating Costs

Although electric cooking can be cheaper than charcoal or firewood in the long run, schools may be concerned about:

• Rising electricity tariffs

• Unexpected monthly bills
  This uncertainty can slow decision-making or reduce trust in the transition

We are working hard to adjust our registered project activity that has been recently approved to transition to Article 6.4, making sure the latest available methodology is used. Future carbon credit revenues can leverage the high upfront infrastructure costs.

In the meantime, we are also closely following up with the different ministries as a new school cooking tariff will be released, making electric cooking the cheapest available fuel.

Stove Sizes Matter

Since 2016, we have been distributing institutional improved cook stoves (IICS) of different saucepan capacities, that range from 30 litres up to 600 litres. We have made the IICS to exactly match the existing saucepans found in the school kitchens. The saucepan sizes are directly correlated to the number of students that eat in each school, and whether they have a daily or boarding modality.

Smaller IICS sizes usually accommodate the teachers special dishes, typically used for frying the beans with sauce, teachers special meals and the kettles for the tea. This is why the 50 litres capacity has been the most popular size since we first started disseminating the IICS.

Out of 452 IICS currently in operation, 25.9% of the IICS correspond to the 50 litres capacity, followed by 150 litres (16.8%), 100 litres capacity (14.4%) and 200 litres capacity (13%), making 70% of the total IICS capacity in 120 participating schools.

Cooks During Holidays

As soon as the last day of school is done, cooks are not required at the school premises. They will still get paid their salaries during the long holiday period, but some benefits such as accommodation (most of them usually stay at the school premises) must also vacate. Food is no longer available free of cost.

Therefore cooks face some financial challenges during the months of December and January, until the new school term begins early February.

This is why most of them return to their villages, to work in the farms. These are usually small plots of land within their family properties, and are enough to support the families with the local crops, typically yams and beans.

Reinforcing Concepts

Achieving a successful transition in the schools’ cooking practices is one core component of our mission. Changing old cooking practices from cooks used to preparing meals on traditional 3-stone fires can be challenging.

It can be difficult because of many different reasons. Old habits die hard, and educating the institutional improved cook stove users (IICS) on the importance these can have on their health and safety is a key aspect of such engagement to become a long lasting reality.

The truth is cook staff turnover is high. We invest a lot of time on such training sessions, and can feel sad and disappointed when we see them go….. but hopeful that such knowledge gained will endure in their new workplaces, and that they have gained confidence to also demand from their new employers a kitchen environment that is up to the same standards from their previous jobs.

School Year Ended

Schools are now officially closed as we enter the month of December. Although the original school calendar indicated Friday 5th of December as the last school year, the President has advised schools should close a week earlier due to political campaigning currently going on.

The next presidential election is scheduled for early 2026 (exact date usually confirmed by the Electoral Commission closer to the period).

At Simoshi we will need to make the most of this month of December to carry out the free stove repairs, as schools have now officially closed their doors. During the month of January, because of elections, disturbances can happen, making field visits and public transport complicated.

We have therefore finished in November with all the Kitchen Information Updates, where we inspect every single institutional improved cook stove (IICS). An assessment of the IICS maintenance types is underway, and schools are scheduled and booked for their free repairs, hopefully achieving most of the needed events to take place this month, before the year ends. Any remaining requests and repairs will be allocated for January. Schools will start the new school year during early February.

Ten Years Later, Still Together

St. Paul Buloba Catholic Primary School was one of the first schools to join our Project Activity “Institutional Improved Cook Stoves for Schools and Institutions in Uganda” registered with both the Clean Development Mechanism and the Gold Standard.

Back in 2016 we found Margaret, their school cook, preparing the children’s daily meals in a basic shelter and using the traditional 3-stone fires.

Ten years down the road, it gives us such a unique pleasure to see Margaret still at school, preparing those same meals with the institutional improved cook stoves, and listen to her stories on how her work has become a much better place to be.

What do we mean by a “Smoke Free Kitchen”

1. Literal meaning

It refers to improving cooking conditions so that women (who, in many societies, do most of the cooking) can prepare food without being exposed to harmful smoke from traditional stoves or open fires.

• 95% of schools in Uganda still cook using firewood in traditional 3-stone fireplaces.

• Firewood combustion produces thick smoke, which leads to respiratory diseases, eye problems, and pollution indoors.

• So, a “smoke-free kitchen” means using clean cooking technologies — like LPG, biogas, electric stoves, or improved cookstoves — that make cooking safer and healthier.

In this sense, it’s about public health, women’s welfare, and environmental protection.

2. Symbolic meaning

It can also be understood as a metaphor for progress, dignity, and empowerment.

• A “smoke-free kitchen” represents freedom from unhealthy, outdated, or oppressive conditions.

• It symbolizes women’s right to safety, health, and equality in domestic spaces.

• It can also reflect broader social and economic empowerment — access to modern energy, technology, and education.

So, when someone says “women should be able to cook in a smoke-free kitchen,” they might mean both:

Women deserve the basic right to health and safety in their workplace and their homes, and society must ensure modern, dignified conditions for their daily lives.

This is what makes us proud at Simoshi when finding the cooks enjoying a safe kitchen environment, using the space to perform other activities in peace, and with big smiles in their faces.