By Rogers Wanambwa 

KIU, Main Campus - Aisha Ganda is a 23-year old alumnus of Kampala International University. She pursued a Diploma in Business Administration at the main campus in Kansanga and graduated in 2019. 

She started her Snacks 4 U business while still at the university, making healthy crunchy products like pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, groundnuts, soybean, peanut butter, daddies, hard corn, cookies among others that she sells and delivers across Kampala and neighbouring towns. 

Although the business started slow, Ganda says that “by the time it made its one year anniversary, I was earning around 500,000 shillings in monthly profit.”  

But that was before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country and most businesses came to a standstill, hers inclusive. 

“I experienced great losses when the lockdown was announced abruptly. My products went bad since the supply chains and demand were affected. Demand also dropped in areas like schools, meetings and other social engagements that are not open till now,” she added. 

To combat the lull created by the pandemic and subsequent lockdown, Ganda thought it out and decided to take her business online. By creating online platforms on Facebook and Twitter, she was able to make her business known and also continue getting clients, albeit online orders too. 

As the lockdown gradually got lifted, Ganda realized that the “new normal” would be the way to go for the foreseeable future and probably for some good time. So she continued her online marketing and also did a short course in Digital Marketing strategies plus looking up some of her old clients, especially those still in business, so as to supply them. 

Ganda believes that “although times get tough and you are beaten down, what counts is the number of times you muster the courage to get back up and keep fighting.” So she has kept on persevering and doing her work even in these unsettling times for everyone. 

She can be reached through her social media platforms where she goes by Aisha Ganda and on the Snacks 4 U platforms under the same name.