LEST YOU FORGET, WEEKLY NEWS UPDATES Edition (XVI) 2024
AGROREF UGANDA
YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW; WEEKLY AGRICULTURE –COOPERATIVES
(AGRICO) NEWS UPDATES
LEST YOU FORGET;
EDITION-(XVI) 19,
Aug, 2024
About AgroRef Uganda
Agriculture Reform (AgroRef) Uganda is a Non-Governmental and
Not-for-Profit Organization focusing on advancing agricultural policy reforms,
budget advocacy; and supporting the building of systems, fostering values of
equity, accountability, transparency, and sustainability of organisations,
especially smallholder farmer organizations including but not limited to
agricultural cooperatives using a Human Rights Based Approach.
AgroRef Uganda compiles news from different media houses and outlets that have been published during the week and shares them with our key stakeholders. The purpose is to keep farmers updated and informed of the operating environment in the country.
DEPUTY SPEAKER TAYEBWA ORDERS INVESTIGATION INTO ZOKA FOREST DEPLETION
The Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa has directed Parliament’s committee on natural resources and environment to investigate people involved in cutting trees and charcoal burning in Zoka Forest located in Adjumani District, West Nile. Tayebwa informed Parliament on Thursday 15th August 2024 during communication from the chair that he had seen media exposing many trucks ferrying charcoal out of the forest. Zoka Forest is a natural tropical rain forest in the Northern Region of Uganda. The forest is a component of the larger East Moyo Wildlife Reserve. Uganda's forests are declining rapidly due to charcoal burning, firewood collection, logging, farming and development. There is high reliance on biomass in Uganda with 85% of households using firewood while 13% use charcoal. Forest cover dropped from 20.4% in 1990 to 9% in 2015, driven by energy needs. Currently forest cover stands at 13.3% according to the National Forestry Authority. https://www.newvision.co.ug/category/agriculture/deputy-speaker-tayebwa-orders-investigation-i-NV_194063
LESOTHO TO WORK WITH NARO TO ENHANCE FOOD PRODUCTION
Lesotho Kingdom and Uganda’s Agriculture Research Organization (NARO) are to partner in areas of agriculture research to increase food production in Lesotho. This was revealed by Lesotho’s Prime Minister Sam Matekane, while visiting various research technologies from NARO, that were displayed at the National Agriculture Research Laboratories in Kawanda on Wednesday. Matekane who was impressed by the various technologies from research was taken around the different research programs at NARO, by the Director General of NARO, Dr Yona Baguma, accompanied by the Minister of State for Fisheries, Hellen Adoa. Some of the technologies that the prime minister was introduced to included tissue culture, a practice used to multiply seeds for vegetative crops such as bananas, cassava, and sweet potatoes, among others.
AGRICULTURALISTS WORRIED ABOUT REDUCING ORGANIC FOOD PRODUCTION LEVELS
Agriculturalists are concerned about the reducing production levels of organic food in the country. The reduction is blamed on a cocktail of issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss and a growing demand for food, fibre, feed and energy required for the growing population. Speaking during a technical working group workshop at Fairway Hotel on Tuesday, August 13, 2024, agriculture ministry commissioner in charge of crop production Alex Lwakuba, said production volumes are reducing, something he said, affects people’s well-being. Lwakuba noted that farmers have adopted the use of non-organic fertilisers, a move he said is drastically affecting crop yields.
FARMERS DEVASTATED AS TEA FARM-GATE PRICES PLUNGE TO SH130
Over the past one year, farm-gate prices have seen a steep decline, plummeting from around sh500 to a current range of sh130 to sh300. In some areas, Onesimus Matsiko, a tea sector expert and farmer, says middlemen are offering as little as shillings 130 per kilogramme, with the person harvesting the tea taking shillings 100 of that sum. “This leaves farmers with a paltry shillings 30 per kilogramme — an amount insufficient to maintain their tea gardens, let alone turn a profit,” he says. The dwindled farm gate prices, he said, is one of the most significant cost-cutting strategies by factories that depend on tea outgrowers’ leaf to survive in the challenging environment.
TESO FARMERS GET CLIMATE RESILIENCE BOOST WITH NEW FACILITIES
Smallholder farmers in the districts of Amolator, Katakwi, and Kaberamaido are set to manage climate change using community-based local chicken breeding centres, irrigation facilities, and seed multiplication and preservation centres that have been established in their districts. The three districts, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), are part of the longer stretch of Cattle Corridor districts that usually suffer from harsh effects of climate change, such as prolonged droughts that make it hard for farmers to farm, secure feeds for their livestock, and obtain water for both domestic and livestock use. The facilities, which are set to be commissioned on Monday, August 12, 2024, by Vice President Jessica Alupo, were implemented by FAO, with funding from the Embassy of Norway in Uganda and the Global Environmental Facility (GEF).
KADAGA DECRIES UGANDA COFFEE ADULTERATION BY OTHER COUNTRIES
Despite Uganda’s coffee export growth on global market, First Deputy Premier and Minister for East African Community Affairs Rebecca Kadaga says the product has continued to face the challenge of being repackaged and later labelled by other countries. Kadaga says cases of adulterating Uganda’s coffee elsewhere and later rebranded by other countries was common saying as stakeholders, they needed to find a way of fighting the vice. Speaking at the closure of the 30th National Agricultural Show at the Source of River Nile in Jinja city on Sunday, August 4, 2024, Kadaga, without mentioning the countries doing such, said they needed to find what she termed as ‘a way of being focused’ to ensure that Uganda’s coffee hits the market all over. https://www.newvision.co.ug/category/agriculture/kadaga-decries-uganda-coffee-adulteration-by-NV_193518#google_vignette
JINJA FARMERS URGED TO EMBRACE NATIONAL SEED OIL PROJECT
In Jinja, small-scale farmers have been encouraged to participate in the National Seed Oil Project (NSOP), which aims to produce raw materials for vegetable cooking oil for both domestic and commercial use. Richard Gulume Balyaino, the Jinja Resident District Commissioner (RDC), urged farmers to shift from sugar cane cultivation, a long-term cash crop, to fast-growing crops that can produce vegetable cooking oil. “We need small-scale farmers who are ever crying of poverty and low incomes to start engaging in fast-growing cash crops that will be used for both home and commercial consumption, rather than planting long-term cash crops that need huge junks of land,” Gulume said.
FAO IMPLORES FARMERS TO EMBRACE RICE-FISH FARMING TO CONSERVE WETLANDS
The government of Uganda and its development partners are taking significant strides towards sustainable agriculture and the preservation of wetlands. However, environmental degradation particularly wetlands continues to occur rampantly. It is majorly common in rice-growing communities across the country. In eastern Uganda, the vice is common, especially in Teso, Busoga and Butaleja district. Lately, the severity of the wetland degradation phenomenon compelled President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to direct the people in swampy areas to evacuate. In a collaborative effort between the agriculture ministry and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the Government has embarked on its efforts to introduce and popularise rice-fish farming technology as a mechanism that will encourage farmers to protect the wetland and the ecosystem.
FAIRTRADE INTERNATIONAL WANTS SMALL-SCALE FARMERS SUPPORTED OVER EU DEFORESTATION REGULATION
Fairtrade International is calling for more financial support and clarification of the technical terms of the EU Deforestation Regulation [EUDR]. The regulation mandates that companies demonstrate that their products are deforestation-free and not linked to forest degradation or illegal harvesting and trade. The organisation wants more clarity from the European Commission so that coffee and cocoa producers can meet the looming deadline of December 30, 2024 [June 30, 2025, for small and micro enterprises]. Fairtrade is also urging that once the rules are clarified that the transition period be extended by at least 15 months, which would be mean until 31 December 2025 at the earliest.
WHY YUMBE MANGO FRUIT FACTORY FAILED TO TAKE OFF
Mango farmers in Yumbe District have raised concerns over the delayed operationalisation of a factory that processes the fruit. The construction of the factory had raised farmers’ hopes of adding value to their mangoes, but now their produce is left to rot, which has led to them making losses. The farmers said in late April, Aringa Fruit Farmers Cooperative Society Ltd encouraged them to grow more mangoes for commercial production, promising a ready market. However, despite the factory being completed, nothing has come of it. In an interview with the Monitor on Monday, Mr Mohammad Anule, a farmer in Barakala Town Council, said: “We were fully prepared to sell mangoes to feed the factory through the Aringa Fruit Farmers Cooperative Society Ltd but they never came back.” Why Yumbe mango fruit factory failed to take off | Monitor
UCDA TASKS COFFEE FARMERS ON QUALITY IN HOIMA
Farmers in Hoima district have been cautioned against compromising the quality of their coffee by ensuring that they do not harvest unripe coffee. Rosemary Mukonyezi, the regional coffee extension officer for Hoima sub-region said harvesting raw coffee not only affects the quality of the final product but also compromises the natural growth cycle of the coffee plants. Mukonyezi was speaking at a training workshop organized by the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) for Kigorobya Coffee Farmers’ Cooperative Society Limited in Hoima district. Mukonyezi said some farmers engage in unethical practices by adding coffee husks and pebbles to the beans which compromises the quality of coffee at local and international markets.
https://www.independent.co.ug/ucda-tasks-coffee-farmers-on-quality-in-hoima/
POSTBANK’S AGRICULTURE LOAN BOOK REGISTERS 70% GROWTH 3 YEARS
PostBank Uganda’s agricultural loan book has registered commendable growth of 70% over a four-year period, from Ushs. 107 billion in 2021 to a 70% growth rate by June 2024. Officials attribute the impressive performance to favorable lending rates, government support, and other contributing elements. “As a bank that is committed to fostering prosperity for Ugandans by enabling them to grow and prosper in their day-to-day livelihood, we are keen on designing products that are not only affordable but those which address our customer’s demands at the different agricultural production phases, which saw our loan book grow to 70% in a four year period,” said Julius Akais , the Supervisor Agriculture and Partnerships at PostBank Uganda.
https://www.independent.co.ug/postbanks-agriculture-loan-book-registers-70-growth-3-years/
UGANDA IN RACE TO MEET NEW EU COFFEE EXPORT RULES
With about 150 days left before the European Union (EU) market begins implementing its tough ban on import of ‘deforestation-related products,’ Ugandan farmers, exporters, and regulators are worried.Dr. Gerald Kyalo (PhD), the Director of Development Services at Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) told a recent meeting in Kampala that time is running out to comply with new documentation needed to be allowed to export to the EU market. Uganda’s main concern is on coffee, cocoa and their derivatives. New required documents include detailed land-use maps to confirm deforestation-free production after December 31, 2020; compliance with local legislation in production and a due-diligence statement covering the entire coffee supply chain indicating no more than a negligible risk of non-compliance.
https://www.independent.co.ug/uganda-in-race-to-meet-new-eu-coffee-export-rules/
CHURCH OF UGANDA AGRICULTURE PROGRAM TRANSFORMING BUSOGA DIOCESE
The Director of Church of Uganda’s Directorate of Household and Community Transformation (HCT), Rev. Andrew Agaba, has revealed that the agriculture program being implemented in Busoga Diocese, in partnership with the Government of Uganda through the National Agriculture Advisory Services (NAADS), has significantly improved the socio-economic status of many local farmers within the Diocese. Rev. Agaba, who led the monitoring team to visit some beneficiaries in Jinja District today, noted that despite challenges related to animal management and diseases, significant progress has been made among the farmers. “Busoga Diocese is among the five dioceses benefiting from the program. It received 40 heifers, 200 piglets, and 3,000 Croiler birds. Despite the diseases and animal management challenges, we witnessed significant progress and we look forward to greater successes,” Rev. Agaba said.
https://naads.or.ug/church-of-uganda-agriculture-program-transforming-busoga-diocese/
MPS: IMPROVE ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY IN RURAL AREAS TO BOOST AGRICULTURE
Members of Parliament have called on government to improve access to electricity in rural areas across the country to boost value-addition in the agriculture sector. They made the call while debating a report by the Committee on Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries on the status of implementation of the Agriculture Cluster Development Project (ACDP), and a report on food and animal feed security interventions in the country. The project aimed at raising on-farm productivity and marketable volumes of selected agricultural commodities in 12 specified agricultural clusters comprising 57 districts. The reports were adopted by the House on Wednesday, 07 August 2024 during a session chaired by Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa.
https://www.independent.co.ug/mps-improve-access-to-electricity-in-rural-areas-to-boost-agriculture/
HOW YOUNG WOMEN CAN FIND OPPORTUNITIES IN AFRICAN AGRICULTURE
Jennifer, a young mother from Gulu, Uganda, faced bleak prospects after her husband passed away. She had been kicked out of her home by her in-laws and had no job with which to support her family. Without a high school education, she was not optimistic about finding opportunities. “Even casual jobs were not easy to come by, because…not many economically engaging activities were taking place within my village,” she said. Across sub-Saharan Africa, millions of young women like Jennifer are sidelined from economic opportunities. The International Labor Organization found that one third of young women in the region are not working, studying or receiving training, more than double the rate of their male peers. With more than 6 million young women coming of working age every year, African economies must create more new jobs and business opportunities for them.
https://farmingfirst.org/2018/05/how-young-women-can-find-opportunities-in-african-agriculture/
AFRICAN AGRICULTURE STUCK ON FALSE PROMISES OF ACCESS TO CHEAP CREDIT
Despite frequent
promises to develop agriculture and promote farmers’ interests in Africa, the
share of credit going to the sector remains small, mostly owing to factors
outside of it. For one, lenders have found it profitable to focus on other
areas, and authorities across the continent have been tinkering with interest
rate controls without success, making it expensive for farmers to borrow.
Whereas some commercial banks maintain agricultural credit portfolios, somehow
these funds are diverted to other competing areas, sources say. Although
talk on introduction of interest rate control often includes promises of lower
lending rates, widening spreads noticed between official interest rates in
Kenya in 2016 and actual rates charged in the agricultural sector triggered
higher credit costs on account of heavy default risks associated with farming.
GOVT FAILED US ON THE CASSAVA DEAL - ODAMA
The Gulu Archdiocese, in partnership with Bukona Agroprocessors Ltd, mobilised over 20,000 farmers across 33 cooperative societies to supply cassava to a factory. Archbishop Emeritus John Baptist Odama has criticised the government’s failure to fulfill its commitments under a deal with the Gulu Archdiocese to commercialise cassava production in Northern Uganda. In his first public remarks in four years since the agreement was made, Archbishop Odama expressed concerns that the Acholibur Cassava Project, which has already received significant investment, might collapse due to the government’s lack of support.
Comments
Post a Comment