By Prossy Nandudu
Continuous investment in food production is to blame for the low industrialisation of Uganda, according to agriculture minister Frank Tumwebaze.
The minister says food crops have been the major contributors of GDP, with the lowest contribution coming from Livestock, Fisheries and Plantation farming which are key drivers for agroindustrialisation.
“Reliance on these food crops, which are less climates resilient, has left our communities vulnerable to climate shocks, and hence moving into and out of poverty,” Tumwebaze said.
He gave an example of the 2021 UBOS report that indicated that while 8.4% of households moved out of poverty, 10.2% slipped into poverty resulting in Uganda’s poverty rates increasing from 19.7 percent in 2016/2017 to 21.4 percent in 2019/2021. This led to around 1.4 million Ugandans slipping into poverty
“The implication is that our population remains vulnerable to poverty and significant welfare setbacks in the wake of a shock, particularly climate shocks,” he added.
Some of the reasons for the trend, according to Tumwebaze, is the poor choice of the value chains and low agricultural productivity due to limited access to mechanisation, irrigation, post-harvest losses and value addition among others.
Other reasons, include degradation of wetlands, forests, declining soil fertility and Climate change.
“We have all witnessed increased incidences of drought, floods, and disease outbreaks due to climate change, which affects both livestock and fisheries. Due to natural resource degradation, we have registered incidents of sedimentation and silting of water bodies, floating of vegetation in lakes,” the minister added.
Although the Agriculture sector accounted for about 24% of GDP in FY 2022/23, and 35% of export earnings, in addition to employing about 70% of Uganda’s working population, the sector remains the main pathway to poverty reduction.
He made the revelation on Tuesday during the launch of the six-year Uganda Climate Smart Agricultural Transformation Project (UCSATP) at Speke Resort Munyonyo in Kampala.
The project, that is funded by the World Bank, to the tune of $354.7 million will support the government to identify, develop, and incentivize adoption of climate smart agriculture technologies and management practices that will lead to climate adaptation of agricultural value chains .This will lead to sustainable increase in productivity and household incomes.
Of the stated amount, $325 million is a credit from the International Development Association of the World Bank and $25 million Grant from the Window for Host Communities (WHR) and $4.7 million counterpart funding from the government of Uganda.
The project interventions will be emphasized in six areas which include Production, multiplication, distribution and certification of seeds and stocking materials; Aquaculture development and fishing communities; Irrigation and Water for Agricultural Production; Disease and Vector control; Post-harvest handling and value addition and market access; and then Reviving Mechanization centers among other.
