By John Masaba
The Government has embarked on a countrywide soil testing drive.
The move is aimed at helping farmers identify which crops can be grown in their respective areas and which fertiliser to use for better yields.
The soil testing is being conducted by the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), and they have now completed the greater Masaka region, according to National Agriculture Advisory Authority executive director Dr Sam Mugasi.
According to him, they have now commenced work in Kampala area, adding that the Government is in the process of securing more funds from the World Bank under its climate-smart project for the rest of the project.
Mugasi made the revelations during the launch of the African Development Bank (AfDB) funded Africa Fertiliser Financing Mechanism (AFFM) in Uganda on Friday August 30, 2024, at the Serena Kampala Hotel, where he represented Agriculture Minister Frank Tumwebaze as the chief guest.
AFFM is a special fund administered by the bank that provides innovative financing solutions required to accelerate the use of fertilisers in Africa and improve agricultural productivity in regional member countries of the bank, including Uganda.
In a speech read for him by Mugasi, Agriculture Minister Frank Tumwebaze, hailed AfDB for the fertiliser project, noting that it will help the country increase production levels that have been affected by declining soil health and the impact of climate change.
“At the recently concluded Africa soil health summit in Nairobi, it was observed that while we have grown up with the perception that our soils are fertile, nutrient depreciation on account of heavy mining of the soils with no replenishment continues to lower production, which brings along the risks of hunger and malnutrition,” he said.
He said if not addressed, this could fail the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially the one on poverty and zero hunger.
Tumwebaze added that the solution to this is to increase fertiliser access, especially for farmers in rural areas, to ensure that they increase production and productivity.
“We expect that this project should increase access to fertilizers to farmers to be able to increase production and productivity and farm level,” he said.
Tumwebaze said Uganda and Africa continue to lag in fertiliser use, noting that this explains why, despite having most of the arable land in the world, Africa continues to be a net importer of food.
Average fertiliser consumption in Africa stands at 18 kilograms per hectare (kg/ha), which is still below the target of 50 kg/ha according to the African Union.
However, the figures for Uganda are far lower, standing at only two kilograms per hectare.
How AFFM will work
Marie Claire Kalihangabo, the co-ordinator of the Africa Fertiliser Financing Mechanism (AFFM), said the mechanism has three components, including facilitating access to finance, trade credit guarantees, strengthing the distribution network of fertilizers, and supporting farmersrs to have technologies and knowledge on better agricultural practices.
The mechanism is a $2m about (shillings 7.4 billion) trade guarantee and a grant.
She said the credit will be issued to suppliers who are going to avail the fertilisers to agro-dealers on credit.
The fertilizers will be distributed to smallholder farmers through retailers.
She said AFFM will share the risk with suppliers 50-50.
AFFM is a three-year project and is expected to target 400,000.
