By Umaru Kashaka and Michael Odeng
President Yoweri Museveni has said he will not let anyone intimidate him into giving up fighting for value-addition to Uganda’s coffee and other agricultural products.
He also cautioned those threatening coffee farmers across the country that they should tread carefully because he will deal with them.
He made the remarks on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, after inspecting the progress of the Inspire Africa Coffee Park in Rwashamaire town council, Ntungamo district.
He said he has been involved in the struggle against producing raw materials for the last 60 years and those who think that they will now intimidate him are mistaken.
“Coffee is chapter one because this is where we are starting. We shall fight this war,” he said, warning anyone who will think of intimidating them.
Museveni said the way they succeeded in some sectors such as dairy is the same way they will succeed in coffee.
“The battle of coffee we have is to stop the haemorrhage (of money) because Africa has been bleeding for a long time. We get a small value from our coffee and the countries abroad get huge value,” he said.
He also noted that the gross domestic product of the whole Africa is now $3.5 trillion. “Imagine the whole of Africa; the United States is like $20 trillion. Africa should be talking of $50 trillion,” he said.
Museveni told the people of Ntungamo that when they don’t add value to their agricultural products like coffee and the green bananas (embiire), they lose a lot of money and jobs.
He hailed Nelson Tugume, the chief executive officer of Inspire Africa Group, and promised to support his project.
Tugume told Museveni that the Coffee Park project will initially start by processing 10,000 metric tonnes which will earn them $128m.
