By Herbert Musoke
The 2020 Best Farmers winners have been advised to take the mantle of agricultural modernisation to the next level to propel the country into middle-income status.
During a two-day pre-travel preparation training for the farmers, Sam Iga Zinunula, a small and medium business consultant, tasked the winners with becoming instrumental in the transformation of agriculture in Uganda.
The training was held from September 5-8 at Grand Global Hotel in Makerere-Kikoni, Kampala. The Best Farmers competition is organised by Vision Group with support from the Embassy of the Netherlands, KLM Airlines, dfcu Bank and Koudjis Nutrition BV.
Thirteen winners for 2020 competition will set off to the Netherlands on October 7 for a week-long all-expenses-paid trip.
The farmers will learn about farm technologies, breeds, markets andalso create opportunities. They will also visit knowledge institutions, processors and technology developers, among others.
Phillip Kalera of Next Generation Farm in Gomba district, who was the overall winner, will travel with other 12 winners, including Immaculate Akullo, Peter Masiko,Jacent Namyalo Muwanga and Prossy Kazibwe, who will be represented by her son, Titus Sebayiga Hillary.
Other winners include Gloria Lwamafa Karungi, Maureen Nyakato, Samuel Kange, Joseph Munerya, Michael Opiyo Kadogo, Bob Kagoro, Bernard Obaa and Ben Omodoi.
The farmers will be led by Josephat Byaruhanga, a senior adviser on agriculture and agribusiness at the Netherlands embassy.
He commended the farmers for their patience regarding the trip.
“Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, we could not take the winners to the Netherlands in 2021 when they were due to travel. We thank God that we are finallyhere and we will be travelling for a study tour to the Netherlands,” Byaruhanga said.
Uganda can produce more
Although Uganda earns most of her income from farming, majority of the population is still poor.
“The countries that are earning lots of money from agriculture do so because their people know what they are doing and take farming asa business. Unfortunately, in Uganda, farming is done at a subsistence level,” Iga said.
He explained that subsistence agriculture results in limited cash transactions, which leads to low savings and inadequate credit facilities for agriculture since credit institutions perceive it as an unviable business.
The business consultant said Uganda’s biggest agricultural challenge is farmers not knowing what the market needs regarding quality and quantity.
“A few years ago, President Yoweri Museveni said Saudi Arabia wanted Uganda to supply it with goats,but the contract was turned down because there were no farmers that could meet the needed quality and quantities to constantly supply the market,” Iga said.
He called on the best farmers, who are now the cream of farming in Uganda, to spearhead the move of transforming agriculture in order to make it a profitable business and become exemplary to others.
Iga cautioned them against becoming an island of excellence surrounded by a sea of mud, which will cause challenges, such as theft.
Farmers were encouraged to interest others around them to join agriculture as a business, which will elevate agriculture in the country.
“If we can interest more people to do what we do and also ask those we interest to interest others, we will have made a chain of farmers who will give us the power to control the market because with the numbers, farmers can take control of their business instead of being exploited by middlemen,” Iga said.
He asked farmers to employ more people and limit family unpaid labour and also consult with experts, so that they change the way their farms are managed, which will improve production and productivity.
Iga urged farmers to be conscious of their production right from sawing to post-harvest handling, since at each level losses can occur if not well managed.
He added that the best farmers motto should be Know what you grow, grow what you know and be known for what you grow.
“We need to be careful with value addition, because at times, we do so much and yet a little innovation may earn you more,” Iga said.
“For example, with maize, many farmers believe that to earn more or add value, you can only process itinto flour, yet if you sell it fresh for either roasting or boiling, each cob could go for sh400. If you are drying to make flour, three-five cobs could make a kilogramme sold at sh800. Here, a person, who has sold fresh cobs, makes more money,” he says.
“So, calculate every move on your farms and do not go by the crowd,” Iga added.
Embrace technology
Technology is one of the aspects that can help improve farmers’ earnings and ease management.
Barbara Namboozo, a communications officer with the National Coffee Resources Research Institution under the National Agricultural Research Organisation, said they too can use technology starting with what they have at hand.
During the training she held with farmers on how to use technology for promoting their businesses, Namboozo said:
“Majority of farmers have smart phones, unfortunately many use them for calling and texting and a few for WhatsApp, which is not about business.”
She advised farmers to create accounts on social media platforms, such as websites, Twitter (Now X), TikTok, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram to promote their products.
Namboozo said they should keep the accounts active and updated because some big customers or companies will want to visit social media accounts to see what the farmers are doing before they establish working relationships.
Dr Apollo Kasharu, the executive director of Coalition for Health Agriculture and Income Network(CHAIN) Uganda, advised farmers to learn as much as possible on technology that can drive their various enterprises.
He said a farm of 10,000 cows can be managed by only three people. To boost their farms, Kasharu also asked the farmers to borrow a leaf on co-operative management, customercare, business opportunities and having succession plans.
In the same breath, he cautioned farmers against getting overexcited and making promises that they cannot deliver on.
“You should not hurry to sign or make promises as it is possible to fail to raise the required amounts,” he said.
