KAMULI, Uganda-The speaker of Parliament of Uganda, Rebecca Kadaga has assured Ugandan farmers that government will very soon respect the Malabo declaration which calls for African states to allocate 10% of their national budget to agriculture.
The speaker who was launching the skills development program for farmers in Kamuli district at the farmers’ association headquarters said government and parliament are committed to ensure that the performance of the agriculture sector improves so that Ugandan will earn more from the sector.
“We have been trying hard to push for this 10% allocation to agriculture in the past years, but now I can assure you we are going to see this soon, i promise you, soon, agriculture shall get its glory” said Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga
The speaker challenged farmers in Kamuli district to ensure that their children participate in the Agriculture sector instead of leaving it to the ageing population.
She noted that the younger generation has the capacity to adopt modern farming practices and once such practices are adopted they can push up the performance of the sector.
Kamuli District Farmers Association chairperson, Vincent Galisansana asked the speaker to fast track the budget allocation to enable Ugandan farmers to access better resources for better production if the sector is to perform better.
“As farmers from Kamuli District we challenge you as our leaders to ensure that Government allocates enough resources in the sector, this will enable local farmers to access cheap agricultural inputs on the market .The local farmers currently cannot afford to buy agro related inputs because they are expensive thus keeping farmers in traditional farming systems “ He said.
The president of Uganda national farmer’s federation Dr. Dick Nuwamanya Kamuganga assured farmers that the federation in partnership with the private sector is going to work together to ensure that farmers have access to quality agricultural inputs.
He added that the federation through the skills development program will train Ugandan farmers with basic farming skills which he said will help them to improve their production level. Under this program, the farmers’ federation intends to equip over 500 farmer groups with basic skills in agro business and agronomy.
