Uganda: Suggestions On Current Food Challenges

Coffee

The farmers who attended the second National Coffee Festival at Mandela National Stadium, Nambole, on November 4 were introduced to the Coffee Drought Indexed Insurance, which will be rolled out to interested farmers across the country in the coming months. One of the key speakers at the function, Joost Derwoerd, the director of Earth Environment Monitoring/Resilient Africa Network, told them: "Farming is the biggest business in the world. But it is done under an open roof which makes it vulnerable to the ravages of nature."

One of the biggest risks in farming especially for us in Uganda is drought. The scheme, which is to be implemented in partnership with National Union of Coffee Agribusinesses and Farm Enterprises (Nucafe) should be embraced and given the support it deserves.

The good news is that the government has pledged to pay 50 per cent of the premium for smallholder farmers.

As we begin to experience the effects of climate change such as the long drought that has devastated crops in the past few months, we must think harder about using water for enhancing agricultural production.

Farmers should be assisted to purchase irrigation equipment such as water tanks, water pumps, and water pipes perhaps by granting them affordable loans by financial institutions.

Farmers must also desist from environmentally unfriendly practices such as destruction of natural forests and growing crops in wetlands. Continued wetland harassment and forest destruction will only lead to severer water shortage conditions.

Every year, 12 million hectares of land is degraded due to drought and desertification according to the 2016 Global Food Report. It says this is especially detrimental to smallholder farmers south of the Sahara.

It recommends development of climate-ready crops such as drought tolerant maize, which can lead to efficient water usage and improve yields.

This will mean investing more in agricultural research. Already, our agricultural research institutions have made achievements in developing climate-ready crops but Parliament for reasons not clearly understood is taking time to pass the Biotechnology and Bio-safety Bill for the farmers to plant the crops.