Kyotera farmers implement agriculture project, MPs impressed

Parliament's Committee on Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries has said they are impressed with the ongoing implementation of the Agriculture Cluster Development Project (ACDP) by Kasaali Farmers’ Cooperative Society in Kyotera district.

The committee led by the vice chairperson, Dr Agnes Apea Atî,  were in the district for an oversight visit to monitor the implementation of the Agriculture Cluster Development Project.

According to Atim, unlike other groups within the district they have monitored, Kasaali Farmers’ Cooperative Society has set the bar high as far as utilization of matching grants are concerned.
“What we have found so far is that the cooperative at the community level is immense and unlike others projects we visited this is impressive. We want to appreciate the district and cooperative leadership for the work well done here,” she said.

She adds that, ‘if all the projects are implemented like the one of Kasaali across the country, we wouldn’t be facing challenges assessing the impact of government interventions’.

Robis Kiggundu, the Chairperson Kasaali Farmers’ Cooperative Society told the committee that the society stands on its core pillar of growth and development for the benefit of its members and the society as a whole.
“We have over 1,278 members and render services which include agricultural advisory services, purchase of coffee from farmers; we add value by hulling, grading and colour sorting,” she said.

She explained that they also  extend other support services like multiplying improved planting coffee materials, agro inputs supply and saving and credit and through this, they have reached a portfolio of over Shs57 million and a loan portfolio of over Shs124 million.  

Kiggundu added that since the ACDP commenced, the household incomes of its member has increased besides improved standard of living something they are grateful for.
“We have so far received a matching grant of Shs474 million and a balance of Shs133 million is left in ACDP account to make a total of Shs607 million support we received. This added on the 33 per cent member contribution equivalent to Shs299 million ,” she added.

She further noted that the cooperative have fully constructed the warehouse, purchased a grader machine and are only waiting for it to be delivered so that it can boost their profit margin by the end of the year.

 When asked on the procurement process of the machines, Kiggundu demonstrated that farmers were involved in the procurement process and this was after the visit the cooperative had to Namboole to see the different types of machines in an exhibition and thereafter were able to agree on a particular machine which conformed to their need as members.

Patrick Kintu Kisekulo, the district chairperson told the committee that the district has registered significant achievement in the project. “By the end of Dec 2021, 513 groups had been registered onto the e-voucher system for the two enterprises of coffee and maize and a total of 20,150 farmers has since benefited from ACDP project in the district,” he said.

In 2016, the Ministry for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries rolled out the Agriculture Cluster Development Project (ACDP), a project aimed at raising on-farm productivity, production, and marketable volumes of selected agricultural commodities.  

The projected is supported by the World Bank with a US$150 million fund. The ministry contributed US$28 million.