Gen. Saleh teams up with youth to fight hunger

By David Lumu

Prof. Augustus Nuwagaba told a story of a Makerere University don who upon retirement was given sh64m as take-home package.

“This professor got the sh64m retirement package, went to the market and bought maize. He packed the maize into sacks and loaded it on trucks with plans of exporting it to South Sudan. But because he didn’t share his idea with us, things didn’t work out,” he said.


“The professor forgot to buy tarpaulins yet the distance from Kampala to Juba is long. So, it rained and by the time he reached Juba, the maize had germinated,” he said.

Gen. Salim Saleh listening to Stephen Ndawula, the MD of Ondavit Wines during an exhibition of small scale entrepreneurs in the Kigali - Rwanda Jua Kali Exhibition 2014. This was during a Certificate Presentation Ceremony at UMA Conference Hall on 12/2/2015. Photo/Mary Kansiime

According to Nuwagaba, such experiences have manifested in almost all the lives of Ugandans.

“People don’t plan for money. They have no discipline to invest. They never have targets and above all they never involve their families in the businesses they do. If this professor had discussed the idea of exporting maize to South Sudan with his wife or colleagues, he wouldn’t have made a loss,” he said.

Nuwagaba was speaking during the launch of the National Alliance Against Hunger, a group of young people, who work with farmers to boost agriculture.

During the recent event at Serena Hotel in Kampala, the youth led by Robert Tumusiime, the general secretary of the National Alliance Against Hunger, also launched a fundraising drive, where Gen. Caleb Akandwanaho aka Salim Saleh donated agricultural processing equipment.

Salim Saleh, the Presidential senior advisor on security and defence, is the proprietor of Namunkekera rural industrial centre in Kapeeka Nakaseke district. Saleh’s industry processes agricultural products of farmers from the sub counties of Kapeeka, Semuto, Nakaseke and Kasangombe.

It has factories such as the tomato processing factory, a maize mill, dairy and brick making.

Vincent Kalibala, who represented Saleh, said that the equipment  from NRIC will help the youth during the post-harvest, especially on value-addition of the cassava to produce quality flour.

The equipment performs five functions—washing, slicing, granting, drying and packing

The National Alliance Against Hunger plan to plant 50 acres of cassava.

Tumusiime said that the goal of the group is to enhance farming systems in the country and weed out rural poverty concerns.

The Chancellor of Makerere University, Prof. Mondo Kangonyera also launched the NUWAGAB 8-POINT MODEL for wealth creation.

“Every year, the food deficit on this continent gets worse. Days are gone when you talked about fertile soils in Uganda. They are gone and the answer is science. Industrialization must be addressed together with production,” Kangonyera said.

Dr. Abel Rwendeire, the deputy chairperson of the National Planning Authority and Prof. Badru Kateregga, the Vice Chancellor of Kampala University attended the launch.
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Nuwagaba model

•    Every home should have some economic activity
•    Everyone should work hard
•    Save some money however small
•    Have a target to focus on
•    Work as a family enterprise
•    Create access to quality health care
•    Government should provide infrastructural development
•    Love Uganda