Petition seeks payment of sh33.7b owed to coffee nursery operators

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A coalition of coffee nursery operators under the Devoted Coffee Farmers Initiative, representing 14 sub-regional associations across Uganda, has petitioned Parliament over unpaid arrears totalling sh33.7b for seedlings supplied during the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

In a petition addressed to the Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, the nursery operators expressed frustration over the government’s continued delay in settling verified debts, despite their critical role in advancing Uganda’s ambitious target of producing 20 million coffee bags by 2030.

Led by the acting chairperson of the initiative, Hellen Acham Elungati Ketty, the group called on Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture to urgently convene a session to address their concerns and chart a path toward timely compensation.

Verified claims, growing frustrations

According to the petition dated April 7, 2025, the sh33.7b arrears were verified by the Internal Auditor General and confirmed in a letter from the Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury dated April 29, 2024. However, the payments have not been honoured in full.

“Government released sh15b in the 2024/25 financial year to clear long-standing arrears dating back to 2016, yet only sh14b was disbursed,” the petition states, adding that the remaining sh1b was delayed due to complications following the dissolution of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA).

Further frustrating the nursery operators is the recent sh67 billion allocation to Inspire Africa Coffee Factory in the March 2025 supplementary budget.

The petitioners described this move as “unfair and detrimental” to grassroots operators who invest personal and borrowed capital to sustain coffee seedling supply chains.

Impact on livelihoods and sector growth

The petitioners warned that the delayed payments are not only threatening their businesses but also endangering household livelihoods, children’s education, and access to healthcare.

“Some of our colleagues have died due to lack of funds to access treatment in referral hospitals. Many cannot pay school fees or continue operations due to lack of working capital,” Elungati noted in the petition.

The group also stressed the crucial role nursery operators have played in supporting the Coffee Roadmap launched by President Yoweri Museveni in 2014.

Since then, Uganda’s coffee exports have increased from 3 million to 6.85 million bags annually, with earnings growing from under $0.5b to $1.14b in 2023.

Additionally, the government now collects sh80b annually through a 2% introduced under the Uganda Coffee Act 2022, intended to be reinvested in the coffee sector.

“Why is this fund not being used to serve its purpose? If utilised effectively, such arrears would not accumulate,” the petition reads, as the group urged Parliament to ring-fence the cess to support sector development.

Preliminary data from the ongoing mandatory registration of coffee farmers shows over 3 million households registered so far — significantly higher than the previously estimated 1.8 million — indicating that nearly 40% of Ugandan households depend on coffee for their livelihoods.

Petitioners seek dialogue

The nursery operators said they are seeking a formal session with Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture to provide deeper insights into their plight and propose workable solutions to avert the collapse of their operations.

The petition was copied to key government officials, including the ministers of finance and agriculture, as well as the head of Public Service.

With Uganda banking on the coffee sector to drive rural transformation and household incomes through the Parish Development Model and other initiatives, the operators warned that failure to support nursery operators could undermine the gains made over the past decade.