Govt targets common user facilities for GROW success

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WEST NILE

In a bid to ensure success in the implementation of Generating Growth Opportunities and Productivity for Women Enterprises (GROW) project, the gender ministry has moved to conduct an assessment of the World Bank-funded Common User Production Facilities (CUFs) for success.

This is aimed at cascading the GROW component of enabling infrastructure and facilities for women enterprise growth and transition under the grants for common user production facilities and children early learning centres to serve women entrepreneurs.

Among the common user production facilities inspected include the Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project (DRDIP) strategic investment and the Agricultural Cluster Development Project (ACDP).

The common user production facilities within the GROW project refer to shared manufacturing or production spaces equipped with machinery and tools that multiple women entrepreneurs can access and utilize to produce their goods.

It essentially provides a shared infrastructure to support the growth of small and medium-sized women-owned businesses, particularly in areas like food processing, garment making, or craft production, without the need for each individual to invest in their own full production facility.

During an assessment mission by a team from the World Bank, gender ministry (MoGLSD), Office of the Prime Minister, Private Sector Foundation Uganda and local leaders in West Nile recently, some of the common user facilities were found to be having a potential to be supported and equipped under the GROW project.

Among the common user production facilities visited in the region include those in Yumbe and Madi Okollo districts as well as Muni University business incubation and ICT hubs.

GROW infrastructure engineer, Bernard Okuyo, from the gender ministry acknowledged the importance of using the CUFs to help uplift the small and medium women entrepreneurs to access quality services and value additional equipment.

He said the expansion of the CUFs and introduction of other GROW components will help ease small-scale women entrepreneurs afford and access high quality bigger equipment to produce high quality and quantity products cheaply.

“I have seen many of the CUFs we visited have the potential of being supported under GROW project and this will help entrepreneurs who cannot single handedly afford some of these sophisticated value addition equipment to have the products processed in them at cheaper cost and this important for the success of this project,” Okuyo said.

The team interacts in one of the CUFs in Yumbe district. (Credit: Robert Adiga)

Building synergies 

Serena Cavicchi, the senior social development specialist at World Bank and overall team leader GROW project emphasized the need to build synergies through proper coordination among stakeholders.

She said the mission ought to assess different World Bank funded projects CUFs and improve livelihood through resource integration.

“We are integrating resources to what common user facilities that the GROW project can support like the constructions that require machinery and where women are involved in production and those that are strategically located because we could put them in plans for support during GROW implementation especially facilities that were constructed under DRDIP,” Cavicchi said.

CUFs transforming lives 

Currently, several CUFs in the West Nile region have transformed the lives of farmer groups as they encourage bulking and value addition in their facilities.

One such facility is the sh189m Ewafa Produce processing and Value addition in Kululu sub-county Yumbe district under DRDIP strategic investment fund.

The construction of 16 farmer groups under the Ayiforo watershed with a membership of 480 farmers generated over sh20m for the members from cassava stocking and sh186m in cassava flour.

Mizamil Okuma, the managing director Ewafa Produce Processing, Value Addition and Marketing, said the members were also trained in skills of adding value to cassava flour like making cassava bread, pancakes and daddies among others, thereby helping members to diversify their livelihood options.

Nadia Bint Yassin, a member of the Ewafa Produce processing, Value addition and Marketing group said she was able to earn over sh5m from the three acres in 2024.

“In 2023, I harvested cassava from two acres but didn’t get good money due to lack of training but last year from the three acres I got a lot of money because I was able to produce a high-quality cassava after the training and we were also trained on adding value on cassava flour and right now I can make pancakes, bread, daddies and other from cassava flour which has diversified my earning though we still have no machines for making them so we would welcome the support from GROW in this facility,” Nadia said.

Alex Lubega, the mentor for Ababo Agricultural Women Farmers Association in Yumbe, who operates in a sh143m facility constructed under the Agriculture Cluster for Development Project in 2022, said the facility has transformed the lives of over 200 farmers.

“Last year managed to get over sh30m as a group and each member was advised to produce at least four acres of cassava and an acre of oil seed and we would bulk them and sale as a group, this has helped to transform lives of our members and we are hoping that we can get support under GROW so that we improve on the quality of our farm products and get better returns," Lubega said.

District officials welcome GROW intervention

The district officials have acknowledged the importance of the CUFs to the farmers groups saying supporting the facilities under GROW will be a turning point in the region.

Yassin Angua, the commodity officer in Yumbe district, hailed DRDIP and ACDP projects for the CUFs as he encouraged the farmers to embrace household production alongside group production.

“Now that the farmers have acquired the necessary skill, I want to encourage them to replicate the knowledge to their households by cultivating at least three acres and this will mean over 1,200 acres in the 16 groups and this will lead to increased production,” Angua said.

He appealed to the World Bank and the gender ministry to consider supporting the CUFs for the successful implementation of the GROW project in the district.

Likewise, Bruno Nawoya, the Chief Administrative Officer Madi Okollo, reiterated their commitment to working with the World Bank and MoGLSD team to have the CUFs supported under the GROW project and identify new sites for increased and enhanced production.

Consider refugees

Arua refugee desk officer Solomon Osakan, appealed to the implementers of GROW to consider the plight of refugees through supporting the CUFs in refugee hosting districts.

“We are aware that the guidelines for accessing the GROW funds are not favourable for the refugees due to the aspects of business registration and collaterals but through these CUFs. I believe the refugees who are in groups can benefit since they will be sharing the facilities cheaply with their host community members”, Said Osakan.

About GROW

The GROW Project, which was launched in March 2023 by President Yoweri Museveni, is a Government initiative funded by a Grant from the International Development Association of the World Bank.

The Project aims to increase access to entrepreneurial services that enable 5,000 female entrepreneurs to grow their enterprises, including refugee women and women in host districts.

The Project was designed to respond to multiple constraints hindering women in business (entrepreneurs) from growing their businesses including but not limited to: inadequate business management skills; lack of access to affordable capital; limited access to common user manufacturing infrastructure and negative social norms that affect their participation in business.

The GROW Project, therefore, provides an integrated package of services to meet the needs of women entrepreneurs.

The $217m World Bank Funded GROW project is implemented by the gender ministry and the Private Sector Foundation Uganda.