Poor land utilisation blamed for food insecurity in Bunyoro
The expo, which is scheduled for July 29 to August 1, 2026, in Hoima City, is being organised by Agriculture Sector Network Uganda, Ministry of Agriculture and Hoima District Local Government.
Stakeholders after the meeting at Kasingo committal hall by Abaanabasazi)
HOIMA - Leaders in Bunyoro sub-region have been urged to mobilise people to utilise their land for increased production instead of leaving it idle, saying this breeds food insecurity and land grabbing.
Hoima district senior production officer Charles Kajura explained that current data shows that 52 percent of land in Bunyoro is idle, with only 48 percent being utilised.
He noted that most of the land in Bunyoro is covered by bushes, yet the owners continue to cry poverty.
He noted that in other parts of the country like Bushenyi, residents have utilised their land well.
“You find someone with five acres of land, but they are only using two acres. Such a person needs to be sensitised to use this land and produce food for their families and for commercial purposes,” he said.
The expo, which is scheduled for July 29 to August 1, 2026, in Hoima City, is being organised by Agriculture Sector Network Uganda, Ministry of Agriculture and Hoima District Local Government.
Kajura told the meeting that poor utilisation of land has contributed to food insecurity in the sub-region and land grabbing.
He expressed concern that though 48% of land is being utilised, crop production is still low because many farmers are still practising subsistence farming.
He called for mobilisation of the farmers to embrace commercial farming and adopt modern farming methods to be able to produce quantity and quality produce.
“Food prices here are too high; this is because there is high demand and the production is low. For example, here in Hoima, we eat tomatoes from Kenya, Irish potato from Fort Portal, and vegetables from Kampala. But we have land, and we can produce all these crops here,” he said.
She noted that crop production in Bunyoro is still low because farmers have not been exposed to new Agricultural technology, adding that if farmers get supported with technologies such as the use of fertilisers, irrigation, proper post-harvest handling methods and Climate-Smart Agriculture, they will be able to produce and benefit from farming.
“We are talking about quality and quantity, so a farmer has to be given the right information to enable them move from one tonne of maize to 10 tonnes using the same piece of land through embracing new technologies,” Businge said.
Mourin Akunda, the head of programmes at Agriculture Sector Network Uganda, said Bunyoro was selected to host the expo considering its agricultural potential, favourable environment, fertile soils and the recent oil and gas development.
She said people have not fully utilised their fertile land and they need to be woken up.
Akunda noted that during the expo, they will showcase new agricultural innovations, promote modern technologies and climate-smart agriculture, strengthen agricultural extension services, and also help farmers to get connected to market opportunities.
She noted that all these will help farmers change their mindset and called on farmers to embrace the expo.