Uganda gets sh35b agriculture loan
Nov 22, 2011
Uganda has secured a sh35b ($14m) loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to finance the Agricultural Technology and Agri-business Advisory Services project.
By John Kasozi
Uganda has secured a sh35b ($14m) loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to finance the Agricultural Technology and Agri-business Advisory Services project.
The loan has a maturity of 40 years, including a grace period of 10 years, a statement from the Uganda embassy in Rome said.
Deo Rwabita, Uganda’s ambassador to Italy and Kanayo Nwanze, the IFAD president, signed the loan deal at IFAD headquarters in Rome, Italy on November 9. Rwabita is also the permanent representative to FAO and WFP.
Ambassador Mumtaz Kassam, the deputy head of mission and Robert Sabiiti, the alternate permanent representative to FAO and WFP witnessed the function.
The loan administration and project supervision will be overseen by the IDA as a co-operating institution, the statement added.
It indicated that the project would focus on raising rural poor households’ income through improved agricultural research and advisory services, while enhancing environmental sustainability and resilience to climate risks and land degradation.
It will promote the role for private sector operators in agricultural development. It will also introduce new technologies for sustainable land management to help farmers cope with risks associated with climate change.
Speaking at the signing ceremony of the loan agreement, ambassador Rwabita hailed the excellent relationship between IFAD and Uganda.
He noted that the Vegetable Oil Development project in Kalangala, which he visited recently, was a success as it has improved the livelihood of participating the farmers and their families.
Nwanze said: “With Uganda’s fertile soils and excellent climate, your country only requires improved farming technologies and infrastructure to feed Africa, thus making a huge contribution to food security in the region.”
He said there was need to align relevant projects to support the implementation of the agriculture sector programmes associated with climate change.
Being national in scope, the project will build on the IFAD co-financed National Agricultural Advisory Services Programme, which was successfully completed in December 2010.
During the implementation of the project, the agriculture ministry will be the lead agency. The additional project parties are the National Agricultural Advisory Services and the National Agricultural Research Organisation.
Agriculture is one of the mainstays of the Ugandan economy. Raising agricultural productivity and promoting agriculture businesses are high priorities for the government.
With the introduction of more profitable crops, smallholder farmers are expected to improve their yields and be able to set higher farm prices for their produce. More than 1.7 million rural households consisting of women and young people will benefit from the project.
With this new project, IFAD will have financed 14 programmes and projects in Uganda for a total investment of sh740billion (US$296.5 million) benefiting more than 4 million households.