Vision Group honoured for agricultural reporting

By Patrick Jaramogi

Vision Group was on Tuesday recognized for its tremendous contribution towards increasing aspects of change in the agriculture and poverty reduction in Uganda.

The Farm power@50 Media awards organized by the East and Southern Africa Small Scale Farmers Forum (ESAFF) and the Food Rights Alliance (FRA) were awarded to New Vision, Bukedde TV and Bukedde Radio.

Handing over the awards the Food Rights Alliance Coordinator Agnes Kirabo said New Vision was honoured for its articles on agriculture that feature every Tuesdays in the Harvest Money pull out as well as the agricultural shows in Bukedde radio and TV.

“The Farm Power  media awards is in recognition for the efforts Vision Group has put in promoting agricultural sector in Uganda,” she said at the function held at Grand Imperial Hotel in Kampala.

Kirabo said the awards were under the theme; “The power of the media in grooming a vibrant agricultural sector.

The ESAFF National Coordination Nancy Mugimba said in the past years, the media was viewed as medium for entertainment and spreading of rumours on issues that are hardly pertinent to the development of this country.

“Today we celebrate the involvement of the press in issues of agriculture development and we appreciate their role in highlighting the issues of the peasant farmers,” she said.

Mugimba said the voice of the small scale farmer needs to be heard by the public and the policy makers and the media is the major channel for this.

“We cannot separate agricultural sector success from the efforts of the media hence the media and NGOs need to continue to work together to achieve agricultural growth and national development,” she said.

The ESAFF board chairperson Hakim Baliraine said the awards are part of the farm power festival that runs from August 27 to 31 across the country. He said the farm power festival will attract over 10,000 participants from both public and private sector to provide a platform to engage meaningfully on the future of the agriculture sector.