Uganda to meet rice demand by 2018 - NARO

Uganda is on course to meet the country's demand for rice by 2018, according to the director general of National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), Dr Ambrose Agona.

The country currently spends sh367b every month to import rice from Pakistan.

Agona said the demand for rice is at 300,000 metric tonnes monthly but the current supply of hulled rice is 280,000 metric tonnes reflecting a supply gap of 20,000 metric tonnes.

"With improved varieties of rice and better technology and research we are confident the country will by 2018 meet the target of producing locally 680,000 metric tonnes of rice" Agona said while handing over rice thresher machines to the rice farmers in Barr Sub County in Lira last week.

He said the use of thresher machine is an important incentive to rice farmers as it reduces cost of labour and reduces grain loses as opposed to threshing rice using sticks.

"The machine cleans between 1300 and 1500kgs of rice grains for every one litre of diesel fuel but a local rice farmer spends around 4,000 shillings per bag for threshing at the local market," he said.

Lira district secretary for production, Ojuka Anthony praised the intervention by NARO adding that it is line with Vision 2040 and the sustainable development goals.

The chairman governing council NARO, Prof. Joseph Obua said NARO will live up to its mandate of generating information and knowledge for the benefits of farmers.