Mr Isaac Ssemakadde
A dire crisis haunts the last mile farmer in present-day Uganda: the crisis of an absent-minded Uganda Law Society and a donor-controlled civil society sector aiding and abetting a corrupt cabal of shadow elites to capture the agriculture sector through a series of dubiously fast-tracked Bills for Rationalisation of Government Agencies and Public Expenditure (Rapex).
In May 2022, a nine-member parliamentary select committee on the merger of government agencies, chaired by MP Nathan Byanyima presented its report to the House recommending that due to the large population they support, the agencies should not be dissolved. However, the Executive ignored the report.
In April, the Committee on Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries of Parliament presented its report on the floor, opposing the dissolution of the agencies, which Parliament supported. The National Resistance Movement (NRM) caucus, summoned by the President in August, refused to support the dissolution. In a final caucus meeting, the President asked MPs to support the dissolution.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) lacks the capacity to perform these duties, which the Executive refuses to acknowledge. It also ignores the sector's performance in lifting people out of poverty.
Saying Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) claims the hard work of Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) under the Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces (UPDF) is not the full story. Between 2015 and 2020, OWC provided 410 million tea seedlings in 21 districts. People were duped into tea planting, increasing production by 19 percent. However, the tea sector, now under the Ministry of Agriculture, has no organised agency, and some people are uprooting their tea gardens.
In 2013, Kenya merged the Coffee Board with the Agriculture Food Authority (similar to the proposed MAAIF agency). In 10 years, Kenya's coffee production dropped from 130,000 metric tonnes to 40,000 metric tonnes. It's clear what will happen to coffee and dairy farming when these agencies are closed.
Closing critical agencies while misusing public funds will have irreversible consequences. We must act now or face judgment from history. Those who saw cooperatives being killed and remained silent will forever regret it. Cooperatives developed Uganda, but their destruction has spelt doom for the country's future.
We must unite to defend the livelihoods of millions of Ugandans who depend on agriculture to send their children to school and pay for medicine.
The merging of agriculture sector agencies is a recipe for disaster. It will lead to the collapse of our agricultural sector, increase poverty and inequality, and enrich a select few. We urge all Ugandans to reject this move and demand accountability from our leaders.
We also call on the international community to take note of this situation and support the people of Uganda in their fight against corruption and oppression. We must work together to build a better future for ourselves and for generations to come.
In conclusion, the merging of agriculture sector agencies is a clear example of how corruption and greed can lead to the exploitation of the poor and vulnerable. We must stand up against this injustice and fight for a Uganda where everyone has access to opportunities and resources.
God bless and protect Uganda.
Mr Isaac Ssemakadde is a lawyer and aspiring Uganda Law Society President
@IsaacSsemakadde
