Background
•
By
1914 European and Asian farmers had established 135 plantations of coffee.
•
The
Coffee Board was set up in 1929, and then Coffee Marketing Board in 1959.
•
The
colonial government, eager to see the development of a cash –crop economy,
divided the country into agro-ecological zones.
•
In
the 1950s extension workers promoted a coffee-planting program that saw coffee
production reach 2 million 60kg bags by the early 1960s and more than 3 million
by 1969/1970.
•
Historically
the colonial government used to enforce coffee production by using chiefs who
used to inspect households. As a result coffee was named ‘Kibooko’.
•
The
subsequent years of civil strife in Uganda between 1972 and 1986 saw economic
life stagnate and coffee production fall
back.
•
Prices
recovered briefly following the frost which in June 1994 destroyed much of the
Brazilian crop for that and the following year. Ugandan production increased in
response to the higher prices with exports topping 4 million bags.
•
By
1999-2000 and 2000-2001, exports had fallen back to around 3 million bags
mark.
•
Currently
the share of the farmer on the world price has gone up to between 70 – 75%
after the liberalization of the sub-sector. However, government had
consistently under funded the coffee sub-sector thereby frustrating the
achievement of the 4.5 million bags by the year 2015.
Objectives of the campaign
•
To
mobilize over 5000 coffee farmers in 5years to plant and manage well
established coffee gardens in each of Uganda’s coffee growing communities.
•
To
establish coffee nurseries within proximity of the beneficiary communities
across the country.
•
To
identify register and train the beneficiary farmers in improved coffee growing
management practices countrywide.
•
To
facilitate the establishment of vibrant coffee farmers producer and marketing
associations.
•
To
distribute over 100.000.000 coffee seedling to beneficiary farmers by 2015.
•
To
work on the establishment of small wet-processing plants within the coffee
communities for value addition and better prices to the farmers.
•
To
facilitate access to financial intermediaries for inputs and credit
services.
Achievements
•
UCDA
has been allocated UGx13bn($5m) in the financial year 2013/14 after serious
lobbying
•
Over
1,200,000 coffee seedlings since 2006 to more than 10,000 households
•
13
processing plants have been set up since 2010 in a 15km radius, creating over
400 jobs for youth at the factories alone
•
We
have formed a parliamentary coffee promotion body. Over 100 MPs have joined the
struggle to break the poverty cycle.
•
Uganda
now produces 3.2m bags and no.1 in Africa followed by Ethiopia.
Challenges
•
Funding:
For almost a decade funding of UCDA had stagnated at only 1bn
shillings($387,000) which is quite little compared to the target of 4.5 million
bags by the year 2015.
•
Coffee
diseases and pests like the Coffee Wilt Disease (CWD) and Coffee rusts, Black
Coffee Twig borer.
•
Rural-Urban
migration;
•
Decline
in soil fertility.
•
Climate
change is another challenge.
•
Population pressure: For instance in the Arabica areas land under coffee cannot be expanded
leaving increase in productivity as the only option to increase coffee
production.
•
Limited
promotional/coffee awareness campaigns in the local market
•
Fierce
competition for the good graded coffee from exporters, who prefer to sell in
the international market than the local market because of better prices.
•
Inadequate
roasting equipment and packaging materials.
•
Lack of financing for the value chain leading to very poor regulation of coffee
quality.
•
The
collapse of primary cooperative societies and unions
•
Emergence
of middlemen under the privatisation/liberalization policy. These
compromised the quality by harvesting green coffee berries.
Opportunities
• Government is fully committed to the
coffee campaign with a target of 10m bags by 2018
• Development Partners are focused on
the value chain more than ever; e.g. USAID’s “Feed the Future Project”
estimated. at $17million 2014-17
• New farmer groups will ensure
quality
• Coffee is the only cash crop that
has stood the test of time
• Heavy investment in Road
infrastructure and a good Rural Electrification program
By HON. KASAMBA MATHIAS
CHAIRPERSON COMMITTEE OF AGRICULTURE ANIMAL INDUSTRY AND FISHERIES.
PARLIAMENT OF UGANDA
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