Source of the Nile National Agricultural Show officially opened in Jinja District

16/07/2019

Jinja, 16th July 2019 The 27th edition of the Source of the Nile National Agricultural Show which is organised by the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries in collaboration with the Uganda National Farmers’ Federation (UNFFE) has officially been opened today.

The Show was officially opened on behalf of the President by Rt. Hon. Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda the Prime Minister of Uganda who was accompanied by Hon. Vincent Ssempijja the Minister for Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries.

Above: Hon. Vincent Bamulangaki Ssempijja the Minister for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries speaking at the official opening of the 27th Source of the Nile National Agricultural Show in Jinja.

The Source of the Nile National Agricultural Show is the largest of its kind in Uganda and is an annual event that has been held since 1990, attracting an annual average of 350 agricultural exhibitors from different parts of the country and beyond.

Above: Hon. Vincent Ssempijja touring the Uganda Prisons Section where Cotton growing is being exhibited alongside other innovations and machinery.

It is the biggest platform for showcasing Agricultural innovations and exchange of knowledge and offers a lot of opportunities to the participants to learn of equipment and agricultural methods to apply on the farms.

The Agricultural show attracts over 300,000 guests yearly, making it the most attended show.

The ten day exhibition, organized by the Uganda National Farmers Federation (UNFFE) in partnership with Ministry of Agriculture Animal Husbandry and Fisheries (MAAIF) provides farmers, agro-industry players, service providers and other stakeholders in the agricultural sector the opportunity to showcase their innovations and technologies as well as engage in business networking.

The Show also brings together agricultural scientists, small and large commercial scale farmers and stakeholders and service providers from across the value chain.

Departments, Projects and Agencies of the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries are showcasing cutting edge research products and services provided alongside private sector players in the sector.

Notes for editors

About the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF)

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries is a Ministry in the Government of Uganda charged with creating an enabling environment in the Agricultural Sector.

The Ministry formulates, reviews and implement national policies, plans, strategies, regulations and standards and enforce laws, regulations and standards along the value chain of crops, livestock and fisheries.

Vision: A competitive, profitable and sustainable agricultural sector.

Mission: To transform subsistence farming to commercial agriculture.

Strategic Objectives

  • To initiate the formulation and review of the policy and legal framework for the sector
  • To establish and implement systems for service provision in the sector
  • To strengthen and implement strategies, regulatory framework, standards, institutional structures and infrastructure for quality assurance and increased quantities of agricultural products to access and sustain local, regional and export markets
  • To design and implement sustainable capacity building programmes for stakeholders in the agricultural sector through training, re-tooling, infrastructure, provision of logistics and ICT
  • To develop strategies for sustainable food security
  • To develop appropriate agricultural technologies for improved agricultural production, productivity and value addition through research
  • To develop effective collaborative mechanisms with affiliated institutions and
  • To take lead and establish a system and institutional framework for agricultural data collection, analyses, storage and dissemination to stakeholders including Uganda Bureau of Statistics.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) is made up of four Directorates including the Directorate of Crop Resources, Directorate of Animal Resources, Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services and the Directorate of Fisheries Resources each with Departments, Divisions and Partnership Projects.

The Departments of the Ministry which do not fall directly in the above include the Department of Agricultural Planning and Development, the Human Resource Department, the Department of Finance and Administration and the Department of Agricultural Infrastructure, Mechanisation and Water for Agricultural Production.

The Ministry is also made up of seven Agencies including the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO), the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS), Cotton Development Organisation (CDO), Dairy Development Authority (DDA), Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) and Coordinating Office for the Control of Trypanosomiasis in Uganda (COCTU) and the National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Databank (NAGRC&DB).

About the Uganda National Farmers Federation

Uganda National Farmers Federation (UNFFE) is the largest private sector, farmer-based, umbrella membership Non-governmental Organization (NGO) in Uganda (and one of the largest in East and Central Africa) which advocates for, lobbies and articulates farmers’ developmental issues and programs. Its activities reach grassroots farming communities in all corners of the country.

Specific Objectives

  • Enhance promotion of favorable policies and advocacy for farmers
  • Enhance farmer institutional development and capacity
  • Enhance agribusiness development, financing and resource mobilization
  • Improve natural resources management and agricultural productivity
  • Mainstream Gender and HIV/AIDS in all program activities
  • Improve efficiency and effectiveness of operations and support mechanisms at UNFFE
  • Acquire sufficient and sustainable resources for operations and growth at UNFFE.

The membership of UNFFE is made up of over 90 independent associations of farmers, agro-industrialists and agro-commodity dealers. Individual membership to these associations is over 1,000,000 people country-wide of whom about 40% are women. It is a constitutional requirement for all UNFFE member Associations to have at least one third of the leadership consisting of female leaders. The biggest batch of membership is made up of about 70 District Farmers Associations (DFAs) which are spread in the Northern, Eastern, Central and Western regions of Uganda, thus giving the Federation a uniquely national status and representation. Twelve (12) of those DFAs are headed by women as Chairpersons and several Vice-Chairpersons.

UNFFE is made up of the following organs

  • The National Farmers Council which is the supreme governing body of the Federation. The Council is constituted by 3 delegates per member organisation which elects the National Executive Committee.
  • The National Executive Committee (NEC) which is the supreme leadership arm of the Federation which initiates policies which are approved by the Farmers’ Council for implementation by the Secretariat.
  • The Secretariat headed by a Chief Executive Secretary and assisted by a Deputy Chief Executive Secretary, Managers and support staff. These are entrusted with running the day-to-day activities of the Federation as approved by NEC and the Farmers’ Council.

UNFFE Apex is linked to the grassroots farmers through the member District Farmers Associations and the Commodity and Agro-input Associations. For the District Farmers Associations, which are the core founding members of UNFFE, linkage is through the DFA’s District Executive Committee (DEC), the Sub-county Executive Committee (SEC) and the Parish Executive Committee (PEC). The grassroots farmers are organised through Special Interest Groups (SIGs) which are mainly in form of commodity-specific production and more recently financial services provider groups (VSLA groups).