CSOs call for enhanced investment in sustainable farming practices to transform agrifood systems
Drake Nyamugabwa
Following the recent concluded Kampala ministerial session of the African Union extraordinary assembly on the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) where Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have convened to discuss the urgent need to focus on re-investing in sustainable farming approaches aimed at transforming Africa’s Agrifood systems.
Various member CSOs under their umbrella organizations CSBAG, PELUM have highlighted importance of enhancing investments, strengthening policies and good government to effectively ensure high yield from Agrifood systems.
Mr. Lawrence Kanakulya, Programme Officer in charge of Advocacy has emphasised the need to adopt sustainable practices through conserving resources, protecting the ecosystem, and ensuring long-term production as stipulated in the Kampala CAADP declaration.
“The Kampala declaration commits to increasing Agrifood output with by 45% by 2035 through the adoption of sustainable agriculture practices” he said
Mr Lawrence called upon the government to allocate funding to sustainable agriculture approaches such as agroecology and organic farming to enhance food security, environmental health and community resiliency.
“Increased finding will support ecosystems, drive social economic development and improve livelihoods of farmers across the continent” he said.
Mr Pascal Muhangi an Economist at CSBAG while making his remarks on the budget framework paper for fy2025/26 said that though there has been considerations of key priority areas in the NDP IV, government need to keep in plan the contribution of anabling factors that need to be financed too such as infrastructure, fight against corruption among others that he said will support attainment of the desires growth.
Commenting about the inflation rates he said that there is need to maintain the current inflation rates which ha said is still under 5% withought being affected by the forthcoming election period which he said is expected to bring fluctuations.
Meanwhile Richard Mugenyi raised concerns in the low staffing levels in health facilities in Uganda which he said need to be boosted to reach WHO standard on health labour. He said there is a gap of over 200,000 health staff needing more 151,000.
