Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society (LIB4SECS) a group of farmers with passion for promoting food security and value addition to farm produce have launched an Agro-machinery project that include a Tractor and its implements aimed at promoting commercial agriculture in the District.
The launch was July 24th presided of by Rukungiri District Chairman Charles Andrewson Katebire at the Cooperatives Headoffices in Kebisoni Town Council in Rukungiri District.
Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society is an indigenous organisation that was formed by members after they realised that they faced same challenges and were looking for same opportunities to advance their farming strategies focusing on transforming their lives and the welfare of the communities where they live.
While speaking at the launch, Chairman Katebire, noted that the acquisition of the tractor was a wake up call that people will nolonger sleep in job but must use all the available resources to transform their communities.
Chairman Katebire hailed Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society for initiating the idea of commercial agriculture geared towards value addition which will create social-economic transformation and increase household incomes.
He however called on the members to ensure transparency in management and financial undertaking to create trust and ensure that the organisation is sustained and last longer and pledged total support to the project.
According to Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society Board Chairperson, Samuel Ahabwe, who is also the Chief Administrative Officer Rubanda District, the cooperative movement remains one of the strongest tools for transforming communities, however individual farmers continue to face challenges such as limited access to capital, high agricultural production costs, inadequate technology, shortage of labour and weak bargaining power and difficulty in accessing markets.
He said that, it’s from this background that the commercial farmers decided to come together, combine their resource, knowledge and confront challenges collectively by creating a platform where farmers can access services, technologies, markets and create opportunities that would be difficult to achieve as individuals.
Ahabwe said that the acquisition of the tractor and its implements, will address some of the challenges the farmers have been facing, since it will support large scale timely land preparation, timely planting, reduce on expensive and inadequate labor, improve transportation of farm inputs and harvested produce, reduce post-harvest losses and increase productivity.
It’s from this initiative that the investment will significantly contribute to food security, increase household incomes and increase agricultural commercialisation in Rukungiri District and beyond.
Ahabwe said that the machinery is a beginning of a much bigger journey to transform Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society into a bigger, integrated farmer owned agribusiness institution that supports members across the entire livestock and food security chain.
Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society has a strategic plan to establish milk bulking centers that will improve milk collection, handling, quality assurance and market by adding value instead of selling raw milk and this process will create employment opportunities in the community and create wealth in Rukungiri District.
“Our ultimate goal is to build a one stop farmer owned institution that will provide mechanised farming, agricultural inputs, animal feeds, improved breeding services, collection and process, transportation and value and marketing support” Ahabwe explained.
It should be remembered that the Government of Uganda has set a clear vision of achieving the Tenfold Economic Growth under the National Development Plan IV where Agriculture remain one of the core key sectors that will drive the transformation and mechanisation, agriculture commercialisation, value addition, access to financing and cooperative development are central to achieving this ambition.
The tractor and its implements acquisition was made possible by the Ministry of Local Government, Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development, the Microfinance Support Center and the Islamic Development Bank through LEGS Project, with guidance from Rukungiri District Local Government especially the District Commercial Officer, the District Production Officer and the District Community Development Officer.
While speaking at the same event, Rukungiri District Principal Administrative Officer Ms Fatuma Kamanzi who represented the Chief Administrative Officer, pledged support to the Cooperators, saging that the initiative was a good strategy and described it as a soft landing for retirement, but appealed for good management of finances and ensure that the equipment is put to proper use.
She also thanked Kebisoni Town Council leadership headed by the Chairperson Leonard Tiberondwa Muhunguzi for embracing and blessing the project.
An official from the Microfinance Support Center Kigezi Regional Offices, Sam Bwambale urged the Cooperators to recruit more members in order to make it strong and visible.
According to Vice Chairperson of Rukungiri Livestock Breeders and Food Security Cooperative Society Steven Kubihikaho, the membership comprise few small holder farmers but they are targeting to raise the number to over 500 people.
