Kampala, Uganda: A government program to give out free agricultural inputs including hand-held hoes will lead to laziness, says the Chairman West Nile Seed Multiplication Cooperative Society Uzelle Adam Mohammad.
While the government argues that the plan will lessen the financial burden on the largely peasant farmers across the country, Uzelle said giving free inputs will encourage laziness among farmers.
He says the government should instead provide cheap credit to help farmers acquire heavy-duty agricultural machinery and input for commercial farming.
He was speaking at the Coop360 Leaders’ Orientation programme spearheaded by The Uhuru Institute for Social Development last week at Kyoto Spiritual Center, Namugongo.
“The government must stop offering cheap inputs like hand-held hoes that cannot improve the welfare of farmers but rather undermine efforts to mechanize the agricultural sector,” said Uzelle.
Adding, “We (farmers) have become beggars; we always wait for free things from the government, which is wrong,” Uzelle decried, “today, these hand hoes are being delivered by the president, is that one really normal? Something you can buy for just Shs10,000?” he questioned.
The government, in a bid to promote agricultural productivity, has provided support to smallholder farmers through the distribution of seedlings, ox-plough, hand-held hoes, and other farm inputs.
Relatedly, the Minister for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Vincent Bamulangaki Ssempijja at the 9th Joint Agricultural Sector Review (JASAR) held in Kampala last month revealed that the ministry would acquire and distribute 162 tractors, 200 lower mechanization equipment and 130 solar pumps.
This is in addition to 284 tractors and two earth moving equipment already procured by the government to be offered to farmers with the aim of, “unlocking systematic constraints affecting smallholder farmers,” Ssempijja said.
Several farmer groups have in the past called on the government to make available affordable credit for acquiring machinery. They also want the government to improve on monitoring of programs like Operation Wealth Creation to boost agricultural productivity.
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