Kikuube coop leaders appeal for value addition equipment to boost members’ incomes

KIKUUBE, August 26, 2026 — Leaders of Bugambe Grain Producer Cooperative Society Limited in Kikuube district have appealed to government to support the cooperative with value addition equipment to enable farmers to process their produce and increase their incomes.

The leaders said access to processing equipment would enable them to turn raw farm produce into finished products, create jobs, reduce post-harvest losses and strengthen the cooperative’s position in the market.

Speaking to this reporter in a recent interview, Julius Businge, Chairperson of the cooperative’s Board of Directors, said the lack of processing machinery was one of the major challenges forcing farmers to sell their produce in unprocessed form.

Businge said the cooperative, which was established in 2022, has more than 100 members who grow grains and legumes on a commercial basis. Members have also embraced coffee and cocoa growing as they seek to increase their household incomes.

He explained that in 2024, members mobilised funds to construct a store where they currently bulk their produce, mainly maize.

According to Businge, farmers currently sell a kilogramme of unprocessed maize for about Shs 700, but could earn as much as Shs 2,500 per kilo if they had the capacity to process and package the maize flour.

He said the cooperative urgently needs a maize milling machine to enable members to produce maize flour and benefit from value addition.

Businge also said the cooperative members were interested in large-scale farming but lacked agricultural machinery, including tractors and combine harvesters, to support mechanisation.

He said Government support with a tractor would encourage farmers to embrace commercial agriculture and increase production.

“Farmers are currently using hand hoes to till their land, and this is affecting our production capacity,” he said.

Businge added that the cooperative was also struggling with a poor saving culture among its members, which was limiting its financial growth and ability to provide loans.

“We do not have enough money to lend to our members because our members are not saving and are not buying shares,” he said.

Farmers cite climate change, declining soil fertility

John Katusabe, a member of the cooperative, said farmers face several challenges, including crop diseases, declining soil fertility and climate change, which have contributed to heavy losses.

“Because of the dry spell we experienced last season, we suffered heavy losses. On an acre of maize where I expected to harvest two tonnes, I only harvested 500 kilogrammes. We depend on farming, so when a farmer suffers such a loss, he has nowhere to get money for saving,” Katusabe said.

He called on the Government to support farmers with fertilisers to restore soil fertility and agricultural inputs to control diseases affecting their crops.

Katusabe also welcomed efforts by Kikuube District LCV Chairperson Paddy Kisembo to support cooperative societies in the district.

Kisembo recently promised to map and cluster cooperative societies and help them prepare proposals that can be used to lobby for support from the Government and other organisations.

He also promised to lobby the district council to allocate adequate funds to support cooperative societies through the district budget.

Kisembo said supporting active cooperative societies would attract more farmers, strengthen their operations and contribute to the growth of the cooperative movement in the district.

He expressed optimism that with adequate support, cooperative farmer groups would help their members build financial capacity and contribute to socio-economic transformation.

https://thecooperator.news/kikuube-farmer-groups-receive-shs-400mln-climate-smart-farm-inputs/

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