ADJUMANI, August 11, 2026 — Leaders in the Madi Sub-region have called on the Government of Uganda to revive the Madi Cooperative Union, which they say has remained largely inactive for decades following years of civil unrest, destruction of assets and poor management.
The call was made during a recent visit to the region by the State Minister for Cooperatives, Tom Aza Alero, who toured the area to assess the performance of cooperative societies and engage local leaders on ways of strengthening the cooperative movement.
According to Denis Ozi, the Obongi District Commercial Officer, several primary societies that once fed the Union with cotton became non-functional following wars and civil unrest in the 1980s.
He asked the government to consider compensating affected cooperatives for property and other assets lost during the conflicts.
Ozi also called for government support to producer cooperatives through the provision of tractors to enable farmers to cultivate larger acreages and increase production.
He further appealed to the government to intervene and recover cooperative land allegedly occupied by individuals so that it can be returned to productive use.
The leaders also asked the government to increase funding for community savings and credit cooperatives, commonly known as SACCOs, saying the capital available under programmes such as the Parish Development Model [PDM] and Emyooga is insufficient to meet members’ financial needs.
They also called for the establishment of common-user facilities to promote value addition to agricultural produce.
Ozi proposed the establishment of grinding mills at sub-county level to process maize, while fish-processing facilities could be established at landing sites to enable farmers and fisherfolk to add value to their products and secure better prices.
Agnes Dipio, the Obongi District Commercial Officer, said seven commodity cooperative societies under the Madi Cooperative Union are currently registered but non-functional.
She added that 24 community savings and credit cooperative societies are also inactive due to a combination of factors, including the effects of war, poor management and governance challenges.
Dipio identified limited capitalisation as one of the major challenges facing community-owned cooperatives, saying many serve large numbers of members despite having very little share capital.
She appealed to the government and development partners to increase financial support to enable the societies to expand their operations.
She also cited inadequate infrastructure and limited operational funds as major challenges affecting societies operating under government programmes such as Emyooga and PDM.
For commodity cooperatives, Dipio said poor market linkages remain a major obstacle, with farmers struggling to find reliable and profitable markets for their produce after harvest.
She urged the government to strengthen market linkages and promote locally produced agricultural commodities.
Government promises support
Minister Alero said the government recognises cooperatives as an important vehicle for fighting poverty, increasing household incomes and building community wealth.
“I am here to listen to you, to support you, and to ensure government programmes reach you directly. I am here on a mission. I am here to monitor cooperatives in West Nile. Together, we can use cooperatives to alleviate poverty,” Alero said.
He said the government was mobilising communities to participate in programmes including PDM, Emyooga and SACCOs as part of its broader cooperative development agenda.
Alero acknowledged the difficult history of the region, including years of war and displacement, but said the government was now focused on helping communities rebuild their livelihoods.
He encouraged farmers and other community members to join cooperatives, saying collective organisation gives producers greater bargaining power, access to credit and better markets.
The minister said cooperatives can also help farmers overcome exploitation by middlemen by allowing them to bulk their produce and negotiate better prices.
“One person can never sell at a better price, but once you are in a group of maybe 200 or 300 people in a cooperative, you can have better bargaining power,” Alero said.
He added that the government was investing in cooperatives to build on existing skills, create employment, empower communities and improve farmers’ access to better prices.
Calls for a new cooperative structure
Emmanuel Okwar, the Deputy Resident District Commissioner of Adjumani, said the Madi Cooperative Union had been struggling to survive, with some of its remaining assets reportedly facing vandalism and other threats.
He said there had been several attempts to revive the union but suggested that stakeholders should remain open to establishing a new Madi Cooperative Union if the existing structure can no longer effectively serve the community.
Okwar said reviving the cooperative movement was particularly important because the local economy is largely dependent on agriculture, small and medium-sized businesses and cross-border trade with South Sudan.
He said Adjumani’s status as a refugee-hosting district also creates opportunities for increased agricultural production and agro-processing.
A revitalised Madi Cooperative Union, he argued, could move beyond its traditional role and become an engine for agro-industrialisation in Adjumani and the wider West Nile region.
Farmers need storage facilities
The Assistant Resident District Commissioner of Obongi, Robert Kumakech, said farmers in the sub-region continue to suffer from sharp price fluctuations during harvest seasons.
He said many farmers are forced to sell their produce cheaply because they lack secure storage facilities, while others keep their harvest in unsafe stores while waiting for prices to improve.
Kumakech called for the introduction of a warehouse receipt system that would allow farmers to safely store their produce while searching for better markets.
“If we can have a warehouse receipt system introduced, we can have this produce stored safely somewhere and look for a profitable market,” he said.
He said improved storage and collective marketing would help farmers avoid exploitation by middlemen, brokers and other traders who take advantage of farmers immediately after harvest.
Background: Madi Cooperative Union
The cooperative movement in the Madi Sub-region dates back several decades, when farmers organised themselves into primary cooperative societies to collectively market agricultural produce, access credit and improve their bargaining power.
The Madi Cooperative Union was established as an umbrella organisation for primary cooperatives in the region. At its peak, the union played an important role in mobilising farmers, marketing agricultural produce and supporting local economic activity.
However, years of civil unrest, particularly conflicts that affected the region in the 1980s and subsequent periods of instability, disrupted cooperative activities and resulted in the loss or destruction of cooperative assets.
Several primary societies subsequently became inactive, while others struggled with inadequate capital, weak governance, poor infrastructure and limited access to markets.
In recent years, the cooperative movement has received renewed attention through government programmes such as the Parish Development Model and Emyooga, which promote organised community groups and SACCOs as vehicles for improving access to affordable finance and increasing household incomes.
Leaders in Madi now want the cooperative movement rebuilt around modern agricultural production, collective marketing, value addition, storage and agro-processing.
They argue that a revived and properly managed Madi Cooperative Union could help local farmers move away from selling raw produce individually to traders and instead bulk, process and market their commodities collectively, enabling them to capture a greater share of the value generated from their produce.
https://thecooperator.news/apaa-land-acholi-and-madi-communities-seek-reconciliation/
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