ENTEBBE– President Museveni has encouraged Ugandans to embrace government development programmes such as Emyooga and others if they are to get out of poverty.
Museveni made the remarks recently while addressing the nation on the Ebola outbreak and other issues of national importance.
Museveni said his government’s strategy is to get all Ugandans out of poverty. He urged people that commercial agriculture, industry, services, and ICT provide opportunities for growth if they invest in them.
Museveni was impressed by Emyooga programme, saying many Ugandans have joined it and are now engaged in income-generating activities as they create wealth.
Emyooga is a presidential initiative rolled out in 2019 as part of the broad government strategy to lift 68 percent of Ugandans from subsistence to market-oriented production as they create wealth and jobs for themselves.
Museveni said about 4 million Ugandans have joined Emyooga programme, some participating in nonagricultural activities like tailoring, carpentry, metal fabrication, and mechanics.
He added: “Now they were telling me that Emyooga have got savings of Shs 72 billion where each Sacco at the constituency was given Shs 30 mln and each constituency getting more than 500 mln but I want to thank the mobilisers because they have done a good job.”
Museveni said Emyooga would be officially exhibited in the month of November to avail the facts about the performance of the programme since its inception.
Emyooga programme is intended to support groups such as market vendors, welders, boda bodas, restaurant owners, taxi drivers, carpenters, and artists. The support is provided through Emyooga SACCOs.
Museveni said Ugandans should use money provided by Emyooga, Parish Development Model [PDM] and Uganda Development Bank [UDB] to develop themselves.
He said UDB offers small Ugandan businesses a soft loan at about 12 percent.
He said the government under the PDM is committed to sending Shs 100 million to every parish in Uganda so that organised groups can borrow and develop themselves.
“We have given them money totaling to Shs 100mln per parish and next year we shall add another Shs 100mln,” he said. He said in four years, each parish will get Shs 400mln.
Museveni added that the parish development model programme would supplement NAADs and Operation Wealth Creation [OWC] in procuring and distributing inputs and seedlings to the farmers.
Through the PDM, government wants to move 3.5mln households that are still in subsistence farming into the money economy.
Meanwhile, According to the Minister of State for Microfinance and Small Enterprises, Haruna Kasolo Kyeyune, 4,114,200 have joined SACCOs and savings associations.
The minister said some of the Emyooga parish SACCOs that received the revolving seed capital of Shs 30mln have grown it to Shs 300-400mln. He said those who have achieved this milestone no longer go to moneylenders for credit.
Kasolo said they would like to turn the Microfinance Support Centre [MSC] into a People’s Microfinance Development Bank, with each of Emyooga SACCO buying shares in the institution.
Currently, MSC is responsible for the planning, management, budgeting, reporting and accountability of all funds disbursed for Emyooga programme as well as giving the money out to Emyooga SACCO groups.
https://thecooperator.news/amolatar-emyooga-bene%ef%ac%81ciaries-tell-success-stories/
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