NARO research points to local fertiliser that could save Uganda billions in import costs

WAKISO, November 11, 2026 – Uganda could significantly reduce its dependence on imported fertilisers following promising research by the National Agricultural Research Organisation [NARO] into a locally manufactured nitrogen fertiliser that could lower production costs and improve crop yields.

The innovation, known as Nano-Plasma Nitrogen [NPN] fertiliser, has recorded higher maize yields than imported urea in preliminary trials, raising hopes of developing a domestic source of an agricultural input on which Uganda spends millions of dollars annually.

The findings were published in the internationally recognised scientific journal Frontiers in Plant Science on September 10, 2026.

Dr Swidiq Mugerwa, NARO’s Deputy Director General in charge of Research, said the technology uses solar energy, air, water and plant waste to produce a slow-release mineral fertiliser that could offer farmers a more accessible and efficient source of nitrogen.

The development comes amid persistent challenges of declining soil fertility, high agricultural input costs and low crop productivity, which continue to constrain Uganda’s agricultural transformation and food security efforts.

According to figures cited in the research, Uganda imports an estimated 34,779 tonnes of nitrogen fertiliser annually, spending about US$ 34.8 million on such imports in 2024.

The country’s fertiliser consumption also remains significantly below the African Union’s Abuja Declaration target of at least 50 kilogrammes of fertiliser per hectare.

Meeting this target through imports alone could place further pressure on foreign exchange reserves while making agricultural inputs increasingly unaffordable for farmers.

NARO’s research seeks to address this challenge by exploring how locally available resources can be harnessed to manufacture nitrogen fertiliser within Uganda.

According to the peer-reviewed study, maize treated with NPN fertiliser recorded yields approximately 34 percent and 85 percent higher than those obtained using imported urea in the respective experimental comparisons.

The researchers also found that plants absorbed about 83 percent of the nitrogen supplied through the new fertiliser in a screenhouse experiment, pointing to its potential to improve nutrient-use efficiency and minimise fertiliser losses.

However, the findings remain preliminary, as the research was conducted at a single location. Further trials across different agro-ecological zones across the country will be necessary to establish how the fertiliser performs under ordinary farming conditions.

The study was led by Stewart Kyebogola, with researchers from NARO, the University of Nairobi and other institutions contributing to the research.

“Our task now is to move from promising trial results to a fertiliser that farmers can use and afford,” Dr Mugerwa said.

“That means testing it on farmers’ fields while assessing production at a larger scale,” he added.

Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but crops cannot directly use atmospheric nitrogen in its natural form. Conventional fertiliser production involves converting nitrogen into compounds that plants can absorb, often through industrial processes that require substantial amounts of energy and natural gas.

NARO’s technology uses non-thermal plasma, an energised gas that facilitates the conversion of nitrogen from the air into plant-available fertiliser compounds.

Solar energy powers the process, while water helps stabilise the resulting compound. Plant waste is then used as a carrier material to regulate the release of nutrients.

In the published study, banana peels were used as the plant-based material, with the finished fertiliser processed into pellets for application during planting.

The technology is designed to release nitrogen gradually as crops grow, potentially enabling plants to absorb a greater proportion of the nutrients applied.

Conventional fertilisers can lose significant amounts of their nutrients through leaching, volatilisation and other processes before crops absorb them. Such losses reduce the returns farmers obtain from their investment and can contribute to environmental pollution.

A slow-release fertiliser could help minimise these losses by making nutrients available over a longer period. If proven effective and competitively priced, it could also reduce the frequency of fertiliser applications, potentially lowering labour and transport costs for farmers.

The experiments used the same nitrogen application rate across the different fertiliser treatments, with a single application at planting. Further research will be needed to establish appropriate application rates and schedules under varying field conditions.

Beyond improving crop performance, the innovation could support Uganda’s ambitions to develop a domestic fertiliser manufacturing industry and reduce its vulnerability to fluctuations in international markets.

The Nairobi Declaration on African Fertilizer and Soil Health, adopted in 2024, emphasises the need to strengthen domestic fertiliser production and make better use of Africa’s resources to improve farmers’ access to agricultural inputs.

NARO’s research aligns with this ambition by exploring a production model that relies on locally available raw materials rather than depending exclusively on imported inputs and conventional manufacturing processes.

The organisation is now designing and evaluating an industrial-scale production plant to establish whether the technology can be scaled up to manufacture fertiliser reliably and in commercially viable quantities.

However, the availability of air, water and plant waste does not necessarily guarantee that the resulting product will be cheaper than imported alternatives. Equipment, energy requirements, processing, packaging and distribution costs will all determine the final price to farmers.

A comprehensive assessment of production costs, commercial viability and long-term environmental performance will therefore be critical before the technology can be deployed on a large scale.

Dr Nassib Mugwanya, NARO’s Head of Partnerships, said the research could open opportunities for collaboration with private-sector manufacturers.

“This research presents an opportunity for NARO to partner with other industry players involved in fertiliser production to boost the fertiliser sector,” he said.

Such partnerships could support commercial production, technology transfer and the development of compound fertilisers that combine nitrogen with other essential nutrients, including phosphorus.

A locally manufactured fertiliser that delivers consistent results, remains affordable and reduces nutrient losses could improve farmers’ returns on investment, particularly among smallholder farmers who often struggle to access quality agricultural inputs.

Uganda’s continued dependence on imported agricultural inputs remains a challenge to productivity, household incomes and national food security.

Developing a commercially viable local source of nitrogen fertiliser could help reduce this dependence while creating investment opportunities in agricultural technology and manufacturing.

For NARO, the immediate priority is to move from promising experimental findings to a product whose effectiveness, affordability and safety have been established under real farming conditions.

If further trials confirm the initial findings and industrial production proves commercially viable, nano-plasma nitrogen fertiliser could become an important addition to Uganda’s agricultural input options.

For farmers, policymakers and potential investors, the central question is whether the technology can be manufactured at scale, sold at an affordable price and consistently deliver improved results in farmers’ fields.

Its success could help shape Uganda’s future approach to fertiliser security, sustainable crop production and agricultural transformation.

https://thecooperator.news/masindi-kiryandongo-maize-farmers-trained-on-proper-use-of-fertilisers/

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