ENTEBBE, November 25, 2025 – The National Agricultural Research Organisation [ NARO ] and the Rural Initiatives for Poverty Alleviation [RIPA] have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration aimed at enabling agricultural cooperatives and individual farmers to access high-quality agricultural inputs.
The partnership, signed recently at NARO headquarters in Entebbe by the NARO Director General, Dr Yona Baguma, and the RIPA Executive Vice Chairman, Tumusiime Vincent Bamugaya, focuses on leveraging NARO’s expertise in agricultural research and technology development alongside RIPA’s grassroots networks to empower rural communities in the districts of Rubirizi, Sheema, Bushenyi and Kasese, all in western Uganda.
RIPA, a social enterprise based in Rubirizi, works to alleviate poverty by equipping smallholder farmers with environmentally friendly and economically viable farming practices.
Speaking at the signing of the MoU, Baguma emphasised the need for tailored agricultural models to address the unique challenges in the target districts, where the average landholding is just 0.8 acres.
“NARO will provide cutting-edge technologies, including seeds for proven crop varieties, improved livestock breeding options, tailor-made training programmes, digital farmer solutions and agro-engineering innovations to support RIPA’s ongoing projects,” he said.
He commended RIPA’s flagship Animal Bank Programme, which features zero-grazing dairy cattle and goat-rearing schemes, noting that it has already begun to uplift rural livelihoods through the distribution of in-calf heifers and goats.
Dr Baguma pledged that technologies and innovations from the National Livestock Resources Research Institute [NaLIRRI] would be transferred to farmers in the region through RIPA’s structures.
Bamugaya noted that RIPA operates a 12-acre model farm in Rubirizi, where farmers from other areas receive hands-on training in smart agriculture, value addition and business development. RIPA also plans to expand into poultry farming, aquaculture, maize, beans, vegetables, bananas, coffee, Hass avocado, apiary and bamboo cultivation.
In addition, RIPA aims to establish a research and education centre for modern agribusiness and to leverage Rubirizi’s 36 crater lakes to support fisheries and aquaculture.
“This partnership strengthens our efforts to create sustainable livelihoods for smallholder farmers. RIPA’s programmes align with Uganda’s third National Development Plan and Vision 2040, both of which prioritise industrialisation and economic transformation for the country,” Bamugaya said.
NARO operates through 16 agricultural research institutes countrywide, placing it at the forefront of driving sustainable agricultural transformation in Uganda.
https://thecooperator.news/farmers-advised-to-plant-quality-seeds-in-new-planting-season/
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