TORORO – Milling facilities established in Tororo district by government to process farmers’ produce into finished products lie unused due to lack of electricity.
Naweyo Farmers’ Group in Sop Sop Subcounty are some of the beneficiaries of the idle value addition facilities.
The idle facilities were discovered as the district leaders, led by the deputy resident district commissioner, Albert Amula, held spot visits to different projects in the district.
The projects are being implemented through the Matching Facility Grant under the Agricultural Cluster Development Programme [ACDP] where government had invested Shs 1.2 billion towards putting up five processing plants in the district.
The team that visited Deliverance Church Sacco Ochegen in Kwapa town council, heard from farmers that the idle processing plants installed by government are not connected to the electricity grid.
Tororo district local government secretary for works and technical services, Molly Cherya said it was unfortunate the processing facilities lie idle, yet they were supposed to help farmers improve their livelihoods.
Cherya however blamed the district technical officers for not helping the farmers to procure multipurpose machines that can use both diesel and electricity.
“It’s unfortunate that the facilities that were meant to transform lives are not yet serving the intended purpose but the blame goes to the technical officers for failing to guide communities on which engines they should have procured,” she said.
She however said the district local government has engaged power distributor UMEME to help connect the facilities.
According to John Obbo Othieno, the district agricultural officer who also doubles as ACDP focal point officer, value addition would help farmers earn more money than selling unprocessed produce that fetches low prices.
He noted some of the crops that were meant for value addition at the now idle plants were cassava, rice, and maize.
Othieno said efforts were underway to connect the idle value addition facilities to the electricity grid.
“We are working with the groups to make sure that the facilities are connected to the power grid and they go into production,” he said.
The deputy resident district commissioner Amula appealed to the communities to grow more crops to meet the demand for the processing facilities once they become operational.
He said the processing capacity of the plants demands a regular supply of raw materials from farmers as they venture into commercial production.
https://thecooperator.news/agro-processing-facilities-lie-idle-in-northern-uganda/
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