KAMPALA– Yesterday President Yoweri Museveni gave his State of the Nation Address [SONA] 2022 where he explained various issues in the Ugandcan economy; including talking about Emyooga SACCOs, the Parish Development Model [PDM] Uganda’s push for Middle-income status, the discovery of more gold deposits.
Museveni said the PDM’s result would be to tap the production capacity of all the seven million houses in agriculture, relying on the seveni high-value commodities such as coffee, fruits, dairy products, poultry, pigs, fish-farming, and food growing for those of 4 acres and less.
“The ones with land that is more than 4 acres, can, in addition, grow sugar-cane, cotton, maize, tobacco, tea, cassava, bananas, ranching, etc., because the country needs these products for industry, food or as inputs into the intensive agriculture,” he said.
Museveni said activities of intensive agriculture, such as poultry, piggery, fish-farming, dairy farming of the zero-grazing type, provide market for manufacturers of animal feeds, fish-meals, among others, whose inputs he said can be provided by extensive agriculture.
He said in the coming financial years, his government will further boost irrigation. “We are going to intensify the modest efforts we have already started on, in connection with irrigation. With irrigation, we have worked with the private sector to produce solar-powered water pumps that the rich farmers can buy and engage in mini-irrigation, farm by farm,” he said.
Once the solar-powered irrigation pumps are on the market, Museveni said, the government will buy them for some of the co-operatives or farming villages, where one pump can be shared by a number of small farmers.
“We shall continue also developing the mega-irrigation schemes of the Mobuku type. Currently, 150 solar-powered water pumps have been imported. By the end of next year, 687 solar-powered water pumps will have been imported.
He said the private sector is building a factory for producing solar-powered water pumps and panels. “The factory will be ready by the end of the year and it will produce 160,000 pumps per year. At the same time, we are continuing to repair and expand the old irrigation schemes and also build new ones.”
As of now, Museveni said, the following irrigation schemes are ready: Wadelai (Pakwach); Mubuku (Kasese); Ngenge (Kween); Doho (Butaleja); Rwengaaju (Kabarole); Agoro (Kitgum); Olweny (Lira); and Tochi (Oyam). “Acomoi in Bukedea and Ataari in the district of Bulambuli and Lopei in the district of Moroto are being worked on.”
The Ugandan Head of State also warned Ugandans about the resurgence of Covid-19 cases, urging the public to observe Standard Operating Procedures [SOPs], including wearing masks, washing hands using soap, sanitizing, and keeping social distance.
Click below to read Museveni’s full speech.
Museveni’s State of the Nation Address 2022
https://thecooperator.news/museveni-assures-people-of-livestock-compensation/
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