Monitor farm clinic to explore lucrative more enterprises
What you need to know:
- Next month’s clinic will have trainers that are mainly experienced farmers and technocrats from government institutions; and they will share their personal experience with participants,
DENIS BBOSA writes.
After the successful Monitor Farm Clinic edition at Mbarara Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute in May, organizers have spiced up next month’s meet at Kabanyoro, Gayaza with more enterprises to suit the participants.
According to MPL marketing manager, Sarah Nalule, they have been encouraged by the feedback from the Mbarara clinic to include coffee to the banana, passion fruit, dairy, chilli and beans enterprises in the upcoming clinic. “The Central clinic at Kabanyoro will centre on climate change and how the over 1,000 participants we expect can benefit from farming of the five products,” Nalule revealed.
In the last edition, participants were introduced to the concept of improved seed varieties of beans, cassava, maize, sorghum and cotton and the use of organic fertilisers.
“The primary objective of the three clinics we intend to hold this year (Mbarara, Kabanyoro and Eastern Uganda) is to help readers to attain practical skills for agriculture,” she added. The Monitor Farm Clinic started in 2012 running once every year on pivotal areas such as piggery, fishery and dairy.
Many success stories have been registered over time and Nalule believes the Kabanyoro clinic will be the game changer.
“Participants have extended their farms, built linkages with their trainers and farmers are now focusing on areas of value chain,” Nalule added.
Next month’s clinic will have trainers that are mainly experienced farmers and technocrats from government institutions; and they will share their personal experience with participants. Already, two companies; Heifer International and Agricultural Business Initiative (aBi) have confirmed their partnership with the Monitor Farm Clinic.
That is not all that is in store for farmers according to Nalule there is a scheduled farming symposium in October that will deliberate on climate change, disseminate farming information and offer platform to farmers to share experiences on the changing weather patterns.
