Finance specialists for Farm Clinic

“The 10 Farm Clinic sessions we have held so far have taught us that many farmers are willing to go into agricultural production but perform poorly when it comes to balancing their income and expenditure,” says Elizabeth Namaganda, the Monitor Publications Ltd brand manager.
She adds: “We have lined up expert agribusiness experts from reputable financial institutions to educate the participants how to improve their livelihoods with the money they get from produce.”
Already, National Semi-Arid Resources Research Institute (NASARRI) Director Dr Michael A. Ugen has confirmed the institute’s readiness to host more than 2,000 participants that will have practical and theoretical sessions on the enterprises of: cassava, citrus, groundnuts, cattle, sorghum, greengram, and poultry.

“We expect more than 20 banks and Micro finances to be present at Serere giving out information on agricultural loans and educating farmers on how to utilise them for better benefits. With Microfinance Support Centre and BoU on board, we expect no financial challenge to be left unturned,” Namaganda added.

Among the key issues to be discussed are the challenges that financial institutions face when venturing into agricultural finance, how Uganda’s 80 per cent of the population live in rural areas and work in agricultural enterprises can boost their growth, and eventually improve rural living conditions and the role of government in agricultural development.

High expectations from aBi
“The theme of this year’s farm clinic campaign of climate smart agriculture is in line with our Green Growth Strategy and climate smart interventions that we hope to showcase during the farm clinics. As part of our socially responsible investment agenda, aBi has various mechanisms in place to support agri-businesses with climate smart investments, that are helping them to become resilient to climate change,” says aBi Advocacy and communications manager George Mutagubya.

He adds that some of the climate smart concepts that aBi is currently supporting include: adding value to agricultural waste; irrigation solutions; waste water treatment plants for the dairy sector; solar drying equipment for improving post harvesting handling in the grain and horticulture sectors; energy efficient cooling equipment for the dairy sector; and energy generation using biomass gasification which gives them the reason to look forward to the Serere Farm Clinic.

aBi have gained value for money working with the farm clinic throughout the year and Mutagubya reveals further why they are here to stay.
“Our mission is to promote private sector agribusiness development to enhance wealth creation in Uganda. Therefore, as a champion for agri- business in Uganda the farm clinics have for the past two years provided aBi with a platform to reach out to all the agribusiness stakeholders through information dissemination, training and capacity building, influencing policy for agribusiness development and bridging the gap between farmers and agribusiness private sector actors.”

aBi extends both technical and financial support to agribusiness actors for improved efficiency, effectiveness and competitiveness and supports market driven enterprises using a value chain development approach for selected agricultural commodities namely; coffee, cereals, oil seeds, dairy, horticulture and pulses.

Seeds of Gold Farm Clinic, Serere
Enterprises:
Cassava, citrus, groundnuts, cattle, sorghum, greengram, poultry
Topics:
Post-harvest handling, value addition, Sustainable Land Management (SLM), Agribusiness Aspect and Economics
Venue:
National semi arid resources & research institute Serere (NASARRI)
Free: Breakfast & Lunch
Sponsors: The Micro Finance Support Centre Ltd, BOU, aBi & NTV