Microfinance Support Centre boosts Farm Clinic

The stage is set for farmers in eastern Uganda to continue reaping from the Microfinance Support Centre (MSC) funding when the Seeds of Gold Farm Clinic returns to National Semi Arid Resources & Research Institute, (NASARRI) on December 1.

According to Belinda Atim, the public relations officer of MSC, they have already injected Shs5.7b in Teso Sub region and the Farm Clinic session in Serere District, is a vital platform to enhance their blossoming project.
“When we got an invitation to participate in the Daily Monitor Farm Clinic we could not resist it. The clinics address agriculture value chain which we also adhere to and above all agriculture is our primary objective at MSC,” Atim says.

Why Serere
Because the northern and eastern regions are devastated by climate change, MSC joined the forthcoming Farm Clinic to strengthen the fight, to increase their visibility and funding and also to achieve their main goal of reaching out to those needy active and prospective farmers.
“Financing towards the East has been low despite low interest rate but in August we engaged the district leaders in Teso and we got a lot of feedback,” she adds.
“Because of the harsh weather conditions, many farmers tend to fear to take loans but we have formed a special package for the eastern region at the Farm Clinic. It will help us take forward what we have already started in August,” says Atim.

Mammoth expectations
In Serere, MSC has a Sacco – Ariyo that has more than 2,000 customers – and it is on this basis that they want to build on December 1.
“We have been financing farmers in Serere so we are going back to find out more how we can help them register, learn to save and grow. We provide the least interest rates on agricultural loans – nine per cent. We do this because we understand the nature of crops and the fact that agriculture in not only the backbone of the economy but also the biggest employer of the educated and uneducated,” she explains.

Atim maintains that MSC’s main focus is on the active poor, helping farmers increase production, entice youth form farming groups, be able to employ other youths, which in the long run solves the rampant unemployment in the country.
“In Serere we are going to teach how to register in groups, roles of the members of the group, how should you save, when you’re ready for financing with affordable loans,” she said. The minimum loan amount a farmer group can pick from MSC is Shs5m while the maximum is Sh3bn according to Atim.

MSC has also birthed a ‘common user facility’ project that intends to finance farmers in getting agribusiness equipment like ox-plough, machinery, maize mill, then they pay back gradually and upon completion of the payment the machinery becomes theirs.

Shs20m Farm Clinic boost
“We are supporting the Serere Farm Clinic with Shs20m sponsorship and we intend to stay for a long haul and participate in the upcoming clinics early next year,” says Atim.
This is the last farm clinic outing this year after the successful editions in Mbarara, Hoima, Kabanyolo and Lira.

Seeds of Gold Monitor 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)