How Museveni's sectarian diary development scheme is behind the land
grabbing
For the last 31 years Uganda's military dictator has systematically been executing a scheme of deliberately impoverishing Ugandans as a way of subduing them into submission to his life presidency. When he took over power 31 years ago, he found a vibrant farmers' cooperative movement that had been established in the 1960s by the first UPC government. Due to their highly democratic and locally autonomous nature cooperatives had a strong role in reducing poverty and social exclusion, and promoting rural and national development. Alongside the cooperative societies, there was the Cooperative Bank. When Museveni came to power he moved to destroy whatever had been initiated by the UPC government including the cooperative movement. First, he destroyed the Cooperative Bank as a result of deliberate government interference, inside lending and failure by the central bank in its supervisory role and it died in 1998.
For the last 31 years Uganda's military dictator has systematically been executing a scheme of deliberately impoverishing Ugandans as a way of subduing them into submission to his life presidency. When he took over power 31 years ago, he found a vibrant farmers' cooperative movement that had been established in the 1960s by the first UPC government. Due to their highly democratic and locally autonomous nature cooperatives had a strong role in reducing poverty and social exclusion, and promoting rural and national development. Alongside the cooperative societies, there was the Cooperative Bank. When Museveni came to power he moved to destroy whatever had been initiated by the UPC government including the cooperative movement. First, he destroyed the Cooperative Bank as a result of deliberate government interference, inside lending and failure by the central bank in its supervisory role and it died in 1998.
The collapse of the Cooperative Bank meant that cooperative
societies could no longer access low cost loans in form of crop finance
to continue purchasing maize, coffee, cotton and others from the
farmers. Masaka Union has set up a plant to process pineapple juice
closed in 1989 before Ministry officials sold off its properties. Busoga
Cooperative Union owned commercial and residential properties in Jinja
town that were later sold to individuals, a coffee processing plant in
Namulesa and a cotton ginnery in Kaliro that were sold to 'investors'.
Its only the silos at Masese that remained. The other cooperative
unions like East Mengo, Acholi, Nyakatonzi, UCTU Bunyoro Growers,
Banyankole Kweterana Cooperative Unions and their umbrella organization,
Uganda Cooperative Alliance suffered the same fate. The farmers were
left helpless in bargaining good prices for their produce but were
instead left at the mercy of unscrupulous produce buyers. Consequently,
the collapse of the rural economy led to increased poverty levels in the
countryside that led to rural-urban migration in search of unavailable
jobs.
The haphazard privatisation of state owned enterprises that supported production and marketing coupled by the elimination of civil servants who provided extension services resulted in income inequality and an increase in poverty. NYTIL, Lint Marketing Board, Coffee Marketing Board, Uganda Transport Cooperative Alliance, Cooperative Bank, Uganda Commercial Bank, government Stock Farms, and others are such examples. Under the cover of reforming the Agricultural sector, the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) was established by an Act of Parliament in 2001. Over the years, poverty and food insecurity ensued. For the last two decades now, Museveni has been pretending to fight household poverty through a number of fake intervention measures.
First was the Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA) - a holistic strategic framework for eradicating poverty through a multi-sectoral interventions to enable people improve their livelihoods. It came as a central element of Uganda's poverty eradication strategy - a key to enabling the rural population to improve their livelihood and ensure food security through changing subsistence agriculture to doing farming as a business. Increasing agricultural output in itself was not be enough but lack of value addition hampered access to regional and international markets. Eventually, NAADS and PMA proved ineffective as unscrupulous middlemen exploited farmers who lost interest in crop husbandry. In 2009 the Minister of Trade announced that is was in the final stages of reviving the Cooperative Bank, purchase tractors and lorries for cooperative union members. Nothing was done and in 2016 the current Minister of Trade while commissioning an 80M shilling office block for Kyankwanzi Saving and Credit Cooperative Society, promised to the Cooperative Bank. She further promised that the government would first pay off the 13b shilling debt it owed to the ten cooperative unions.
As all the above manoeuvres were ongoing, Museveni was busy executing his long-term scheme of economically empowering his preferred pastoralist community at the expense of other Ugandans. He has repeatedly stated that since his school days in the late 1960s, he has been struggling for the economic empowerment of 'his people' – the pastrolists communities in the cattle corridor region of south western Uganda. He wanted them to acquire land and abandon nomadic way of life. During his Bush War, he evacuated the pastrolists communities from the war zone to safety. In late 1985 when the western region was under the control of his rebel NRA, he sent Kahinda Otafiire to Rwanda to procure animal drugs for the pastrolists communities as if that was the only item that general population lacked. Immediately after taking over power, he gave free land from Lake Mburo National Park and state and private ranches to these pastrolists communities plus cows bought from Tanzania. He established a special fund under State House to cater for he formal education needs of these communities. Over the years, juicy positions in lucrative government departments and agencies were preserved for the dominance of the same ethnic community. Consequently, they came to acquire the financial muscle that has transformed their economic wellbeing. It is against this background that in September 2014, Museveni told women leaders in Mbale that his successful strategy had eradicated poverty in Nyabushozi county and the neighboring areas. Note: This website analysed that assertion in a piece titled; IS
NYABUSHOZI A POVERTY ERADICATION ROLE MODEL?
That economic empowerment led to increased appetite for more land outside Ankole. It has become fashionable for the Ankole pastrolists communities to acquire land in the Buganda areas of Mpigi, Kiboga, Luwero, Nakasongola, Mubende, Kayunga, Mukono, Masaka, Rakai, and Ssembabule. Tooro's Kyaka and Kyenjojo have also been targeted. In Bunyoro, areas of Buliisa, Masindi and Kiryandongo have been the target. Most recent reports indicate that they have crossed the Nile River to Northern Uganda and West Nile in search of more grazing land. Museveni has systematically made it easier for their spread by fragmentation of the original district units so as to diffuse any form of united resistance to the newcomers. Further, by appointing in advance district heads of departments like RDC, CAO, DISO, DPC, Forestry and Land Officers makes it easy to suppress the indigenous people's discontent in favour of the newcomers.
Elsewhere, when he took over power in 1986 northern and north eastern Uganda has vast cattle populations. Teso region in particular had an estimated 3M cows and the country's only meat processing plant with a capacity of 2,000 cows per day. To ensure constant supply the UPC I government had also set up a number of government ranches around Lake Kyoga. Museveni's NRA depleted the region of its cattle in the late 1980s. The then Brigade Commander, Matayo Kyaligonza would openly load stolen cattle on trailers and ferry them away to his farm in Hoima. The meat processing plant was completely vandalised and looted.
The haphazard privatisation of state owned enterprises that supported production and marketing coupled by the elimination of civil servants who provided extension services resulted in income inequality and an increase in poverty. NYTIL, Lint Marketing Board, Coffee Marketing Board, Uganda Transport Cooperative Alliance, Cooperative Bank, Uganda Commercial Bank, government Stock Farms, and others are such examples. Under the cover of reforming the Agricultural sector, the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) was established by an Act of Parliament in 2001. Over the years, poverty and food insecurity ensued. For the last two decades now, Museveni has been pretending to fight household poverty through a number of fake intervention measures.
First was the Plan for Modernisation of Agriculture (PMA) - a holistic strategic framework for eradicating poverty through a multi-sectoral interventions to enable people improve their livelihoods. It came as a central element of Uganda's poverty eradication strategy - a key to enabling the rural population to improve their livelihood and ensure food security through changing subsistence agriculture to doing farming as a business. Increasing agricultural output in itself was not be enough but lack of value addition hampered access to regional and international markets. Eventually, NAADS and PMA proved ineffective as unscrupulous middlemen exploited farmers who lost interest in crop husbandry. In 2009 the Minister of Trade announced that is was in the final stages of reviving the Cooperative Bank, purchase tractors and lorries for cooperative union members. Nothing was done and in 2016 the current Minister of Trade while commissioning an 80M shilling office block for Kyankwanzi Saving and Credit Cooperative Society, promised to the Cooperative Bank. She further promised that the government would first pay off the 13b shilling debt it owed to the ten cooperative unions.
As all the above manoeuvres were ongoing, Museveni was busy executing his long-term scheme of economically empowering his preferred pastoralist community at the expense of other Ugandans. He has repeatedly stated that since his school days in the late 1960s, he has been struggling for the economic empowerment of 'his people' – the pastrolists communities in the cattle corridor region of south western Uganda. He wanted them to acquire land and abandon nomadic way of life. During his Bush War, he evacuated the pastrolists communities from the war zone to safety. In late 1985 when the western region was under the control of his rebel NRA, he sent Kahinda Otafiire to Rwanda to procure animal drugs for the pastrolists communities as if that was the only item that general population lacked. Immediately after taking over power, he gave free land from Lake Mburo National Park and state and private ranches to these pastrolists communities plus cows bought from Tanzania. He established a special fund under State House to cater for he formal education needs of these communities. Over the years, juicy positions in lucrative government departments and agencies were preserved for the dominance of the same ethnic community. Consequently, they came to acquire the financial muscle that has transformed their economic wellbeing. It is against this background that in September 2014, Museveni told women leaders in Mbale that his successful strategy had eradicated poverty in Nyabushozi county and the neighboring areas. Note: This website analysed that assertion in a piece titled; IS
NYABUSHOZI A POVERTY ERADICATION ROLE MODEL?
That economic empowerment led to increased appetite for more land outside Ankole. It has become fashionable for the Ankole pastrolists communities to acquire land in the Buganda areas of Mpigi, Kiboga, Luwero, Nakasongola, Mubende, Kayunga, Mukono, Masaka, Rakai, and Ssembabule. Tooro's Kyaka and Kyenjojo have also been targeted. In Bunyoro, areas of Buliisa, Masindi and Kiryandongo have been the target. Most recent reports indicate that they have crossed the Nile River to Northern Uganda and West Nile in search of more grazing land. Museveni has systematically made it easier for their spread by fragmentation of the original district units so as to diffuse any form of united resistance to the newcomers. Further, by appointing in advance district heads of departments like RDC, CAO, DISO, DPC, Forestry and Land Officers makes it easy to suppress the indigenous people's discontent in favour of the newcomers.
Elsewhere, when he took over power in 1986 northern and north eastern Uganda has vast cattle populations. Teso region in particular had an estimated 3M cows and the country's only meat processing plant with a capacity of 2,000 cows per day. To ensure constant supply the UPC I government had also set up a number of government ranches around Lake Kyoga. Museveni's NRA depleted the region of its cattle in the late 1980s. The then Brigade Commander, Matayo Kyaligonza would openly load stolen cattle on trailers and ferry them away to his farm in Hoima. The meat processing plant was completely vandalised and looted.
The NRA also failed to stop the Karamojong from rustling cattle
to as far as Tororo, Apach and Pakwach thus the regions lost their cattle
populations. The two decades of the LRA insurgency also indirectly contributed
to depleting the regions of the residual cattle populations. Since
the end of the insurgency a decade ago, Museveni has been haphazardly
initiating sugar coated restocking programmes. It has become a political
slogan whenever there is an election season. The state has lost a lot of
money and resources in this direction without tangible results. In some
instances, the Ankole cattle supplied to these areas at inflated costs
could not cope with the change in climate and were a source of cattle
disease.
In 1993 Museveni initiated the Diary Master Plan that culminated into the Diary Industry Act of 1998. Under the Act a Diary Development Authority (DDA) was established and operationalized in 2000. With a head office in Kampala, a regional office in Mbarara and an Analytical Laboratory at UMA Show Ground, DDA's mission statement goes as follows; "To provide for diary development and regulatory success that will ensure increased production and consumption of milk, sustainable and profitable diary industrial sector that will contribute to development and international standards in Uganda." It liberalised the diary sector, created a Diary Board and restructured the Diary Corporation into a commercial company. Since then DDA has rolled out programmes aimed at uplifting the standard of diary farming in Ankole.
It has attracted development partners like SNV – Netherland Development organisation which through The Inclusive Diary Enterprise (TIDE) has penetrated farmers’ communities with various innovations and packages designed to improve diary breed and genetic gain. Improved livestock nutrition (pasture and fodder cultivation), water and marketing of safe milk and milk products. It established Practical a € 9.48M Diary Training Farms (PDTF) innovation services to give farmers in S.W Uganda knowledge in diary breedings and genetic gain, pasture and fodder preservation and animal health. TIDE is supposed to run from 2015 - 2019 and is implemented in the districts of Mbarara, Kiruhura, Bushenyi, Shema, Isingiro and Ntungamo.
In 1993 Museveni initiated the Diary Master Plan that culminated into the Diary Industry Act of 1998. Under the Act a Diary Development Authority (DDA) was established and operationalized in 2000. With a head office in Kampala, a regional office in Mbarara and an Analytical Laboratory at UMA Show Ground, DDA's mission statement goes as follows; "To provide for diary development and regulatory success that will ensure increased production and consumption of milk, sustainable and profitable diary industrial sector that will contribute to development and international standards in Uganda." It liberalised the diary sector, created a Diary Board and restructured the Diary Corporation into a commercial company. Since then DDA has rolled out programmes aimed at uplifting the standard of diary farming in Ankole.
It has attracted development partners like SNV – Netherland Development organisation which through The Inclusive Diary Enterprise (TIDE) has penetrated farmers’ communities with various innovations and packages designed to improve diary breed and genetic gain. Improved livestock nutrition (pasture and fodder cultivation), water and marketing of safe milk and milk products. It established Practical a € 9.48M Diary Training Farms (PDTF) innovation services to give farmers in S.W Uganda knowledge in diary breedings and genetic gain, pasture and fodder preservation and animal health. TIDE is supposed to run from 2015 - 2019 and is implemented in the districts of Mbarara, Kiruhura, Bushenyi, Shema, Isingiro and Ntungamo.
Funded by the Kingdom of the Netherland, TIDE aims at improving
household incomes, house nutrition and creation of job opportunities
through a Climate Smart Agricultural approach. It supports individual
farmers and cooperatives in acquisition of tractors and tractor
implements for pasture cultivation and preservation, fixed and mobile
spray races for tick control, milk parlours, dam liners for water
production, and fencing. It gives training in cooperative governance,
financial management and business and development services.
Under the SNV School Milk Programme, 65,000 pupils from 150 primary schools in that region are taking milk. The programme is implemented in partnership with DDA, Ministries of Education and Health. In December 2016, the Minister of Education, Mrs. Museveni, advised parents in Uganda to buy food flasks for packing hot lunch for school children. She further argued thus; "Someone who has given birth or is still gibing birth and says he can not pack lunch for children is useless."
Under the SNV School Milk Programme, 65,000 pupils from 150 primary schools in that region are taking milk. The programme is implemented in partnership with DDA, Ministries of Education and Health. In December 2016, the Minister of Education, Mrs. Museveni, advised parents in Uganda to buy food flasks for packing hot lunch for school children. She further argued thus; "Someone who has given birth or is still gibing birth and says he can not pack lunch for children is useless."
During the last election campaigns, Museveni directed the Prime Minister
to ensure that a budgetary provision of 18M for the procurement of
handheld hoes for distribution to six million households. A few months
later, the same Museveni was handing over brand new tractors to diary
farmers in the S.W Uganda districts of Mbarara, Kiruhura, Mitooma,
Sheena, Ibanda, Ntungamo, Lyantonde, Isingiro, and Ssembabule. The
tractors were to harness production of milk in those so-called Cattle
Corridor districts. During the same occasion, Museveni told them thus;
"I have given you the tractors free of charge but you must pay
something for their maintenance."
By end of 2016, total investment in milk processing amounted to US $80M (288b Ug shillings). DDA put the value of marked milk at US $ 700M (2.5 trillion shillings) by end of 2016 having increased from US $ 500M at end of 2015 owing to value addition investment in processing. Some 18,506 farmers founded Crane Creameries Cooperative Union (CCCU) targeting collection centres to sell milk collectively to processors in Mbarara and are in the process of setting up their own facility which will have its own brand of product. The following milk processing facilities have been established in the region:
1. Fresh Diary Ltd - 49% shares owned by government. Though based in Kampala, it purchases 560,000 litres per day from the cattle corridor.
2. Pearl Diary Farm Ltd - purchases 500,000 litres of milk daily.
3. Amos Diaries Ltd - owned by Museveni buys 400,000 litres of milk daily. In 2016 it received a financial boost from VOXTRA fund of Norway for powdered products for export to Asian Market.
4. VTD Timosi Diaries Ltd owned by Museveni's son-in-law, Odrek Rwabwogo - buys 50,000 litres of milk per day. It produces and distributes the Milkman brand introduced in November 2016 using a boost of US $ 13M from the Israel based Vital Capital Fund.
5. JESA Farm Diary Ltd owned by the late Mulwana is found in the central region and utilises 100,000 litres of milk per day.
6. Dembe Distributors for Snowman Ice Cream.
7. Mega Milk
8. Brookside Diary Ug,
These companies buy a total of 1.4 litres of milk daily. 1.4b litres of milk is sold on the local market annually and only 30% is processed. These products are everywhere in supermarkets, retail shops and airlines that leave Uganda. The export market value is expected to increase to US $ 80M from the current $60M - attributed to the youth involvement in commercial diary production. With such huge household incomes coupled by the grabs from the different public offices held by different family members is what prompts Museveni to say that
Nyabushozi is a poverty eradication role model.
In May 2017 Heifer Uganda launched a pilot-testing diary micro-leasing model in Omoro and Gulu districts. Heifer International with funding from Japan International Cooperation Foundation is giving out exotic cattle to the people of northern Uganda. If successful, the program is expected to be extended to other neighboring districts. It aims at transforming the lives of 300 small holder farmers. The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ambassador Julius Onen supported it. Interestingly, the Minister of State for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Joy Kabatsi vehemently argued that Gulu was not conducive for exotic cattle. She remarked; "This is great news to me, but as a Minister I don't think that northern Uganda's weather is good for exotic cows, have you dine enough study to find out where the water is going to come from." Yet, Dr. Tinny Kidega a Veterinary Doctor and MD of Gulu Uganda Country Diary Farm (GUCD) owns a twenty heifer diary farm (pictured) located 10km north of Gulu town that produces 300 litres of milk daily. It is a model diary farm with a research and training facility. It was voted the best farm in 2015 in a competition sponsored by KLM, Vision Group, Dutch Embassy, and DFCU Bank. During the same year, it received the Platinum National Award for best milk by DDA. Therefore, Minister Kabatsi's doubts were meant to discourage the people of northern Uganda from venturing into diary farming because that way they would find value in their land hence resist land grabbing.
During the recent state of the nation address, Museveni dwelt a lot on diary farming and declared plans to recapitalize Uganda Development Bank so that such farmers could access loans. He emphasized that in the USA only 2% of the population is involved in farming. This website analyzed that address under the tittle; MUSEVENI'S STATE OF THE CATTLE
ADDRESS.
Therefore, Museveni is bent on promoting the land grabbing by 'his' pastoralist communities for the establishment and domination of commercial diary farming. Forget about the cows from NAADS and the long-awaited restocking of West Nile, Teso and northern Uganda. Forget about the revival of Cooperative Unions because those who deserve them, already have them and very soon UDB will be funding them to buy 'useless' land from you.
INFORMATION IS POWER AND DEFIANCE IS THE WAY TO GO
By end of 2016, total investment in milk processing amounted to US $80M (288b Ug shillings). DDA put the value of marked milk at US $ 700M (2.5 trillion shillings) by end of 2016 having increased from US $ 500M at end of 2015 owing to value addition investment in processing. Some 18,506 farmers founded Crane Creameries Cooperative Union (CCCU) targeting collection centres to sell milk collectively to processors in Mbarara and are in the process of setting up their own facility which will have its own brand of product. The following milk processing facilities have been established in the region:
1. Fresh Diary Ltd - 49% shares owned by government. Though based in Kampala, it purchases 560,000 litres per day from the cattle corridor.
2. Pearl Diary Farm Ltd - purchases 500,000 litres of milk daily.
3. Amos Diaries Ltd - owned by Museveni buys 400,000 litres of milk daily. In 2016 it received a financial boost from VOXTRA fund of Norway for powdered products for export to Asian Market.
4. VTD Timosi Diaries Ltd owned by Museveni's son-in-law, Odrek Rwabwogo - buys 50,000 litres of milk per day. It produces and distributes the Milkman brand introduced in November 2016 using a boost of US $ 13M from the Israel based Vital Capital Fund.
5. JESA Farm Diary Ltd owned by the late Mulwana is found in the central region and utilises 100,000 litres of milk per day.
6. Dembe Distributors for Snowman Ice Cream.
7. Mega Milk
8. Brookside Diary Ug,
These companies buy a total of 1.4 litres of milk daily. 1.4b litres of milk is sold on the local market annually and only 30% is processed. These products are everywhere in supermarkets, retail shops and airlines that leave Uganda. The export market value is expected to increase to US $ 80M from the current $60M - attributed to the youth involvement in commercial diary production. With such huge household incomes coupled by the grabs from the different public offices held by different family members is what prompts Museveni to say that
Nyabushozi is a poverty eradication role model.
In May 2017 Heifer Uganda launched a pilot-testing diary micro-leasing model in Omoro and Gulu districts. Heifer International with funding from Japan International Cooperation Foundation is giving out exotic cattle to the people of northern Uganda. If successful, the program is expected to be extended to other neighboring districts. It aims at transforming the lives of 300 small holder farmers. The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ambassador Julius Onen supported it. Interestingly, the Minister of State for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Joy Kabatsi vehemently argued that Gulu was not conducive for exotic cattle. She remarked; "This is great news to me, but as a Minister I don't think that northern Uganda's weather is good for exotic cows, have you dine enough study to find out where the water is going to come from." Yet, Dr. Tinny Kidega a Veterinary Doctor and MD of Gulu Uganda Country Diary Farm (GUCD) owns a twenty heifer diary farm (pictured) located 10km north of Gulu town that produces 300 litres of milk daily. It is a model diary farm with a research and training facility. It was voted the best farm in 2015 in a competition sponsored by KLM, Vision Group, Dutch Embassy, and DFCU Bank. During the same year, it received the Platinum National Award for best milk by DDA. Therefore, Minister Kabatsi's doubts were meant to discourage the people of northern Uganda from venturing into diary farming because that way they would find value in their land hence resist land grabbing.
During the recent state of the nation address, Museveni dwelt a lot on diary farming and declared plans to recapitalize Uganda Development Bank so that such farmers could access loans. He emphasized that in the USA only 2% of the population is involved in farming. This website analyzed that address under the tittle; MUSEVENI'S STATE OF THE CATTLE
ADDRESS.
Therefore, Museveni is bent on promoting the land grabbing by 'his' pastoralist communities for the establishment and domination of commercial diary farming. Forget about the cows from NAADS and the long-awaited restocking of West Nile, Teso and northern Uganda. Forget about the revival of Cooperative Unions because those who deserve them, already have them and very soon UDB will be funding them to buy 'useless' land from you.
INFORMATION IS POWER AND DEFIANCE IS THE WAY TO GO
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