Investment in agriculture key to post-conflict resettlement in Northern Uganda

Conflict-sensitive approaches to investment, especially in agriculture, is key to ensuring peace in Northern Uganda, experts have advised.

This was during a workshop for government officials directly involved in agriculture investment drawn from various government departments by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) in Jinja.

While the war in the region, ended more than a decade ago, the experts argue the much-needed agricultural investment in the region should be done through engaging the local community, respecting their rights including tenure rights, human rights and not undermining food security.

“There is research showing that the cost of doing it wrong can be substantial. Investing responsibly is not only good for the people you are dealing with but it is good for you as an investor,” said Darryl Vhugen, a land tenure investment consultant.

Dr Amina Morghe Hersi, the proprietor of Horyal Investments, which has set up a sugar factory in Atiak sub-county, Amuru District, says any large-scale agricultural investment must come with other developments in the area such as hospitals, technical schools and other amenities to benefit the population.

Skills and opportunity
Because of the war, Dr Hersi, who was discussing her experience of acquiring land for sugar production in the area, says there is a lot of potential both in terms of natural resources like fertile land. There is also an abundance of human resource, which if given the necessary skills and opportunity, can ensure lasting peace.
She noted that agricultural investment in the region is well suited to absorbing the demobilised combatants, improve food security and enhance livelihoods.

“Some of the people near my farm are burning it to hunt. I go and stop them and they tell ask me: What can we do” “Madam,” they say “Don’t come here and disturb our living.”

As a way of getting the community on board, she says the sugar factory allocated farmers, especially women, more than 3,000 acres, kickstart smallholder cane growing.

The farm also provides free extension services and advice on inter-cropping and dairy farming to help the farmers be self-sufficient in food production.

Take notch higher
The other aspect is getting farmers organised to form Savings and Credit Co-operatives (Saccos), which help them save and secure loans at affordable rates.

Christopher Burke, a senior land tenure advisor, who has spent more than a decade working in Northern Uganda, says investors need to go a notch higher by creating employment opportunities within the agriculture sector to absorb the soaring rates of unemployment.

He observed: “What large-scale farms should be doing is to produce surplus that can be sold within Uganda, the region and internationally. It is not a matter of necessarily growing food for the local people, it is moving beyond subsistence agriculture, which for the most part survived during the war years.”