KAMPALA, UGANDA | President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has strongly defended his government's decision to dissolve the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA), asserting that it has not significantly contributed to coffee development in the country.
In a detailed seven-page response to opposition concerns regarding the rationalization of UCDA, Museveni argued that Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), led by his brother Gen. Salim Saleh and himself, has achieved far more in enhancing coffee productivity and marketability.
He questioned the effectiveness of UCDA and the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS), citing that 68% of households were still outside the monetary economy as of 2013. “OWC has accomplished more than NAADS and UCDA combined,” he stated.
He highlighted specific achievements in the Masaka region, where OWC has distributed over one million coffee seedlings, resulting in the planting of 38,666.6 acres of coffee. OWC has also provided various planting materials, including tea, fruits, and livestock, which has increased the number of households participating in the money economy to 67%.
Museveni criticized claims from UCDA, NAADS, and others that their efforts were solely responsible for improvements in agricultural production. “I initiated the significant dairy production in the cattle corridor, and my initiatives could have reached the Karamoja border if local leaders had been more open to learning,” he said, citing the success of his dairy programs as evidence of effective agricultural development.
The President also addressed what he termed tribalism in the discussions surrounding coffee production, particularly in response to strong opposition from MPs in Buganda who fear that dissolving UCDA will harm coffee production in the region.
He dismissed these concerns as dishonest, emphasizing that the NRM (National Resistance Movement) has made substantial contributions to industrial growth in Buganda, with facilities that directly benefit local communities.
Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga of Buganda Kingdom expressed concerns that the Coffee Amendment Bill appears to target Buganda specifically but encouraged the Baganda and all Ugandans to continue cultivating coffee.
Meanwhile, Parliament has postponed the second reading of the Coffee Bill following a heated session where opposition MPs like Kakuuto County's Geoffrey Lutaaya condemned the government’s amendments as “poisonous.”
