Welcome

Message From Chair Person:

“Development of the agricultural sector is key for poverty reduction, economic growth and social transformation...

Strategic Objectives
a. To build the capacity of SSFs to advocate for an environment that is responsive to their needs.
b. Empowering the SSF with knowledge and techniques of influencing decision affecting their rights
c. Strengthening ESSAFF –Uganda as an Advocacy Movement

Strategic Approach
» Research
» Advocacy
» Training
» Net working

Leadership and Contacts

ESAFF Uganda has its Board which is led by the chairperson Mr. Hakim Baliraine from Mayuge District. The vice chairperson is Ms. Beatrice Twayaga from Kabale District and the treasurer is Harriet Mulumba of Mityana.

Other members are Beatrice Katsigazi of Mubende District, Richard Katalya from Kamuli, Irene Nakijoba of Mukono District and Rose Nankya from Masaka District.

E- mail to ESAFF Uganda  esaffuganda@yahoo.com or esaffuganda@esaff.org

ESAFF Uganda Coordinator
Nancy Mugimba Email -  nancymugimba@yahoo.co.uk

Membership

ESAFF Uganda is made of more than seventy (70) farmer groups scattered throughout the country of Uganda. These are both men and women

Farming in Uganda

• Problems faced by farmers in Uganda.

• The farmers in Uganda depend on rain fed agriculture hence are affected by changes in climate among many others.

1. Access to markets is still a challenge. This is because export markets require certification which is so far expensive.
2. Limited access to credit facilities hence limited investment in modern agriculture.
3. Climate change and its effects. The farmers are confused by the changes in the seasons and weather patterns.
4. Poor infrastructure for example roads which make transportation of produce to local markets expensive for the farmers.
5. Fluctuating fuel prices bring about increase in prices of farm inputs.
6. Lack of post harvest handling techniques.
7. Land wrangles and insecurities resulting from land wrangles.
8. Rural-urban migration leading to loss of potential youth labour.
9. Infiltration of genetically modified seeds threatening the existence of indigenous seeds.
10. Poor rain water harvesting techniques and technologies.

Advocacy activities
Community Action Planning (CAPS) as vehicle for advocacy and lobbying.
The East and Southern Africa Small scale Farmers Forum (ESAFF Uganda) is a farmer-led movement formed to facilitate processes through which smallholder farmers’ development concerns could be solicited, articulated and ultimately addressed through local and national policies and programmes. ESAFF works to enhance processes through capacity building, exchange of information, research and documentation. It is envisaged that with consistent support to and influence the development of a favorable environment for Small Scale Farmers will be created.

Community Action Planning (CAPS) is a strategy started by ESAFF Uganda based on the fact that the government endorsed the decentralization policy with the aim of empowering grass root people to make decisions. The program started March 2008 in Mubende district with the aim of promoting participatory planning and budgeting. It involves members of the community identifying their problems and providing solutions to these problems.

As facilitators, we organized a training of trainer for the CAPs during which the community members would identify community problems, rank them and also identify solutions to the prioritized problem. Action planning was drawn and the community (trainers) took responsibility to make efforts towards the desired changes. It is at this point that the community member also identified the leaders and policy makers responsible and necessary for the changes they most wanted. They learnt that they had to take action in attending village meetings and budget conferences as to effect policy changes to their preferences.

Trained trainers therefore started to train farmer groups what they had learnt after which CAPs were formulate and presented from the village to sub county level.

Challenges

􀂾 Communities are used to receiving “handouts”, so they came with big expectations which were not met.

􀂾 Lack of transparency among local leaders to mobilize the communities not realizing that they would select participants they know.

􀂾 Introducing and explaining all the CAPS tools to the local communities was difficult, we had to go through the tools several times.

Lessons Learnt

1. Community Action Planning (CAPS) create ownership for the sustainability of the project.
2. Farmers are capable of speaking from themselves given the right information.
3. It is possible to bridge the gap between leaders and farmers.
4. It was also noted that involving communities in the development of the project stimulates the communities into realizing problems that they had ignored before.

Development Partners
In order for ESAFF Uganda to carry on its activities it depend on resources from various sources. These sources include membership fees and volunteerism from members to carry out activities of ESAFF Uganda. Other sources are development partners mainly VECO Uganda, Oxfam GB and Oxfam Novib.