KAMPALA: Farmers and consumers in Uganda are set to see an increase in production and quality of locally produced vegetable varieties. The Government of Uganda with support from the Government of the Republic of Korea through the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) have launched a nine-year project to develop new varieties of vegetables, strengthen seed certification capacity and improve technical skills of vegetable farmers.
The project to be implemented through KOICA, is dubbed Uganda Seed Value Chain Capacity Building for Key Vegetable Crops (VegeSeed Project) focuses on improving the national seed system to increase accessibility of high-quality, affordable certified seed to farmers who account for over 70% of Uganda’s population.
H.E. Park Sung-soo The Korean Ambassador To Uganda ( in the middle) Along Side Other NARO Directors At The Launch
The Minister of State for Agriculture – Hon. Fred Bwino Kyakulaga while representing the Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries to launch the project applauded the Republic of Korea for its investment in the horticulture sub-sector which provides income and nutrition for households and plays a key role in the national economy. “This cooperation provides a timely and important opportunity to jointly address challenges that have bedeviled the subsector for a long time,” he noted.
Hon. Kyakulaga further shared that horticulture presents a profitable enterprise model to be scaled up and scaled out even in the on-going government programs like the Parish Development Model. “The government of Uganda prioritized horticulture as an important commodity to increase household incomes, food and nutritional security” he said.
From L-R: Ray Choo The Vege Seed Project Manager, Deus Muhwezi (Director Agriculture Extension Services) Minister Fred Bwiino Kyakulaga, Dr Ambrose Agona (Director General NARO, Dr Asea Godrefy (Director NaCRI) At The Launch- PHOTO BY PAUL
The Ambassador of the Republic of Korea – H.E Park Sung-soo in his remarks during the launch revealed that Korea has committed up to 8(eight) million US Dollars towards the implementation of the project as part of their commitment to support Uganda towards money economy, aligning with the third National Development Plan (NDP III) and Vision 2040. To address the agricultural productivity challenge in Uganda, this project leverages Korea’s comparative advantage in agricultural cooperation by sharing the knowledge and experience of Korea’s seed development and certification.
“Having undergone similar challenges and development process like Uganda, through the VegeSeed project, we seek to share Korea’s know-how to support Uganda to improve its seed system to reach international standard and develop vegetable seed varieties most suitable for the country’s environment” Ambassador Park stated. He further emphasized that Uganda and Korea have begun a new chapter in the history of vegetable seed breeding which will contribute to having Ugandan-produced vegetable seed for now and the future.
Some of The Agricultural Products Exhibited At The Launch
H.E. Park Sung-soo also appreciated the high development potential that Uganda has as well as the effort that the government is making for socioeconomic transformation, and added the willingness that Korea has to be sustainable, mutually-benefitting partners with Uganda. “It is my sincerest hope and belief that through this project, we will enjoy mutual development as well as a strengthened partnership between the Republic of Korea and Uganda” he said.
The VegeSeed Project will contribute to laying the foundation for the mid-to-long-term development of new vegetable varieties in Uganda, strengthening the seed certification system and disseminating certified seeds for five (5) vegetable crops; Nakati, Tomato, Onion, Cabbage and Chili pepper. This goal will be achieved through three main outputs: establishment of infrastructure for vegetable breeding and certification, and empowerment of human resource capacity; establishment of infrastructure for certified vegetable seed production and building of farmers’ capacity; and improvement of distribution, dissemination, and farmers’ awareness of certified seeds.
The implementing institutions include the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) as the lead implementing partner, and will support various members involved in seed system Value chain including National Seed Certification Services (NSCS) under Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF).
The Director General NARO – Dr. Ambrose Agona while addressing participants echoed NARO’s commitment to strengthening horticultural research to address formidable challenges in the subsector with a view in future to increase capacity and upgrade horticultural research program to a stand-alone institute.
“Therefore, capacity building and increasing partnership in the subsector will be key to leverage germplasm, technologies and new research tools to accelerate the rate of development of horticultural research products including varieties and their deployment for import substitution,” he said
The VegeSeed project aligns with the goals set by the Government of Uganda as it consists of measures enshrined in the NDP III Program of Agro-Industrialization (AGI): to improve agriculture research, among which include rehabilitation of research infrastructure, capacity building of staff, strengthen research standards and increase linkage amongst research institutions. The project will directly benefit 200 farmer households in the Parish Development Model as well as over 800 researchers.
Korea International Cooperation Agency is the leading development cooperation agency of the Republic of Korea. KOICA contributes to the advancement of international cooperation through various cooperative projects to promote friendly and cooperative relationships and mutual exchanges between Republic of Korea and partnering countries and achieve poverty reduction, improvement of the quality of life, sustainable development, and humanitarianism of developing countries.