The Uganda Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (UFAAS), with support from the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS), and the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS), with funding from the European Union has on the 29th February launched the Global Programme for Small-scale Agroecology Producers and Sustainable Food Systems Transformation (GP-SAEP)’ Project in Uganda.
The project aims at strengthening and supporting rural advisory services (RAS) providers (including public agricultural extension, Civil Society Organizations, Farmer Organizations, agroecology based Micro Small Medium Enterprises input providers) towards co-creation with and empowerment of small-scale producers and enabling them to innovate and adopt agroecological practices and technologies adapted to the accelerating challenges of climate change. Small scale farmers will be empowered in the agroecology transition through participatory, experiential learning approaches that recognize farmers as drivers of agroecological innovation in integrated practices and technologies.
The overall objective will contribute towards achieving the development objective of the comprehensive GP-SAEP, of which this Project is part: “Enable rural small-scale producers to strengthen their practice of agroecology through better access to knowledge, support services, improved technologies and market outlets thereby improving their resilience to climatic, environmental and socio-economic shocks and stressors as well as food and nutrition security and incomes”.
According to Hon. Kyakulaga Fred Bwino, the Minister of state for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, while officiating the launch noted that this project gives an opportunity to discuss broadly on a promising integrated and holistic approach to achieving food systems transformation by addressing issues related to food & agricultural production and commercialisation systems and that Agroecology and its ecosystem have become high on the global agenda
“In Uganda, there is a strong call for transforming food production systems & consumption patterns sustainably through farmer adaptation and building resilience to the increasing challenges of climate change, addressing issues of nutritional food availability. Agroecology provides a step towards the desired transformation. Farmers’ traditional knowledge combined with innovation in practices and the sustainable use of technologies is at the core of an agroecological farming system.”
Additionally, the minister re-assured that the agricultural sector transformation is on course & this transformation calls for an organized system of all stakeholders to ensure sustainable utilization of natural resources for the present & future generations in pursuit of economic development.
In Uganda, the project will be implemented in five districts of Buikwe, Kasese, Bugiri, Lira, and Sembabule.
About the Project:
The Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS) is implementing an Agroecology project in close collaboration with International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The project called ‘Global Programme for Small-scale Agroecology Producers and Sustainable Food Systems Transformation (GP-SAEP)’ is part of the larger funding envelope provided by the European Commission (EC) and the Belgian Development Cooperation, aiming at addressing key barriers for scaling up agroecology and the transition to sustainable food systems for small-scale producers (farmers and agri-food Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in Africa and Latin America & the Caribbean (LAC).
The overall GP SAEP project has been signed in the first quarter of 2023 and will run until June 2026.
The Programme is structured around four components. Component 1: Improving access to inputs including seeds, bio-inputs and mechanical equipment; Component 2: Increasing value addition and markets for agroecological producers; Component 3: Enhancing Rural Advisory Services (RAS) and farmer-to-farmer joint learning for small-scale producers in transition to agroecology; and Component 4: Improving Economic and Financial Analysis of investments (EFA+) tools, to assess the impact and benefit of investments in rural agri-food sector.