1. The Uganda Investment Summit
As part of the research communication workstream, CASA worked with the Uganda Investment Authority to deliver an on-line investor summit. This was designed to empower investors to articulate the constraints and opportunities that impacted on their decision to fund agri-business investments. The workshop led to Paul Kyalimpa the Deputy Director Generalof the Uganda Investment Authority approving five new commitment to promote private sector investment in agri-business at the AGRF DealRoom in 2021.CASA Uganda value chain programme is currently closed.
2. Work to improve the business environment and enhance access to finance for small-scale farmers
This was a cross-cutting element. CASA Uganda partnered with Axiom zorn, a Ugandan IT development company. They supported the partners in the beans and sesame value chains to geospatially map their farmers. 46,290 farmers were profiled with numerous data points on each farmer collected. This can support improved services such as planning aggregation of produce from farmers. It will also help the small-scale farmers to generation credit scores. Through this exercise, Axiom zorn hopes to capitalise on its partnerships with Century and Standard Bank and extend credit to these beans and sesame SMEs and smallholder farmers supplying them.
3. Strategy-led sesame and bean value chain development
What the strategy says…
The 2020 Sesame Sector Strategy contained three commitments:
The CASA Uganda programme ran for 18 months in that time it delivered on all 3 commitments in its sesame sector strategy:
Commitment 1: Facilitate improved production and productivity for enhanced commercialisation of 82208 smallholder farmers – strengthening producer aggregation to access commercial markets
Commitment 2: To support of SME growth and expansion to engage more smallholder famers in commercial markets by preparing them to receive investment and matching to commercial finance providers and impact investors commercialisation
Commitment 3: To improve the business environment for inclusive sector growth, 46,290 smallholders (bean and sesame growers) were moved closer to financial inclusion
Summary of the strategy
The Sesame sector strategy Uganda highlighted that sesame is of specific importance in Northern Uganda. It is grown by over 300,000 farmers, mainly small-scale producers. There is considerable potential for inclusive growth and improvements to both yields and quality. This requires access to improved seed, better agronomic and post-harvest management. Additional challenges include limited access commercial markets and finance, caused in part the large producer organisations and fragmented value chains.
There is growth potential in premium export markets; land available to expand production; favourable growing conditions for two seasons each year. At the time of the report sesame oil was not processed in Uganda presenting an opportunity to develop premium processing plants exporting oil.
Northern Uganda presents the greatest potential to improve competitiveness in sesame production and agro-trade due to its advantages in climatic positioning. Uganda is a net exporter of sesame. But its import and export volumes are negligible against the market size; the trade surplus reflects the fact that the market is sustained by domestic production.
Five value chain interventions, in support of the sesame strategy, were made with the following partner organisations.
Orum Marketing and Agro-processing Cooperative Society Limited
Organisational development:
- The cooperative is ready to work with commercial and impact investors to access working capital and expand operations.
- Impact of the work: 288 Village Agents [68 female supporting improvements in the quality and quantity of sesame produced by small-scale producers
- Seed multiplication centre were established to scale up production of high yielding varieties.
More on Orum Marketing and Agro-processing Cooperative Society Limited
Organisational development:
- Equator became ready to attract commercial and impact investment to finance increased warehousing/silos, processing machinery and working capital required to expand operations.
- A database of 15,000 producers geo-mapped.
- Impact of the work:
- 150 village agents supporting improvements in the quality and quantity of sesame produced by 33,000 small-scale producers.
- 1500 kgof improved variety of sesame seeds provided to 5,000 smallholder farmers on credit;
- 2,000 tonnes of sesame aggregated from smallholder farmers during the course of the project.
Lira Resort Enterprises Limited
Organisational development:
- Supported to be investment-ready for commercial banks and impact investments to finance installation of a modern grain cleaning and processing equipment and the working capital required to expand operations.
Impact of the work:
- 150 Village Agents supporting improvements in the quality and quantity of sesame produced by 4,575small-scale producers [2,427 female];
- 44,000MT of sesame aggregated from 12,000 smallholder farmers during the course of the project
- 4,000smallholder farmers received vegetable seeds as part of Covid relief efforts.
CASA supported SEATINI in addressing barriers in the regulatory environment leading to an inclusive sesame sector.
Organisational development:
- Supported to scale-up digitized smallholder sesame marketing service.
- Improved operational efficiency achieved by hiring and training sourcing agents to source high volumes of quality sesame [simsim] from smallholder farmers
- A marketing campaign enhanced visibility of the Market Connect Services/linkages.
Impact of the work:
- 1300 farmer received SMS messages from the [sesame] Simsim Market Connect services,[via Agri Advisory and Interactive Voice Response platforms]providing agronomical support to smallholder farmers in the region.
What the strategy says…
The 2020 Bean Sector Strategy contained three commitments:
Commitment 1: To increase aggregation of quality beans for commercial markets.
Impact: 18,615 smallholders were supported
Commitment 2: To support SME growth and expansion, by preparing them to receive investment and matching to commercial finance providers and impact investors commercialisation
Impact: Manyakabi Area Cooperative received a loan of £125,000.
Commitment 3: To improve the business environment for inclusive sector growth,
Impact: 46,290 smallholders (bean and sesame growers) were moved closer to financial inclusion
The CASA Uganda programme ran for 18 months in that time it delivered on all 3 commitments in its bean sector strategy:
Overall impact: Total outreach (as at March 2022) 82,208
Summary of the Bean sector strategy
The CASA Uganda Bean Strategy points out Uganda is Africa’s second largest bean producer after Tanzania and production has been increasing reaching 200,000 tonnes in 2017. Beans, as a low-cost source of protein and form a vital part of the staple diet in Uganda, contributing to nutrition and food security. There is high potential for beans to foster economic empowerment given the sector growth potential for smallholder farmers.
The short growing cycle and adaptability to a wide range of growing conditions, makes beans a vital source of income for as many as two million smallholder farming households. But they can struggle to access markets. This is part due to the lack of effective farmer organisations. These missing intermediaries add to transaction costs of SME off takers which further depresses prices for farmers.
Women are the primary producers of beans. Overall smallholder farmers have limited access to finance, to close the yields gap. They produce 0.8 tonne/ha, compared with a potential of 2.5 tonnes/ha. Challenges include lack of foundation seed and high post-harvest losses due to poor handling and lack of post-harvest services.
There is a strong presence and substantial capital in SMEs, as well as a big commitment to smallholder farmer engagement in the agriculture value chain. But opportunity to add further value for domestic and export markets (pre-cooked beans, for example) has not yet been taken-up.
Five value chain interventions
Organisational development:
- Supported to attract finance/ investment in upgrading bean processing facilities (cleaning equipment and storage)
Organisational development
- Improvements in the management of the cooperative implemented to meet requirements of commercial lenders
- Applied for a working capital loan of £125,000, enabling the coop to source and aggregate an additional 500 tonnes of beans from smallholder farmers
Community Enterprises Development Organisation (CEDO)
Organisational development
- Supported business development through increased aggregation of quality produce from smallholder farmers.
- Stimulated investment onterest in and sale of pre-cooked beans.
- Supported interventions along the pre-cooked bean value chain, including substantial investment in product development and testing and documenting of all findings
- Completed market research predicting increased demand, especially in urban areas.
- Effective business model developed
Impact of the work:
- 1,700 smallholder farmers trained as producers and bulkers of the best varieties for pre-cooked beans
- Pre-cooked, nutrient-rich beans improve the diet of consumers.
Organisational development
- Supply of quality bean seeds enhanced through structured community-based seeds multiplication models
Impact of the work:
- 50,000 smallholders reached.
CASA Uganda delivers bean sector strategy commitments & explores climate smart food processing
Summary of the strategy
The Sesame sector strategy Uganda highlighted that sesame is of specific importance in Northern Uganda. It is grown by over 300,000 farmers, mainly small-scale producers. There is considerable potential for inclusive growth and improvements to both yields and quality. This requires access to improved seed, better agronomic and post-harvest management. Additional challenges include limited access commercial markets and finance, caused in part the large producer organisations and fragmented value chains.
There is growth potential in premium export markets; land available to expand production; favourable growing conditions for two seasons each year. At the time of the report sesame oil was not processed in Uganda presenting an opportunity to develop premium processing plants exporting oil.
Northern Uganda presents the greatest potential to improve competitiveness in sesame production and agro-trade due to its advantages in climatic positioning. Uganda is a net exporter of sesame. But its import and export volumes are negligible against the market size; the trade surplus reflects the fact that the market is sustained by domestic production.
Orum Marketing and Agro-processing Cooperative Society Limited
Organisational development:
- The cooperative is ready to work with commercial and impact investors to access working capital and expand operations.
- Impact of the work: 288 Village Agents [68 female supporting improvements in the quality and quantity of sesame produced by small-scale producers
- Seed multiplication centre were established to scale up production of high yielding varieties.
More on Orum Marketing and Agro-processing Cooperative Society Limited
Organisational development:
- Equator became ready to attract commercial and impact investment to finance increased warehousing/silos, processing machinery and working capital required to expand operations.
- A database of 15,000 producers geo-mapped.
- Impact of the work:
- 150 village agents supporting improvements in the quality and quantity of sesame produced by 33,000 small-scale producers.
- 1500 kgof improved variety of sesame seeds provided to 5,000 smallholder farmers on credit;
- 2,000 tonnes of sesame aggregated from smallholder farmers during the course of the project.
Lira Resort Enterprises Limited
Organisational development:
- Supported to be investment-ready for commercial banks and impact investments to finance installation of a modern grain cleaning and processing equipment and the working capital required to expand operations.
Impact of the work:
- 150 Village Agents supporting improvements in the quality and quantity of sesame produced by 4,575small-scale producers [2,427 female];
- 44,000MT of sesame aggregated from 12,000 smallholder farmers during the course of the project
- 4,000smallholder farmers received vegetable seeds as part of Covid relief efforts.
CASA supported SEATINI in addressing barriers in the regulatory environment leading to an inclusive sesame sector.
Organisational development:
- Supported to scale-up digitized smallholder sesame marketing service.
- Improved operational efficiency achieved by hiring and training sourcing agents to source high volumes of quality sesame [simsim] from smallholder farmers
- A marketing campaign enhanced visibility of the Market Connect Services/linkages.
Impact of the work:
- 1300 farmer received SMS messages from the [sesame] Simsim Market Connect services,[via Agri Advisory and Interactive Voice Response platforms]providing agronomical support to smallholder farmers in the region.
Commitment 1: To increase aggregation of quality beans for commercial markets.
Impact: 18,615 smallholders were supported
Commitment 2: To support SME growth and expansion, by preparing them to receive investment and matching to commercial finance providers and impact investors commercialisation
Impact: Manyakabi Area Cooperative received a loan of £125,000.
Commitment 3: To improve the business environment for inclusive sector growth,
Impact: 46,290 smallholders (bean and sesame growers) were moved closer to financial inclusion
Summary of the Bean sector strategy
The CASA Uganda Bean Strategy points out Uganda is Africa’s second largest bean producer after Tanzania and production has been increasing reaching 200,000 tonnes in 2017. Beans, as a low-cost source of protein and form a vital part of the staple diet in Uganda, contributing to nutrition and food security. There is high potential for beans to foster economic empowerment given the sector growth potential for smallholder farmers.
The short growing cycle and adaptability to a wide range of growing conditions, makes beans a vital source of income for as many as two million smallholder farming households. But they can struggle to access markets. This is part due to the lack of effective farmer organisations. These missing intermediaries add to transaction costs of SME off takers which further depresses prices for farmers.
Women are the primary producers of beans. Overall smallholder farmers have limited access to finance, to close the yields gap. They produce 0.8 tonne/ha, compared with a potential of 2.5 tonnes/ha. Challenges include lack of foundation seed and high post-harvest losses due to poor handling and lack of post-harvest services.
There is a strong presence and substantial capital in SMEs, as well as a big commitment to smallholder farmer engagement in the agriculture value chain. But opportunity to add further value for domestic and export markets (pre-cooked beans, for example) has not yet been taken-up.
Organisational development:
- Supported to attract finance/ investment in upgrading bean processing facilities (cleaning equipment and storage)
Organisational development
- Improvements in the management of the cooperative implemented to meet requirements of commercial lenders
- Applied for a working capital loan of £125,000, enabling the coop to source and aggregate an additional 500 tonnes of beans from smallholder farmers
Community Enterprises Development Organisation (CEDO)
Organisational development
- Supported business development through increased aggregation of quality produce from smallholder farmers.
- Stimulated investment onterest in and sale of pre-cooked beans.
- Supported interventions along the pre-cooked bean value chain, including substantial investment in product development and testing and documenting of all findings
- Completed market research predicting increased demand, especially in urban areas.
- Effective business model developed
Impact of the work:
- 1,700 smallholder farmers trained as producers and bulkers of the best varieties for pre-cooked beans
- Pre-cooked, nutrient-rich beans improve the diet of consumers.
Organisational development
- Supply of quality bean seeds enhanced through structured community-based seeds multiplication models
Impact of the work:
- 50,000 smallholders reached.