Officials from 49 African Union member states, including Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni, recently convened for the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP). This high-profile event focused on strengthening food security systems and promoting sustainable agricultural practices across Africa. Leaders emphasized that agriculture remains pivotal in addressing Africa’s socioeconomic challenges and reducing dependence on external markets.
President Museveni, a staunch advocate of agricultural development, recounted Uganda’s journey toward leveraging its natural resources for prosperity. He underscored four critical sectors essential for Africa’s advancement: commercial agriculture, manufacturing, services, and information and communication technology (ICT). These sectors, he argued, are the backbone of any thriving economy.
Historical Context and Challenges
The President highlighted the limitations of precolonial and colonial economic structures. These economies were largely precapitalist and focused on subsistence farming—an approach defined as “working only for the stomach.” While communities developed artisan skills like blacksmithing, woodworking, and ceramics, large-scale economic development was stunted.
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Colonial-era economies further entrenched inequality by prioritizing cash crops such as coffee, cotton, and copper, alongside tobacco, tea, and tourism. These products were exported as raw materials, with minimal value addition locally. This model left only 9% of homesteads participating in the colonial cash economy, creating what Museveni described as an “enclave economy”—a small island of modernity in a sea of underdevelopment.
The Path to Agricultural Revolution
Uganda’s post-1960s economic strategy sought to address these historical imbalances. According to Museveni, agriculture must be fully commercialized to ensure food and income security for families. He advocated for tailored strategies based on land size:
- Intensive Agriculture: For families with small plots (four acres or less), high-value crops and enterprises are key. Examples include coffee, fruits, dairy products, and poultry farming.
- Extensive Agriculture: For larger plots, low-value crops like cotton, tea, and maize, grown at scale, can generate substantial income.
Museveni’s 1996 election manifesto detailed seven profitable agricultural enterprises:
- Coffee: One acre dedicated to this high-value crop.
- Fruits: Another acre for fruits like mangoes and citrus.
- Dairy Products: One acre for pastures to support dairy cows.
- Food Crops: One acre for essential family consumption.
- Poultry Farming: Focused on egg production.
- Piggery: Small-scale pig farming in backyards.
- Fish Farming: For families near wetlands, utilizing the periphery for sustainable aquaculture.
Recent additions to high-value crops include palm oil, cocoa, and cashew nuts, offering lucrative returns even on smaller plots of land.
Interdependence of Agricultural Practices
President Museveni stressed that intensive and extensive agricultural models must work in harmony. For instance, intensive agriculture often relies on by-products from extensive farming, such as maize for poultry feed or sugarcane for livestock feed. Relying solely on imports for these inputs could make local products uncompetitive in global markets.
Breaking the Poverty Cycle
Reflecting on colonial policies, Museveni criticized how they pushed families to grow cash crops like cotton without reaping significant economic benefits. While production increased, poverty persisted among the farmers. Today, Uganda and other African nations aim to reverse this trend by focusing on value addition and sustainable practices that uplift local communities.
Conclusion
The CAADP meeting underscored that agriculture is not just about feeding populations; it’s about creating wealth, fostering independence, and unlocking the continent’s potential. With the right strategies and investments, Africa can transform its agricultural sector into a global powerhouse, ensuring prosperity for generations to come
