William Matovu, the country director of Heifer International, says 20,000 dairy farmers are set to benefit from a Shs 14.5 billion investment that will be channeled through the Green Dairy project. He noted that the investment will be undertaken in three years, with the investment targeting 15 districts, specifically central and south western Uganda. “The focus of that investment is to be able to catalyze investments within the dairy value chain, specifically to focus on enhancing production productivity and market access. And within the aspect of stimulating their production and market access, the focus will be a lot on greening the value chain. Because as we see the changing dynamics within the agriculture value chain, it is very important to focus on sustainability,” Matovu said. He was speaking during the Green Dairy Investment Project workshop held at Fairway Hotel recently. Uganda’s dairy sector contributes $260 million per annum to Uganda’s agricultural Gross Domestic Product. The Green Dairy Fund has received support from Agriculture Business Initiative, Danish Royal Embassy, the European Union, Heifer International in collaboration with the ministry of Agriculture and the Food and Agriculture Organisation. Matovu said the Green Dairy Investment Project will enable the introduction of solar for cooling milk. There will also be the use of biogas to ensure that farmers at the farm level can be able to either use bio-celery to effectively grow fodder and to absorb it, but also to ensure that there is effective management of the dung, and the waste at farm level. “Another critical outcome of this project is that we will develop a Dairy Sustainable Investment Roadmap. This roadmap will guide investments within the dairy sector to improve productivity, increase exports, and advance our industrialization agenda. Ultimately, our focus is to ensure that farmers are profitable and sustainable, while creating employment opportunities for young people.” Speaking at the event, Samson Akankiza Mpiira, the commissioner for Dairy Development at the ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, noted that the ministry is happy to partner with Heifer International and ABI Trust on the Green Dairy Investment Project as its complementarity in terms of support to our sustainability roadmap as a country. Mpiira highlighted that there has been substantial growth in the country’s dairy industry, with milk production now standing at 5.3 billion liters annually, largely driven by smallholder farmers. He noted that the focus must now shift to making the sector more sustainable by addressing climate change mitigation, improving water use for production, and promoting proper soil management. He added that green investments are well aligned with the plan to make farmers more productive. As a dairy sector, he said, the focus is on three key aspects to ensure competitiveness and greater value from the dairy business. “We are focusing on improving breeds, enhancing nutrition, and managing animal and livestock diseases, with all investments directed toward these three areas. This programme also implements similar interventions in different parts of the country. Our goal here is to align and create synergies with partners to avoid duplicating efforts,” he said. Moses Nyabila, the CEO of ABI Development, emphasized that the Green Dairy Investment Programme, covering nearly 15 districts across Uganda, aims to build the dairy hub of the future, a solar- powered milk collection centre with water for production and enough fodder to last the dry season. “We should be able to triple our productivity per cow, and we should be able to triple the income that comes to the farmer,” he said. ebenezernsubuga405@gmail.comThe post Dairy farmers to benefit from Shs 14.5bn investment project appeared first on The Observer.