Archbishop Emeritus John Baptist Odama has criticised the government’s failure to fulfill its commitments under a deal with the Gulu Archdiocese to commercialise cassava production in Northern Uganda.
In his first public remarks in four years since the agreement was made, Archbishop Odama expressed concerns that the Acholibur Cassava Project, which has already received significant investment, might collapse due to the government’s lack of support.
In an interview, Archbishop Odama explained that the partnership, established just before the Covid-19 pandemic, involved both the church and the government.
The government had pledged to provide seeds and cassava stems but failed to deliver, leading to frustration among farmers who had prepared extensive fields in anticipation.
The agreement also included plans for a starch factory in Pader District, which was intended to process the commercially grown cassava. However, Odama noted that the construction of the factory never materialised.
“The government and the church signed a memorandum of understanding through Operation Wealth Creation (OWC). The government promised support but remained silent for two years, causing the farmers to lose interest after investing in land preparation,” Archbishop Odama said.
Despite the initial setbacks, Archbishop Odama acknowledged that recent discussions with the government have rekindled hope for the project.
“People are questioning the progress of this project, but we need to overcome these challenges together. The church and the government have successfully collaborated in areas like education, health, and peacebuilding—why not in this?” Archbishop Odama wondered.
He also added that the tractors and other equipment provided by the National Agricultural Advisory Services (Naads) for the project have been reassigned to other purposes, as they were left unused.
“We had the tools, the tractors for plowing, but now they have been moved elsewhere. However, there is still interest in increasing cassava production within the Gulu Archdiocese,” he added.
On March 7, 2020, President Museveni launched the Acholibur Parish Project (APP) and the Bukoona Agroprocessors distillery factory in Nwoya District, which was intended to produce ethanol from cassava grown under the APP.
During a meeting at the Aringomone Irrigation Project, Museveni announced that the cabinet had approved a budget of Shs33 billion for the 2020/21 financial year to support the archdiocese in commercialising and industrialising cassava production across Northern Uganda.
The Gulu Archdiocese, in partnership with Bukona Agroprocessors Ltd., mobilised over 20,000 farmers across 33 cooperative societies to supply cassava to the factory.
In August 2021, the church signed another agreement with Naads, extending the cassava-growing initiative to Agago, Kitgum, and Amuru districts, in addition to the other Acholi districts involved since the scheme began in 2017.
Dr Samuel Mugasi, the Naads executive director, confirmed that nearly Shs3 billion had been earmarked to boost cassava production. Naads would provide financial and technical support, while the church’s role was to mobilize and organise farmers to receive the planting materials.
Fr Matthew Okun Lagoro, the Cassava Commercialisation Project Manager at the Archdiocese, revealed that the project was struggling due to a lack of funds.
He proposed synergising the Parish Development Model (PDM) with the cassava project, believing that unified efforts between local governments, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Trade could yield positive results.
Fr Okun lamented that, despite continuous reminders to the government about the project’s importance, no financial or technical assistance had been provided in the past three years.
Previously, the government had allocated Shs100 million annually to the project in 2018 and 2019, but this ceased with the onset of COVID-19.
More than five years, the project received Shs8 billion, both in cash and planting materials, before the pandemic disrupted its progress. Feasibility studies conducted by the Uganda Development Corporation for establishing a starch factory in Acholibur were submitted to the Office of the Prime Minister, the Office of the President, and the Gulu Archdiocese.
Dr Charles Aben, the Officer in Charge of the Cassava Commercialization Project at Naads Secretariat, explained that the project was progressing well until 2021 when budget constraints forced Naads to deprioritize cassava.
Despite these financial challenges, Naads has provided four tractors to assist farmers with land preparation and cassava cutting propagation.
Mr Ventorino Okumu, the Cassava Commercialisation Project Officer at the Archdiocese, stated that the Archdiocese will now focus on supporting farmers’ demand-driven priorities due to limited funding.
However, he highlighted the lack of a market for the fresh cassava produced by the farmers, urging for the procurement of a cassava dryer machine to meet the demand for dried cassava at the Bukona factory.
“We are still lobbying for a cassava dryer machine to help our farmers because we have a market for dried cassava at the Bukona factory. We want our people to escape poverty,” Mr Okumu said.
Dr Aben added that, with the Shs3 billion previously allocated, Naads managed to supply 75,000 bags of cassava cuttings to farmers in 2018 and 2019, continuing to support the project despite the financial difficulties.
