Markets are Changing in Potato and Rice in Uganda
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Date
2020-11-06
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IFDC
Abstract
The events of the COVID-19 pandemic should not be allowed to overshadow the progress and success achieved by the REACH-Uganda project during 2019. This report documents successes in increasing farm productivity, profitability, and improved dietary diversity. Further, the report demonstrates the progress that participating households have made towards increasing their resilience to shocks, which is critical given that during 2019, farming households experienced two climatic shocks. As we move into 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought new challenges for farming households. It should be remembered, however, that the REACH-Uganda project is not just about farmers. Using a systems approach, the project has 2019 supported investments with private sector actors in the potato and rice value chains. Through private sector partners, these have targeted improving farmer access to productive assets, delivery of technical assistance by businesses, and boosting farmer access to vibrant, profitable markets. Patient capital is often used to describe long-term investments made in businesses, often not expected to show immediate returns. In this sense, the project’s market systems development approach is a form of patient capital. Readers of this report will see from the project’s Theory of Change some of our greatest impacts will be felt outside of the current lifecycle of the project given the level of resource and time investment that is required from private sector partners – they are and must be the owners of this change process. However, readers will also realize that during 2019 the project achieved many immediate tangible benefits for the farmers and firms who have actively participated. Without partners, the ability of a project to effect change at any scale is limited. Therefore, we would like to acknowledge the support we have received from our partners. This represents various actors, from micro and small, medium-sized enterprises to large multinational companies. Further, it includes institutional stakeholders, including the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industries and Fisheries and the National Agricultural Research Organization, especially Kachwekano Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute staff. Our thanks include the staff and leaders of the ISSD Plus, AVSI SKY, and SNV-TIDE projects and the team at our implementation partner Cardno – EMG. The acknowledgement must also be given to the team at the Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands Kampala for their continued support and enthusiasm for our work. The staff of the REACH-Uganda project, who rose to the challenges presented to them in 2019, must also be recognized. Through their commitment and dedication, the project delivered a diversified portfolio of partnerships and interventions capable of influencing change at a systems level. After human life, the next victims of the COVID-19 pandemic have been certainty and predictability. Some certainties remain, but the REACH-Uganda project will continue to strive to change lives for the better sustainably.
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Keywords
Productivity, Agribusiness, Partnerships, Monitoring and evaluation