Officials from the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries ( MAAIF) together with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs(MOFA) met on July 16 ,2025 , to discuss the validity of the Biennial review of the comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development program ( CAADP). The Head of Statistics at the Agriculture Ministry , Ms.Irene Racheal noted that the meeting is an important step and process that reminds Uganda of it’s shared commitments including Agriculture in Uganda and across Africa.
She explained that the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture program Biennial review helps Uganda as one of the member states to measure on how far the country has reached in achieving the goals of the Malabo declaration including ending hanger, creating jobs, increasing investments and improving lives of farmers and communities .
She revealed that this year’s fifth Biennial review is so significant because it marks the country’s final review on Malabo commitments .
” The Biennial review meeting provides us with a unique chance to look back on what we achieved in the last 10 years, “Ms. Irene stated .
‘ It also sets the tall for Agriculture agenda and post Malabo agenda that will shake Africa’s Agriculture in the future. The Biennial review is not just a report but also a tool for learning , accountability and data management. In short, it’s about using data and evidence to guide our policies and serve our people better, “Ms.Irene emphasized .
‘ It’s all about working together across different sectors and institutions to deliver meaningful results .That is why your presence today is very important, Ms . Irene told participants.
Ms. Irene thanked government ministries and departments that have contributed technical data , insights and leadership throughout the entire process.
” Your commitments and professionalism has been central in securing the accurate data.’
‘ I thank the private sector for your innovation , investments and plus it’s role in strengthening agriculture markets and value chain. Your efforts in production, processing , finance and logistics and distribution have been critical in moving agriculture forward in the country .
She expressed gratitude to civil society organizations, famer groups and community actors for their tireless work at the grassroot level by ensuring the voices of farmers most especially women and youth are heard.
” I thank all the development partners for your technical support , funding and fast building efforts that have helped to strengthen Uganda’s Agricultural system including data and planning systems that make reviews like this one possible.
” In a special way , I recorgnize the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa(AGRA), who have greatly supported the Biennial Review exercise.Your support has made this meeting possible and more importantly your partnership has built reginal and national systems for agricultural transformation. We are really grateful and we should honestly reflect on the findings of the report, ‘she said .
‘ She continued : ” As we celebrate areas of progress , we must acknowledge where we are falling short whether it’s financing , budget deficiency, food security system, youth employment and we can still work on it.
‘ The Biennial Review meeting is a step towards turning data into action by ensuring the lessons we have learnt today inform our future plans , strategies and investment in agriculture.
” We as the Agriculture Ministry we remain committed to implementing the outcome of this process and we will continue to engage all relevant stakeholders on the key recommendations and work towards a stronger performance in the years ahead.’
The Head of Regional peace and security Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Edith Namutebi Nsubuga, commended the Comprehensive Agriculture Africa Development program for compiling a factual report, and coordinating data collection, compilation and analysis adding that true agriculture is the backbone of Uganda.
The Head of Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Dr. Sharon Tusiime Mbabazi ,noted that the 2024 Global report on food crisis indicate that 62 million out of 270 million people still face high food insecurity in IGAD region due to reduction in agriculture production due to climate excuses like drought, currency depreciation and the quality of global goods on the market.
She added that Agriculture is crucial saying it contributes nearly half of the regional Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and that there is need to address agricultural challenges in the region.
“IGAD has supported member states and so far Somalia and Ethiopia are done with the validation exercise. And this week Uganda , Kenya and Djibouti are holding their meetings and before the end of this month they would be done with their meetings.
‘ The regional Africa Union is planned for next month and IGAD will participate in that meeting. However, the biggest challenge IGAD has faced is the issue of data collection. Between 2023-2024 , there has been delays not only in data collection but also cleaning and analyzing it, and this has affected the report we take to the African Union .
‘ Besides the issue of data collection , it’s also difficult to generate sex and Gender segregated data and this time round we hope to sort out this issue . The IGAD expert is expected to review the data which is gender segregated and Uganda will be able to submit its report to African Union, she concluded her speech.’
