Government to phase out the supply of free planting materials and animals to farmers

Government has resolved to phase out the supply of free planting materials and animals to farmers after noticing losses.

This was revealed by the Minister of Agriculture, Vincent Ssempijja while meeting with the seed companies under Uganda Seed Traders Association (USTA), the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and officials from Operation Wealth Creation at Parliament.

Ssempijja said that government will instead attach a cost and make a top up to enable farmers get planting materials of their choice.

The Minister said that this policy is being revised because some of the farmers given free materials have not been taking them serious; leaving them to dry and animals left to die thinking that they belong to government.

He also revealed that government is going to gazette seed supplying and importing companies to stop brief case seed companies so that people can access them easily as well as fighting distribution of fake seeds.

This followed a call by the Seeds Companies for Parliament to intervene and force government to fast track the Seed policy.