Rubanda – To address poverty in Uganda, the State Minister for Finance in Charge of General Duties, Hon. Henry Musasizi, has urged Christians to switch from subsistence farming to commercial farming. During church services held in several places throughout the Rubanda district, Musasizi made this appeal.

Speaking to congregations at the Kitojo Catholic Hiika in the Bubare Town Council, the Hamurwa Church of Uganda Parish, and Kagarama 1 Church of Uganda, Musasizi underlined the necessity of a change from cultivating crops purely for one’s own consumption to cultivating crops for sale. In many Ugandan households, he claimed, subsistence farming is a common practice that has considerably exacerbated poverty.

Musasizi claims that the over-reliance on subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 39% of all farming activity in Uganda, is a key cause of the country’s poverty. He exhorted Christians to take a more comprehensive approach by growing crops for both income creation and personal consumption. He went on to say that doing this will not only improve their financial situation but also give them access to necessities like healthcare and education.

Musasizi also asked religious leaders to actively support economic progress by giving their followers the tools they need to become wealth producers.

Obed Mutatina, a district councilor for the Bubare Town Council, issued a warning against abusing parish development funding, citing cases in which locals had used the money instead to buy alcohol. He commended the Minister for getting funds of Ugx 200 million for the refurbishment of Kagarama Health Center 2 in Bubare Town Council and Ugx 150 million for the construction of a girls dormitory at Bubare Secondary School.

The Nyaruhanga Archdeacon, Ven Noah Kyooma, praised Minister Musasizi for his contributions to the growth of the Rubanda area and of all of Uganda. For the construction of churches, Musasizi gave Hamurwa Church of Uganda Parish Ugx 6,000,000, Kitoojo Catholic Hiika Ugx 3,000,000, and Kagarama 1 Church of Uganda Ugx 5,000,000.

The Minister’s appeal to adopt commercial farming and lessen reliance on subsistence farming is part of a larger initiative to raise living standards and eliminate poverty in Uganda.