Kakumiro: The 4-Acre Model Campaign, a major project spearheaded by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, aims to improve Uganda’s agricultural environment and help pull communities out of poverty.
The goal of the campaign, which was formally introduced on Friday at Kamanyire Demonstration Farm in Kikwaya Sub-County, Kakumiro District, is to incentivize farmers to intensify and diversify their farming methods in order to increase production and support Uganda’s overall economic expansion.
President Museveni underlined at the launch how crucial extensive and intensive agriculture is to raising yields and enhancing livelihoods.
One acre should be set aside for coffee, another for fruits, a third for staple crops, and a fourth for cattle, according to the 4-Acre Model. This strategy aims to maximize land utilization while maintaining food security and sustainability.
During his speech, President Museveni also announced the closure of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority, pointing to the organization’s poor oversight of the nation’s coffee production.
He discouraged the production of crops like sugarcane, tobacco, and maize, which require vast amounts of land, and urged farmers to embrace more contemporary farming practices, such as raising exotic cattle, which require less space.
The President encouraged Minister Fred Byamukama to keep informing Ugandans about the advantages of the 4-Acre Model and commended him for his aggressive participation in its promotion.
With his own varied farming methods, Byamukama, the owner of the Kamanyire Demonstration Farm, has led by example. His farm has more than 100 pigs, poultry, one acre of animal grass, and one acre of bananas, and six cows for milk production.
In addition, he stated his goal of having over ten model farmers in Kakumiro District in five years, highlighting the importance of public leaders serving as development role models.
Prime Minister Robinah Nabanja emphasized how the 4-Acre Model has been widely adopted and that many success stories have emerged. Abigaba Stewart, a farmer who has made about 9 million Ugandan shillings from just two acres of coffee, is one such example.
Other farmers, especially those who have found maize farming unproductive and are now prospering with other crops and livestock under the new model, have expressed their gratitude for the initiative.
The 4-Acre Model is positioned as a crucial tactic in Uganda’s endeavors to advance industry, encourage commercial agriculture, and propel the expansion of the ICT and service sectors, ultimately helping to reduce poverty and improve the living standards of rural households.
With more success stories like those in Kakumiro, the campaign is anticipated to spur additional investment in rural development and agriculture nationwide as it gathers steam.