Buganda, Bugisu MPs oppose disbanding UCDA

A section of vocal MPs from Buganda and Bugisu making their position clear at Parliament this week

During a session with the parliamentary committee on agriculture, which is currently reviewing the Rationalisation of Government Agencies and Public Expenditure Bill, Dr. Lulume Bayiga, Vice Chairperson of the Buganda Parliamentary Caucus, emphasized that merging the UCDA with the Ministry of Agriculture—an institution he described as inefficient would have disastrous consequences for Uganda’s economy.

Dr. Luluume pointed out that the increase in prices and quality of coffee that Uganda is enjoying, are largely the outcome of UCDA’s efforts.

Bayiga warned that dissolving UCDA, which is a specialized unit comparable to the Uganda Cancer Institute or the Specialized Women Hospital at Mulago Hospital would risk undoing the gains made, as similar examples from other countries have shown.

Muwanga Kivumbi, Butambala County MP also the Buganda Parliamentary Caucus Chairperson also opposed merging the Uganda Coffee Development Authority and even the Uganda Daily Cooperation with the Agriculture ministry.

He alleged that the ministry of agriculture, has failed to execute its mandate on several projects as highlighted in the June 2023 Audit report by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament which he chairs.

Comparing the value of coffee exports (US Dollars 1.35bn between 2023-2024 – according to UCDA data) to what is projected to come from oil over the next 25 years, Muwanga says that whereas Oil will bring in about 44 billion US Dollars in revenue in the next 25 years, if Ugandans attains its target of exporting 20 million bags of coffee per year, the country will be able to earn 75 billion US dollars in the same period of 25 years.

Kassanda North MP Patrick Nsamba Oshabe who is also a coffee farmer noted that with coffee prices improving under the regulation of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority, it would be prudent to instead support this authority as a specialized unit to further improve household incomes.

Nsamba argued that in the past two years a Kilogram of unprocessed coffee (Kiboko) was selling at UGX3000 while that of processed (Kase) was selling for 6000. Currently the prices have more than doubled.

The MPs said reaching their position came after consultation with coffee-growing communities, in the six counties especially in Greater Mpigi, Mityana, and Luwero recently, where farmers rejected the merger.

Nathan Nandala Mafabi, the Chairperson of the Busigu Cooperative Union, echoed these concerns, noting that if the UCDA is abolished, it would take Uganda at least 10 years to reestablish accreditation for Uganda’s coffee exports. This delay, he explained, would leave coffee farmers and traders in a state of uncertainty.

Mafabi further stressed that coffee is an international commodity requiring oversight by a specialized agency that is globally recognized. He argued that the Ministry of Agriculture can not take over the accreditation role from the UCDA.

The attempt to dissolve UCDA and make it a department in the Ministry of Agriculture is part of a wider programme by the government to disband many semi-autonomous agencies in what it calls a cost-cutting measure.

Government has succeed in dissolving many such as Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) but has until now failed to do so with UCDA due to the agency’s heavy lobbying and opposition from Parliament.

Due to spirited opposition from the major coffee growing regions the government had given UCDA 2 more years to transition back to the ministry, but new statements from MPs suggest the disbanding will likely take longer if not totally abandoned by government.

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