Govt asked to rethink agro-industrialisation programme budget cuts

KAMPALA - Government, through the finance ministry, has been asked to reconsider the proposed agro-industrialisation agenda budget cuts next financial year.

According to the National Budget framework Paper (NBFP) tabled in Parliament in December 2025 by the finance minister, with agro-industrialisation is one of the programmes with a proposed budget cut by 20% in the next financial year.

According to the framework paper, the agro-industrialisation budget will decline by shillings 362.8 billion (a cut by 20%). This will lead to a reduction from shillings 1.83 trillion in the financial year 2025/26 to shillings 1.47 trillion in the financial year 2026/27. 

Other programmes affected by the cuts include human capital development, which was reduced from shillings 11.48 trillion to 9.86 trillion, representing a reduction of shillings 1.63 trillion.

Jonathan Lubega, a policy analyst from the Southern and Eastern Africa Trade Information and Negotiations Institute (SEATINI), said the Government has identified an agro-industrialisation programme to drive the country’s tenfold growth strategy, but with continuous cuts, this may not be realised.

He also said the cuts contradict Uganda’s commitment under the CAADP Agenda and the Kampala Declaration of 2025 to those roots for African countries to invest at least 10% of their national budgets in the agriculture sector.

In the Kampala Declaration, member countries committed themselves to strengthening and ensuring functional agricultural input systems, including seed systems, soil health and fertilisers, water management, and agricultural research and extension services, while promoting the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices that conserve resources, protect ecosystems, and ensure long-term productivity and production.

“Now, with the allocations to agriculture that have been surging between 2 to 4%, coupled with the latest cuts towards the agro-industrialisation agenda, the Government may not achieve the growth it envisions through the agriculture sector,” Lubega said.

Trevor Emojel, AHF Uganda Cares addressing journalists during a press conference about CSO perspectives on the financial year 2026/2027 National Budget framework paper at Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group (CSBAG) in Ntinda on January 13, 2026. (Credit: Juliet Kasirye)

Speaking to journalists on January 13, 2026, at the Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group (CSBAG) offices in Ntinda, Kampala city, Lubega said budget cuts will further affect the provision of services of extension services, water for production, because of the changing weather, but also assistance on how to package and market some of the produce.

In addition to adequate financing for the agriculture sector, Lubega also urged the Government to prioritise the marketing of the products from the Parish Development Model (PDM) programme.

According to Lubega, as of June 30, 2025, shillings 3.3 trillion had been transferred to the 10,589 parishes across the country, to enable households to move away from subsistence to commercial farming.

However, access to markets remains a challenge.

“We remain concerned about the failure by the Government to address concerns around access to markets, given the fact that 45% of beneficiaries received the money in cash and food crops, 36% in livestock and 12% in poultry, there is an anticipation of increased agricultural produces which require markets if the farmers are to realize profits from their investments,” Lubega added.

He added that failure to find markets, there is a risk of products flooding the market, which affects the price and this may discourage beneficiaries from investing in future agricultural ventures.

Emphasising the need for markets, CSBAG executive director Julius Mukunda added that markets are a driver for any form of agricultural investments.

“For Ugandans to get out of these problems of poverty, please create markets. Markets are a driver; it’s an incentive for any individual to start a business but also engage in any income-generating activity,” he said.