Muntu to enrol agricultural extension workers in the agricultural production chain

In a move aimed at supporting Uganda’s local farmers, presidential candidate Maj. Gen. (rtd) Mugisha Muntu has said that, if elected,  his administration will seek to formally reintegrate agricultural extension workers into the agricultural production chain.

The Alliance for National Transformation (ANT) flag bearer unveiled the strategy at a campaign rally on Tuesday (November 18) while addressing voters at Central cell, Central ward, Tubur town council in Soroti district

“People who worked for this government have retired, but their pension is being eaten in Kampala due to stinking corruption in government,” Muntu disclosed. (All Photos by Stuart Yiga)

Muntu says that this underscores a strategic shift from viewing extension agents as mere advisors to recognising them as integral participants in the value‑adding process, emphasising that the enrolment will address long-standing gaps in farmer-extension services, boost productivity and ensure that knowledge translates into tangible market outcomes.

“Our farmers deserve more than occasional advice; they need partners who walk with them from seed to market,” he declared, prompting applause from area local leaders.
Under the proposed plan, extension workers will be embedded within key production nodes, seed distribution, mechanisation, post‑harvest handling, and market access.

“The program under the cooperative movement arrangement will see the Ministry of Agriculture partnering with agro‑processors, financial institutions, and research bodies to create a Unified Extension Platform (UEP) that synchronises information flow across the chain.

Muntu cited the Karamoja green belts project and the fostering sustainability and resilience for food security in Karamoja initiative as examples of existing frameworks that will be leveraged to finance the enrolment drive.

To sustain the system, Muntu plans to introduce a performance‑based incentive scheme, tying a portion of extension workers’ remuneration to measurable outcomes such as yield improvement, value addition, and farmer income growth.

Muntu, who has for the last three days been traversing the districts of Teso subregion, promised to design a deliberate program to revive the defunct cattle industry, improve the quality of education and pay pensions to those who worked for the government but have never received their pay.

“People who worked for this government have retired, but their pension is being eaten in Kampala due to stinking corruption in government,” he disclosed.

Days of a dishonest government are numbered, and I shall arrest all the corrupt to reset Uganda back to its customs and values in society, Muntu warned.

“We have plenty of resources to turn around the fortunes of our country, but corruption is cancer that we must first treat.”

Jobs sold

Richard Achibu, a parent with two children, decried the level of corruption at the Public Service Commission, alleging that he was forced to sell his three-acre land to bribe the recruitment committee for a job.

“My children went to Kampala after demanding that I give them money to go and buy a job, but I was shocked to see my daughter return to the village crying,” he claimed.

The boy is still in Kampala, but I do not know whether he got the job or not, Achibu insisted.  

Local leaders weigh in on extension workers

LC III chairperson for Pingire subcounty in Serere district, Nobert Ikwarit said that for the program to work, the government should first promote regular audits and community scorecards to track the progress of these extension workers.

“Before the government phased out all the extension workers to bring Uganda People Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers as National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) coordinators, we had hopes that local farmers would benefit, only to remain struggling,” he said.

If Muntu wants to bring these extension workers back, he should tighten supervision of these workers, who have taken it as a habit to only visit farmers when President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni is visiting the districts.

“Corruption has consumed systems, and it is hard for these people to work without asking farmers for bribes because many used to only visit only rich and commercial farmers, not the local peasants,” Ikwarit insisted.