East African Business Week (Kampala)
Paul Mwijagye
31 January 2009
Kampala — The Microfinance Support Centre in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance is set to give out UShs3.5 billion (US$1.8million) beginning February 10, 2009.
The money will be given to all organised savings and credit cooperatives SACCOs), small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and individuals countrywide.
The revelation was made by the director of the Microfinance Support Centre Mr. Mutebi Kityo last week in Lugazi, Mukono district 40km east of Kampala, during a function where 15 tractors were given out by the Ministry East Mengo Growers Cooperative Union which coversfour districts in the central region. The programme, which will be launched this week, in Kampala, will start with assessing SACCOs, SMEs and individuals to determine their loan worthiness and thereafter it will begin giving out the money.
Kityo said this is part of a programme to empower people and reduce poverty levels in the country. The number of people living below the national poverty line in Uganda stands at 37.7% with the rural areas accounting for approximately 64% of Ugandans living on less than $1 a day.
The ministry targets to reduce this trend by giving out loans to SACCOs, SMEs and prepared individuals such that they can improve on income generation.
Kityo said that one of the ways of reducing povertyis through commercialization of agriculture through mechanisation in order to shift from subsistence farming to large scale production.
This, he said, would ensure food security in the country and leave surplus food for export.
Around 80% of Uganda's total population resides in rural areas and most of them depend on agriculture as a source of livelihood and once agriculture is mechanised Uganda has the potential of becoming a food basket in the African region.
Kityo said since commercialization of agriculture goes hand-in-hand with zoning, there will be a need to revive cooperative societies which will make accessibility to common markets and storage of the farmers' produce easier.
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