Farmers across different regions in the country are counting losses due to a drastic loss in demand and drop in prices of commodities like cassava, maize and matooke.

These say they have witnessed a drop in sales in the last three months.

In Teso sub-region, Mbarara and at the Busia border farmers are struggling to find buyers for their produce with some stuck with large tonnes of maize, cassava and matooke.

For the case of Busia, there has been a decline by companies from Kenya that have been purchasing maize from Uganda opting for Tanzanian maize due to its low price.

Desperate faces is what welcomes you at the Busia Border as maize dealers are stuck with huge tonnes of maize in stores following decline in demand for Ugandan maize across Kenya leaving them counting losses as the produce goes bad in the stores.

According to the chairperson Busia produce dealers, Richard Wesonga, the dealers have experienced a reduction in the sale of maize in the last three months, putting it on the Tanzania maize which is currently sold at between Shs500 to Shs600 a kilo compared to Ugandan maize that is now at Shs880.

"Most of our customers that's were buying our maize in the neighboring Kenya resorted to buying from Tanzania which they say is cheap, and our produce is rotting in the stores," Wesonga said.

As a result of this, the border town has for the past months received a decline in the number of trucks coming for maize from Kenya from over 100 trucks per day to now only between 20 to 30 trucks.

In Teso and Mbarara the situation has left many farmers in distress, with their livelihoods threatened by the deteriorating prices.

The government and agricultural authorities are urged to intervene and address the challenges facing the cassava sector in the Teso sub-region.