Kumi District has been earmarked to host a multi-billion-shilling livestock export facility, quarantine center, and animal holding ground under the Uganda Climate Smart Agricultural Transformation Project (UCSATP). The initiative is poised to significantly boost animal farming across the Teso and Karamoja areas.
Dr. Deogracious Wonekha Namisano, the Senior Veterinary Officer in the Department of Animal Production and Health at the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, revealed that Kumi is one of only three districts selected to host this facility nationwide.
“Kumi is privileged because among the districts which are going to benefit under this project, there are only three,” he said. “We have Kumi, we have Pader, and yet another one which is to be identified.”
He explained that the Kumi facility will serve the entire eastern bloc extending to Karamoja, while Pader will cater to West Nile, and a third district in the west will be identified to cover that region.
Dr. Wonekha says the project team has already engaged the district leadership, business community, and local communities in Kanyumu and Kanapa to explain the project and rally support for it. He commended Kumi District for preserving government land, noting that over ten acres at the veterinary offices are intact with no encroachers.
Dr. Wonekha added that the ministry’s engineering team will soon customize designs for the site, with contracting expected by the end of the year.
“The facility is majorly to enhance beef productivity in the sense that we want to have our animals cleaned and made well within this facility to attract the international market. Farmers will benefit from improved breeds, better management practices, and better prices. The project will also spur related businesses in hospitality, veterinary services, and commercial pasture production.” Dr. Wonekha said.
Robert Odea Apedel, the LC3 Chairperson of South Division in Kumi Municipality, where the government veterinary land is located, welcomed the project. He urged farmers to abandon traditional cattle rearing practices and adopt breeds that meet the required carcass weight within the stipulated time to tap into regional and international markets.
Joshua Oitamong Okurut, a farmer in Kumi, also lauded the initiative, saying it will ensure farmers take healthy animals to market.“Before the animals brought to the quarantine leave the quarantine and the holding ground, it is made sure that they are clean, tested, meet the standard weight, and meet the standards of the external market,” explained.
Meanwhile, John Stephen Kasadha, the Chief Administrative Officer of Kumi District, emphasized that this project will be a game changer in the fight against poverty if properly utilized.
“This project is the one which is going to take our people out of poverty as it will be a gateway for animals to reach the international market,” Kasadha asserted. Kasadha confirmed that land is available and already titled, with the holding center to be established next to the veterinary offices and the quarantine center at Totolim in Kanapa Sub County-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
