The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kalungu, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Paul Kiyemba, the Kalungu district production officer has been tasked to provide a report on the management of the Agricultural Cluster Development Project-ACDP in the district.
Caleb Tukaikiriza, the Kalungu District Resident Commissioner has given Kiyemba up to Wednesday next week to provide the project’s performance report, following reports of anomalies in the project implementation.
ACDP which was launched in 2018, is a five-year World Bank-funded project implemented through the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries that aims at increasing production and productivity of selected agricultural commodities and enterprises through increased access to critical farm inputs for farmers in different agricultural clusters.
However, the different farmer groups in Kalungu district during the quarterly meeting held Monday at Kyamulibwa town council decried the gross irregularities affecting the project’s effective implementation.
The farmers allege that despite signing cost-sharing agreements and making their required partial payments, they are being made to wait for the inputs in vain and that all responsible persons have instead been dodging them.
According to Godfrey Ssagala, the Kyamulibwa town council LC III chairperson, the project was hijacked by unscrupulous people with connections to local politicians who have since been stealthily taking away the inputs as soon they are delivered to stores.
Ssagala says he has received complaints from several farmers indicating that they didn’t receive the inputs despite paying the money as early as last year.
They accuse David Kawunde, the political assistant to Agriculture Minister, Vincent Bamulangaki Ssempijja, of conniving with sub-county agricultural officers and local traders for inputs in private farm stores outside Kalungu district.
Tukaikiriza says he wants the production officer to provide a comprehensive report about all the project’s supplies in the area such that a fact-finding exercise is carried about its implementation.
He has also instructed police to open up inquiry files on Faduruh Jjungu, the Kyamulibwa sub-county agricultural officer, David Kawunde, Timothy Kafuusi and Moses Kakooza; local businessmen who are accused of selling the inputs.
Kiyemba confirms receiving complaints of mismanagement in the project, however adding that they are closely following them up to find the trough about the reports.
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