SNV Uganda calls for focus on food security as UN celebrates 75 years

We leverage additional financial and technical resources through public-private partnerships by providing entrepreneurs with a broad range of financial products on reasonable terms and supporting the agribusinesses to develop sound business cases. This together with technical advisory services is kick-starting markets that can sustain themselves and create a win – win situation for agribusinesses and the small holder farmers that they work with.

Through our dairy project, we supported farmers transition from traditional farming methods to semi-intensification by creating an input market, providing access to knowledge, products, services, and financial options that would enable them increase production. Using a blend of matching grants and loans at subsidised interest rates, over 3,000 farmers have been able to invest on farm, accessing products worth over EUR 5 million in the last three years to improve production. The products and services included; on-farm practical training, water for production, paddocking, farm products and infrastructure such as spray races, milking parlours, sheds/barns and mechanised equipment.

By supporting farming communities as well as small and medium enterprises SNV has contributed to increased incomes, boosted farmers resilience to climate change; and increased food and nutrition security for 505,000 in different agricultural value chains over the last two years.

Encouraging the uptake of nutrition sensitive agriculture

Sustainable food systems should not only address access to food but the quality of the food that is consumed. According to the World Health Organisation, 1.9 billion adults are overweight or obese while 462 million are underweight. Around one in ten children are born underweight and approximately 45% of deaths among children under five are linked to undernutrition. Africa for example has a cereal-centered food system with less consumption of fruits and vegetables. This needs to change if sustainable food systems are to be achieved as planned. Access to quality indigenous seed is still a challenge for many rural farmers.

By partnering with government agencies such as the National Agriculture Research Organisation (NARO), SNV Uganda has been able to build the capacity of local farmers to take up seed multiplication of quality declared seed and establish community seed banks. This has not only helped solve the problem of farmers travelling long distances to look for improved seeds but encouraged the uptake of nutrition-sensitive agriculture at the household level. Through tackling the challenge of access to quality indigenous seeds 17,200 households in Kasese, Kakumiro and Kyenjojo districts of Uganda have adopted nutrition sensitive agriculture and are growing the high-quality NARO bean II and NAKATI being distributed by the seed multipliers at community level.

Leaving no one behind in WASH

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) bring heightened ambition levels for global water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) – ‘leaving no one behind’ and renewed attention to quality and sustainable service delivery (including safe management). SNV’s WASH interventions aim to support the Government of Uganda to progressively achieve the right to safe water and sanitation for all Ugandans. As such, our WASH programmes are careful not to exacerbate or deepen existing inequalities. Rather, our approach supports local and national government efforts in designing and implementing service delivery models, at scale.

This entails adjustments in the set-up of service delivery models and amendments in the roles and responsibilities of all involved: the government, the private sector, civil society organisations (CSOs) and service users. We have supported district local government efforts to improve the functionality of their rural water sources by promoting the establishment of operation and maintenance structures for management of water sources. These structures when strengthened create a sense of ownership by all the stakeholders involved and promotes shared responsibility and accountability for the maintenance of water sources. A total of 944,000 people now have access to improved sanitation and safely managed water supply as a result of our WASH efforts.

Our work in Uganda highlights the fact that we are stronger and can achieve even more together! The future we want needs us. It needs our individual and collective effort to pursue systems that do not merely give immediate solutions to the most pressing needs that humanity faces but responds to these challenges in a sustainable way while protecting the rights of future generations.

Phomolo Maphosa

Country Director SNV Uganda