By Eng.Kiiza Idiri Kamuntu
(?️ The Keen Eye)
✍?Embrace capital initiatives aimed at poverty alleviation and generating Household income.
1. The Parish Development model
2. Emyooga
3. Operation Wealth Creation
4. The Four Acre model
▪️ *The Parish Development Model(PDM)*
The initiative aims at springing up the nearly 68% of households from subsistence economy to commercial production.
Government is set to roll out the implementation of the Parish Development Model, the latest of attempts to turn around service delivery and alleviate poverty at the grassroots.
The model will see development activities planned for and executed in parishes, as the lowest level unit for planning and development, as government moves to advance the benefits of decentralisation.
The Parish Development Model (PDM) is intended to be an extension of the whole-of-government approach to development—and is founded on a parish, as the lowest administrative and operational hub for delivering services closer to the people and is intended to ultimately ensure the transformation of the subsistence households into the money economy.
In effect, if successfully implemented, the PDM will increase household incomes and improve quality of life of Ugandans resulting in a total transformation of the subsistence households into the money economy, significantly reducing poverty and vulnerability in the country.
Museveni has appealed to the members of the NRM Caucus to support the government’s decision to put more money 1.1 trillion in the Parish Development Model to fast-track economic transformation at the grass root
The Parish Development Model encompasses seven pillars that include;
#Production
#Infrastructure
# Economic services
# Financial inclusion
# Community data governance
# Administration
# Mindset change.
Key among the activities is the recruitment of Parish Chiefs, establishment and training of Parish Development Committees, set up of the Community Information System (CIS) and mobilization of the masses at national and local government level.
▪️ *Presidential Initiative on Wealth and Job Creation (Emyooga)*
1. What is Emyooga?
Emyooga is a word derived from a local Ugandan dialect (Runyankole) to refer to specialized skills enterprises/groups. It is a presidential initiative aimed at wealth and job creation.
2. When was it launched?
Emyooga was launched by H.E the President of Uganda in August 2019 as part of Government’s continuous strategies to transform 68% of Ugandan homesteads from subsistence to market-oriented production.
3. What are the objectives of the Emyooga initiative?
Increased employment/ job opportunities;
Increased access to specialized financial services to rural areas particularly to women/youth/PWDs;
Improved household income of the project beneficiaries;
Enhanced entrepreneurial capacity of different categories through sensitization, skilling and tooling.
4. Which specialized skills enterprises/groups does the initiative target?
The Emyooga initiative targets 18 specialized enterprises namely:
#Boda Bodas
#Women Entrepreneurs
#Carpenters
#Salon Operators
#Taxi Operators
#Restaurant Owners
#Welders
#Market Vendors
#Youth Leaders
#Persons with Disabilities (PWDs)
#Produce Dealers
#Mechanics
#Tailors
#Journalists
#Performing Artists
#Veterans
#Fishermen
#Elected Leaders
5. What is the target area of operation?
The SACCOs for each category will be organized at constituency level with operations at the parish level through established parish associations.
6. Who can benefit from this initiative?
All economically active Ugandans aged 18 and above can benefit from this initiative. However, members under the youth category should not exceed 35 years of age.
7. How will identification of eligible members be conducted?
The identification of individuals subscribing to a given category or enterprise will be done at the village level with support from the LC 1 leadership.
8. How does one subscribe to a category?
First ensure that you are engaged in one of the 18 enterprises targeted in this program. Then contact your LC1 leader for subscription to a Parish level association in line with your area of specialization. Ensure that the group you are subscribed to is registered by the District Community Development Officer.
9. How many members form an association?
Each parish association should have 7-30 members enlisted for a particular specialized enterprise. Should the number exceed 30, another group of the same specialized enterprise shall be formed. For example, if Kakoba Ward Bodaboda Association has 90 members, it will be split into three groups of 30 members each and named Kakoba Ward Bodaboda Association A, B and C.
10. Are members required to pay any fees?
Each member of a group will pay membership and subscription fees as agreed upon by the group. Both membership and annual subscription fees payable by each parish association to the constituency SACCO shall not exceed Ush.20,000/-.
11. What is the delivery model of Emyooga initiative?
The Emyooga initiative is financed by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development through the Department of Microfinance.
The Microfinance Support Centre Ltd (MSC) is responsible for the planning, management, budgeting, reporting and accountability of all funds disbursed for the program. This includes funds disbursements to the groups and training of members and leaders.
The District Task Forces headed by the Resident District Commissioners (RDCS) and comprised of District Commercial Officers (DCOs), District Community Development Officers (DCDOs), Local Council V Chairpersons (LCV) and District NRM Chairpersons (DNRMC), are charged with mobilizing communities to participate in the program.
12. How much money is available for the program?
Government set aside Ush.100bn for the program, with each constituency receiving 560 million shillings.
■ *Operation Wealth Creation (OWC)*
OWC is the Uganda Government Presidential Initiative to improve household incomes through poverty eradication, create wealth & ensure overall prosperity for Ugandans.
The overall objective of OWC is to create a system that facilitates effective national socio- economic transformation with a focus on raising household incomes for poverty eradication and sustainable wealth creation.
OWC was launched by H.E The President of the Republic of Uganda in July 2013 as an intervention to efficiently facilitate National Socio-economic transformation with a focus on raising household income and creating wealth by transforming subsistence farmers into commercial farmers to end poverty.
*Specific objectives OWC*
1. To mobilize the masses to engage in commercial agricultural activities to boost their household incomes;
2. To distribute production inputs equitably and timely to boost production and productivity at household level;
3. To facilitate rural technological upgrading to allow smallholder farmers to transform themselves into small-scale industrialists;
4. To stimulate local and community enterprise development across the country;
5. To facilitate infrastructure development particularly in rural areas.
6. To empower the 68% of the population outside the money economy.
■ *The Four Acre model*
Museveni’s four-acre prosperity formula is possible
Over the last decade, President Yoweri Museveni has preached and practiced the “gospel” of prosperity through ditching subsistence farming to commercial farming.
In so doing, the President has made it clear that one does not need large chunks of land to prosper. All it takes is four acres, well laid out and families would shine!
But his message has always been directed to leaders, a majority of whom are not in commercial farming- or farming of any scale. So they would hear him talk and leave the message at the venue without a follow up or implementation plan.
Agriculture, being the biggest employer of the population, should be used to grow the economy and also better the lives of our people. Luckily, many of our people have woken up to the presidential call for people to prosper through agriculture.
Under the four-acre programme, one acre is used for cash crops, say colonal coffee. Four hundred and fifty seedlings are planted at a cost of Shs 500 each, amounting to Shs 22, 500. At maturity, each coffee plant yields between 5-7 kilograms of coffee. If sold unprocessed, it would earn the farmer between Shs 9 and12.6m, annually.
Another acre of land is allocated to fruit production, for example mangoes. Thirty three seedlings at a cost of Shs4, 000 each amounts to Shs 132, 000. After maturity, the farmer harvests an average of 800 fruits per mango tree and if sold in a local market at Shs 500 per fruit, the farmer reaps an average of Shs 21m annually.
Another acre is used for dairy production on which, for example, pasture (elephant grass, legume and others) can be grown and one dairy cow kept. On average, a Friesian Holstein cow will produce 20 litres of milk daily. If five (5) litres are consumed by the family and 15 litres are sold at Shs 1, 200 per litre, the farmer fetches Shs 2m annually.
The last one acre is used for growing of food crops such as maize, beans, ground nuts, cassava and others. On this acre, the farmer should maximize the benefit of intercropping to ensure maximum yields. This should common with legumes that help in fixing the soil with nitrogen, intercropped with other plants at a given rate and design as recommended by experts.
Kind Regards
*Eng. Kiiza Idiri Kamuntu*
?️The Keen Eye
☑️The Patriot
☑️ NRM Cadre
☑️ National Coordinator for Team Thorough-YKM
