Silence on Establishment of the Agricultural cooperative bank, Renders Uganda’s economy at stake.
NATIONAL: Former aspiring MP Ntungamo Municipality Rtd. Lt. Magufuri Mugisha Moses has re- petitioned the speaker of Uganda’s Parliament Rt. Hon. Anita Annet Among over the Establishment of an Agriculture and Cooperative Bank in Uganda.
In a letter dated 8th April 2024 to the Speaker, Hon. Magufuri Mugisha made a reminder on establishment of an agricultural & cooperative bank in Uganda showing a need for a single basket from Parish level across the country to help push the citizenry towards commercial farming.
He stated the government has tried Different interventions including; Crop finance, Entandikwa, NAADS, Youths Livelihood funds, NUSAF Funds, Emyooga, etc. which he said have not been able to effectively remedy the glaring agricultural financing gaps.
Lt. Magufuri Mugisha added that ongoing interventions like Emyooga and Parish Development Model (PDM) alone will not take Uganda into middle income status as well as creating 70million jobs showing need for a comprehensive and special financial approach.
During the 58th Independence Day celebrations day, President of Uganda Yoweri K Museveni noted that farmers get exploited by commercial banks whose interest is profit making without due regard to farming conditions such as gestation period, also on several occasions categorically.
The President added that He was misguided to close Uganda’s local financial institutions which is affecting the economy.
Cooperative Bank was closed in May 1999 by the Bank of Uganda due to its continued poor performance and non-compliance with regulatory capital adequacy requirements.
Rtd. Lieutenant Moses Mugisha Magufuri is a National Chief Coordinator for Transformer cadres Association Uganda, a National Chief Coordinator for Agricultural Cooperative Bank Promoters and currently working with Operation Wealth creation as procurement and seed monitoring officer.
