Gender mainstreaming prioritized in Agriculture Sector Strategic Plan

September 26, 2019

Seeta, 26th September 2019. As a way of promoting equitable income generation from commercial agricultural, the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries has completed formulation of guidelines for inclusion of gender-sensitive plans in the next 5-year Agriculture Sector Strategic Plan and National Development Plan (NDP3).

According to research from the Food and Agriculture Organization the United Nations to which Uganda is signatory, women’s percentage of the labour force in agriculture has risen from 40 percent in 1980 to over 60 percent in Africa.

Above: Ms. Hakuza Annunciata the Desk Officer for Gender Mainstreaming in the Ministry addressing participants during the planning sessions in Seeta.

For the percentage to be reflected in the livelihood of the women, the experts recommended that every plan in the sector be built with a gender-sensitive approach. This is the recommendation that the Ministry is fulfilling.

Women play a vital role in Uganda’s rural agricultural sector and contribute a higher than average share of crop labor in the region. They also make up more than half of Uganda’s agricultural workforce, and a higher proportion of women than men work in farming—76 percent versus 62 percent. Yet compared to men, their productivity is low.

MAAIF-World Bank Research: https://www.agriculture.go.ug/gender-mainstreaming-prioritized-in-agriculture-sector-strategic-plan/

Notes for editors

About the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF)

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries is a Ministry in the Government of Uganda charged with creating an enabling environment in the Agricultural Sector.

The Ministry formulates, reviews and implement national policies, plans, strategies, regulations and standards and enforce laws, regulations and standards along the value chain of crops, livestock and fisheries.

Vision: A competitive, profitable and sustainable agricultural sector.

Mission: To transform subsistence farming to commercial agriculture.

Strategic Objectives

  • To initiate the formulation and review of the policy and legal framework for the sector
  • To establish and implement systems for service provision in the sector
  • To strengthen and implement strategies, regulatory framework, standards, institutional structures and infrastructure for quality assurance and increased quantities of agricultural products to access and sustain local, regional and export markets
  • To design and implement sustainable capacity building programmes for stakeholders in the agricultural sector through training, re-tooling, infrastructure, provision of logistics and ICT
  • To develop strategies for sustainable food security
  • To develop appropriate agricultural technologies for improved agricultural production, productivity and value addition through research
  • To develop effective collaborative mechanisms with affiliated institutions and
  • To take lead and establish a system and institutional framework for agricultural data collection, analyses, storage and dissemination to stakeholders including Uganda Bureau of Statistics.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) is made up of four Directorates including the Directorate of Crop Resources, Directorate of Animal Resources, Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services and the Directorate of Fisheries Resources each with Departments, Divisions and Partnership Projects.

The Departments of the Ministry which do not fall directly in the above include the Department of Agricultural Planning and Development, the Human Resource Department, the Department of Finance and Administration and the Department of Agricultural Infrastructure, Mechanisation and Water for Agricultural Production.

The Ministry is also made up of seven Agencies including the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO), the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS), Cotton Development Organisation (CDO), Dairy Development Authority (DDA), Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) and Coordinating Office for the Control of Trypanosomiasis in Uganda (COCTU) and the National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Databank (NAGRC&DB).

For inquiries and media-related accreditation contact Solomon Kalema Musisi, Senior Communications Officer-Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries using the email: solomon.kalema@agriculture.go.ug