Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization Service Delivery Models Case Studies

1. Eastern Africa Farmers’ Federation (EAFF)
Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization
Service Delivery Models and Case Studies:
Experiences of farmers’ organizations:
Caleb Gumisiriza
Director of Policy
Imperial Royale, Hotel, Kampala, Uganda
9th-12th December 2019

2. Contents
1. Introduction/ membership
2. EAFF strategic plan 2013-2020
3. Achievements to date per strategic objectives
4. Partnerships
5. Add
6. Add

3. 10 countries; 23 apex organizations
Our scope is the Eastern Africa – Membership
scope in EAC; COMESA & IGAD….
-Producer co-operatives;
- Commodity Associations;
-Women organizations;
-Lobby & advocacy based ;
EAFF membership
EAFF Vision
A Prosperous and Cohesive Farming
Community in Eastern Africa
Currently (> 20 million farmers)
• Launched in 2001 - operations from
2005
• Purpose – Regional Integration process
• Members are producers of crops;
livestock; fisheries & Agroforestry

4. EAFF 2nd Strategic Plan (2013-2020)

5. EAFF as dynamic policy platform
• To enhance the opportunities of East African farmers to
participate and contribute effectively in food security policy
dialogue for a better farmer livelihood.
• EAFF is deeply involved in agriculture issues at the regional
level…signed MoUs with EAC, COMESA & IGAD and have been
instrumental in the regional CAADP investment plans;
• We have MoUs with regional private sector i.e. East Africa Grain
Council (EAGC) and the East Africa Business Council (EABC)
• We seat in the board of ASARECA, FARA and RUFORUM which
are regional research institutions

6. Our Policy interventions
4. 27 Policy positions
▫ Climate Change: EAFF/SACAU joint position to UNFCCC in March 2015
▫ Livestock: strategies to implement the EAC Livestock Policy
5. Strengthened collaborations:
▫ EALA / EAC: EAC Co-operatives Act; SACAU: Climate Change
▫ EAC Council of Ministers, esp. Rw, Tz, Ug
▫ Ministries of Co-operatives: Ky, Tz, Ug
1. EAC Co-operative Societies Act, 2015: Assent & implementation
(Road-map). Need to re-strategize (Political & Technical approach)
2. Agriculture Budgets: Comparative analysis of national budgets
3. CAADP: signatory to EAC Compacts; COMESA investment plan
4. Regional trade: EAC Staple Foods Standards Committee, EAC Food &
Nutrition Policy
5. Capacity building for our members: Policy tools, developing policy
plans, policy databases

7. Solutions Made/planned
• Participation in the formulation of Agric.
Mechanisation Policies and strategies
• Lobbying government and advocating for
favourable agricultural mechanisation policies and
programs
• Linking farmers with private sector companies for
better terms for accessing machinery e.g. ENGSOL
• Negotiations with financial service providers for
funding farmers to access machinery e.g., Equity
Bank
• Working with government on tractor schemes

8. Specific challenges to SAM
• High cost of machinery
• Limited service centres to service and maintain machinery
• Difficulty in access of spare parts especially for tractors
• Unsuitable soils in some regions
• Limited capacity of farmers and farmers organisations to
manage mechanisation
• Limited and unpredictable markets
• Existence of subsistence farmers who are not yet
commercially oriented
• Poorly organised commodity value chains, with no clear link
to the markets
• Lack of business acumen by the farmers organisations
• The appropriateness of some mechanisation technologies is
still a challenge

9. Agribusiness
Strategy
Warehousing
Value
addition
Credit
(nano loans)
E-extension
Agric inputs

10. Partnerships and alliances

11. Conclusion & Future Prospects
• Great strides have been made towards agricultural
mechanisation but only covering few and mostly
large scale, well organised commercial farmers;
• Inclusive approaches, programs and policies are
key to ensure that even smallholder farmers can
be targeted
• Governments need to strengthen Farmers
Organisations so that farmers can better be
organised to be able to access, run and manage
mechanisation in a more sustainable manner.

12. Thank you