The European Union (EU) has allocated 10 million euros (37.2 billion Shillings) to Uganda to finance food production and the resilience of food systems.
The funding is part of a 600 million euros allocation from the EU to support the most vulnerable African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries to cope with the unjust consequences of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, notably the current food crisis and related economic shocks.
EU Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen is optimistic that the support will help shoulder the consequences felt worldwide as a result of the war in Ukraine. Uganda is among the countries globally that have faced an increase in fuel, food and fertiliser prices since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
“In the short-term, we are helping families with food and nutrition assistance and helping countries to buy the food they need; we also work on solutions to address current and future risks by investing in local sustainable food systems to enhance resilience,” she said
Meanwhile, EU’s Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič said the newly allocated funds will help those in a dire situation meet their emergency food needs. “The EU remains committed to supporting the most vulnerable. However, humanitarian aid cannot substitute efforts needed to increase the resilience of the most vulnerable populations. Sustainable development-oriented solutions to end hunger are key.” reads part of a statement issued by the EU delegation in Uganda.
The decision to redirect 600 million euros to food security in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries was announced by European Commission President Von der Leyen in June 2022 and the allocation received a green light from EU Member States last month.
According to the EU, this new support will fund actions to contribute to increasing the EU contribution to the Agricultural Business Initiative (ABI) to support competitive, profitable and sustainable agriculture and agribusiness sectors.
Through this additional support, Agricultural Business Initiative will be able to provide financial assistance to agri-businesses, smallholder farmers and farmer associations to help them improve their systems, increase their production and productivity and their access to markets. It is expected to scale up the programme to increase resilience to food shocks of chronic and acute food insecure households living in Karamoja.
Since 2016, food insecurity in Uganda has progressively increased, driven by conflict and insecurity, including in neighbouring countries; delayed and erratic seasonal rains; and the socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19.
The world is facing a global food crisis, aggravated by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The recently published mid-year update of the Global Report on Food Crises estimates that up to 205.1 million people currently face high levels of acute food insecurity in 45 countries covered by the Global Report on Food Crises 2022.
