Ugandans in diaspora asked to venture into agribusiness

UGANDA | AGRI-BUSINESS | INVESTMENT

Ugandan youth living in the diaspora have been asked to invest in agri-business in Uganda as a way of building their country and also getting a good return on investment.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), in partnership with the Ugandan Diaspora in Agribusiness Network (UDAN), yesterday launched the first Ugandan diaspora youth match-making program to pair young Ugandan agri-preneurs with the Ugandan diaspora to facilitate diaspora investment capital into agribusiness.

According to FAO, several diaspora networks exist across the world, but they rarely focus on agribusiness, and frequently, there is a lack of diaspora-inclusive policy dialogue around investments and employment opportunities in agri-food systems.

Through the project dubbed “Strengthening Capacity to Harness Positive Effects of Migration”, FAO is working in Uganda to strengthen the enabling environment for diaspora contributions back home, while also empowering diaspora 'agri-preneurs’ networks.

During the Ugandan Youth Agri-preneur, agribusiness diaspora match-making conference, held at the Imperial Royale hotel, Dr. Antonio Querido, the FAO Uganda Country Representative, noted that the platform enables the diaspora to participate more meaningfully in the development of the agricultural sector in Uganda.

Antonio Querid,(left) Looking On While Other Participants Sign On The Art Board.

“To maximize diaspora contributions to the agri-food systems transformation, we want to match-make the youth so that we promote Ugandan agribusiness opportunities abroad, facilitate diaspora financial and non-financial contributions to the agri-food sector of Uganda; and enhance the visibility of the key role played by the diaspora in the economic development of Uganda, particularly in agribusiness,” Dr. Querido said.

The Ugandan Diaspora Agribusiness Network will bring together around sixty Ugandan diaspora agri-preneurs residing in nine countries of destination in Europe, Japan, and the USA. 

Ambassador Johnny Muthahi Muhindo, in charge of the Diaspora Desk in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, noted that the youth in the diaspora will benefit from the match through investment returns, product access, and marketing of agriculture technologies.

“We are working on the diaspora policy to address the attitude and mindset changes to attract Ugandans living abroad to invest in homes to facilitate diaspora financial and non-financial contributions to the country,” Ambassador Muhindo noted.

A survey done in 2015 showed that 80 percent of the remittances coming into Uganda go into consumption. This has had an impact on poverty reduction, especially at the household level, but beyond that, there is no significant impact.

The Chairman of Uganda Diaspora in Japan, Livingston Kyeyune, a Ugandan living and working in Japan, sharing his views on investing back home, said: “This is the way for us." We are not going to live in the diaspora forever. This is the time to rethink investing for our retirement, our families, and the country at large," Kyeyune said.

During the conference, 10 out of 33 selected youth groups on the network pitched to the willing and potential Ugandan diaspora to embrace co-investments in the various agribusiness sectors back home to ensure sustainable and life-changing economic growth.