agriculture 27 April 2026 Daily Monitor (Uganda)
Sugarcane Farmers in Greater Kibaale Face Market Woes as Local Factory License Delayed
Farmers in Kagadi, Kibaale, and Kakumiro districts are suffering heavy losses from low prices and unreliable buyers from distant mills, while plans for a local sugar factory by investor Amon Kakama remain stalled due to licensing hurdles with the Uganda Sugar Industry Stakeholders’ Council. Source: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/sugarcane-farmers-decry-market-crisis-as-factory-plan-stalls-over-license-5437704
Sugarcane growers in Uganda’s Greater Kibaale region, spanning Kagadi, Kibaale, and Kakumiro districts, are voicing deep frustration over a worsening market crisis. They depend on distant factories like Hoima Sugar and Kinyara Sugar, which offer prices too low to cover costs, trapping many in debt.
Farmers report routine losses as they harvest cane on buyers’ instructions, only for collections to be delayed or skipped. This leaves crops drying out or destroyed by fire. Kagadi District LCV Chairperson Ndibwami B. Yosia highlighted how loans for farming turn into burdens when produce sells at a loss.
John Kahuma Ashaba, a local farmer with over 40 acres ready, lost 20 acres to fire and 50 tons to drying after no-shows from buyers. Harvesting costs alone run high, with Shs600,000 per truckload including labor at Shs100 per bundle.
Prices have dropped sharply, from Shs90,000 to as low as Shs70,000 per ton, disrupting harvest cycles. Farmer Lubanga Charles noted cane now harvested once instead of three times over three years, with transport to Hoima or Masindi adding expenses.
Hope lies in a proposed factory by Ugandan investor Amon Kakama, who has 4,000 acres and supports 1,000 farmers. Plans started in 2023 but stalled without a regulator; reapplication followed the 2025 Sugar Act forming the Uganda Sugar Industry Stakeholders’ Council. Assessments in January and April confirmed sufficient supply, yet no license has been issued.
Council member Issa Budugo and Joyce Laker Santa affirmed Kakama meets all criteria, praising him as a local role model amid foreign-dominated mills. Kagadi Sugarcane Growers Cooperative Chairperson Lugese Milton decried the delay, urging a local market to create jobs and revenue.
The cooperative, with 400 members, struggles with labor and costs, once relying on prison labor before pooling resources for equipment. District leaders plan to petition the Prime Minister’s Office for resolution.
Source: Daily Monitor (Uganda)