Buganda Kingdom Encourages Youth to Embrace Coffee Farming for Economic Empowerment

The Buganda Kingdom is actively promoting coffee farming as a lucrative venture and a significant avenue for economic empowerment among its youth. This effort is part of the “Situla Omutindo” (Raise the Standard) initiative, which focuses on enhancing the quality of work and achieving greater economic progress, with young people at its core.

As part of the initiative, members of the Buganda Youth Council recently visited the National Agricultural Coffee Research Institute (NaCORI) to gain knowledge and skills essential for improving coffee quality and value. The goal is to equip the youth to capitalize on opportunities within the entire coffee value chain, from seedling production to final processing.

Minister for Youth, Sports, and Talent, Robert Sserwanga Ssalongo, urged the youth to innovate in their agricultural practices. He emphasized that individual development is the foundation for community progress and encouraged collaboration, suggesting that those with land could partner with those possessing energy and skills.

Experts at NaCORI commended the youth’s eagerness to learn and encouraged them to apply the acquired knowledge to generate income and achieve financial independence. The Buganda Kingdom’s Secretary General for Youth, Laziya Natamu, highlighted that such training programs would enable young people to enhance even small-scale farms through access to expert knowledge.

Participants expressed that the training inspired them to consider coffee-related businesses and apply improved farming techniques. The youth also explored opportunities in cocoa cultivation and visited a coffee processing facility, learning about value addition techniques. These activities underscore the Kingdom’s commitment to empowering its youth with practical agricultural skills and improving household incomes.