Tonny Odokonyero, a Research Fellow at the Economic Policy Research Centre (EPRC) says that the influx of people to the Albertine region is causing demand to outstrip supply for meat, vegetables, and milk.
Ankole cows at Buhuka on the shores of Lake Albert where CNOOC's Kingfisher Project is located. EPRC says there is shortage of beef and milk in the Albertine. Credit Wambi Michael
A
preliminary study by Economic Policy Research Centre (EPRC) has revealed that
as oil and gas developments kick off in the Albertine Region, the demand for
meat and milk has outstripped the supply.
Tonny Odokonyero, a Research Fellow at the Economic Policy Research Centre
(EPRC) presented the finding of the survey commissioned by the Petroleum
Authority, agriculture Business Initiative (aBi), and Stanbic Bank at the just
ended 3rd National Content Conference.
The study
was to uncover other linkages beyond the demand and supply of food in the oil
and gas districts.
According to Odokonyero, the influx of people to the Albertine region is
causing demand to outstrip supply for meat, vegetables, and milk.
“If you consider the core oil districts and spillover districts, you find that
the rate at which demand is growing is faster in the core districts than the spillover
districts,” said Odonkonyero.
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He said it means that the food demand pressure is more in the core oil
districts than in the spillover districts like Mubende, Kyakwanzi, and others
due to the development of oil and gas infrastructure. The survey finds
that food sufficiency is being driven by markets in terms of food purchases.
The researchers found that while there are surpluses in cereals and pulses,
Albertine is facing a lot of supply gaps in terms of meat, milk, and
vegetables.
Apart from meat vegetables, milk, and meat, food production in the Albertine is
likely to be affected by a lack of productivity-enhancing inputs like
fertilizer and pesticides.
“Access to
inputs is a big challenge. Probably the different players in oil and gas can
look at supporting or investing in that area. By supporting the different value
chains of agriculture” Odokonyero suggested.
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boosting productivity.”//
The
Petroleum Authority has in the past indicated that linkages like agriculture
and other services to the oil and gas sector could earn the country up to $8
billion.
An Agribusiness Specialist, Dr. Birungi Korutaro said her organization
Kilimo Trust quantified the demands of one of the oil and gas operators in the
Albertine and found that it needed over 5,630 metric tons of 17 horticulture
products but found that there were likely to be shortages in supply.
“We still
have challenges. You see a smallholder farmer producing small volumes. The
quality they produce isn't that good, the newspapers are awash with
headlines of chemical residues in our food, ” she said
Korutaro suggests that farmers in the Albertine need to be supported
otherwise they will be spectators as others reap from oil and gas.
