UCDA Merger: No Job Losses, Assures Minister Tumwebaze

(Kampala) – Agriculture Minister Frank Tumwebaze recently engaged with staff of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) to address concerns about their agency’s planned merger with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry, and Fisheries. This move follows the government’s adoption of a rationalization policy aimed at reducing operational costs and eliminating redundancies across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs). The policy is being implemented in line with the National Coffee (Amendment) Bill, 2024, passed by Parliament on November 6.

Tumwebaze, who spoke with UCDA staff both in person and online, emphasized that the merger was not a punishment but part of a broader government initiative to streamline operations and improve efficiency. He assured staff that most of them would be absorbed into the new coffee department under the ministry.

In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on November 19, Tumwebaze said, “I assured them that rationalization wasn’t a punishment, but rather a general government policy cutting across. I further assured them that most of them will be absorbed in the new department.” He also shared a photograph from the meeting.

The minister, who tabled the National Coffee (Amendment) Bill in March 2024, reiterated his pride in UCDA’s achievements. “No one is saying UCDA has not performed; I’m proud of my staff,” Tumwebaze stated, adding that the policy’s aim is to consolidate resources and remove duplication of efforts at the common services level.

Tumwebaze also highlighted challenges faced by the coffee sector, including understaffing. In Uganda’s 117 coffee-growing districts, UCDA currently has only 55 extension coordinators. He argued that merging the UCDA into the ministry would address such issues by creating a more unified and adequately staffed structure to serve farmers.

Speaking as both a government official and a coffee farmer from Kamwenge District, Tumwebaze assured stakeholders that the merger would be in the best interests of Uganda’s coffee-growing community. “We need to listen to each other and understand what the government wants to achieve with rationalization. I’m a coffee farmer; I represent the people of Kamwenge who are also coffee farmers, and I speak for the best interest of the people of Kamwenge,” he said.