Why MPs from Buganda and Bugisu Opposed the Coffee Bill

There was an impasse in Parliament on Thursday as MPs opposed the Speaker’s ruling regarding the rationalization of Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA).

The Bill aims to merge UCDA with the Ministry of Agriculture through the Rationalization of Government Agencies and Public Expenditure (RAPEX) policy.

The primary goal of RAPEX is to merge, mainstream, and rationalize various government agencies, commissions, and authorities to reduce redundancy, eliminate duplication, and optimize public expenditure.

However, MPs, majorly from the opposition side opposed the scrapping of UCDA, saying that it has over the years outperformed its mother Ministry by helping farmers and increasing the coffee exports.

During the session, Speaker Anita Among conducted the vote on the Bill through voice voting after which she ruled that the National Coffee Amendment Bill 2024 be read for the second time and subsequently sent to the Agriculture Committee for scrutiny.

She ruled that majority of the MPs voted ‘yes’, seconding the scrapping of UCDA.

However, other lawmakers led by the Leader of the Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi rejected the results.

Ssenyonyi, citing Rule 101 of the Parliamentary Rules of Procedure asked the Speaker to conduct the voting through a division lobby or by roll call.

The rule says that where the Speaker has announced the results of the voice voting and immediately 40 or more members stand up in their presence signifying their disapproval of the outcome of the vote, the Speaker shall conduct the voting again through roll call or by division lobby.

“Rt Hon Speaker, these are over 40 members and they are standing in disapproval of the vote that you have announced. So, I would like to draw your attention to this our rule within our rules of procedure that we conduct voting another way,” Ssenyonyi told Among on the floor of the House.

“Rt Hon Speaker, what you have announced to us, we believe the nos have carried the day, but you announced yes, and that is why we have stood up,” Ssenyonyi added.

This compelled the Speaker to redo the voting through a division lobby.

After the vote, Among announced that those who were opposed were 77, while those who voted in favor were 159.

Members of Parliament from the Buganda and Bugisu regions recently issued stern warnings against any attempt to dissolve UCDA, stating that such a move would have disastrous consequences for Uganda’s coffee industry and affect the livelihoods of over 12.5 million people.

UCDA plays a crucial role in promoting and regulating Uganda’s coffee industry by enhancing marketing, ensuring export quality, supporting research, and advancing value addition, while coordinating the sector’s activities and formulating relevant policies.

The proposal to rationalise the UCDA, as part of the wider government plan to streamline public entities, has sparked significant debate.

Many MPs argue that dissolving the authority would undo the substantial progress the country has achieved in coffee production and exports.

Recently, three parliamentary committees on agriculture; finance, and national economy met with the President and agreed on a law to integrate the UCDA into the agriculture ministry after a three-year transitional period.

The matter was then referred back to the agriculture committee, chaired by Hon. Linda Auma.

During a committee meeting on Thursday, 17 October 2024 chaired by Hon. Rachel Magoola (NRM, Bugweri District Woman Representative), which is currently reviewing the Rationalisation Bill, Hon. Michael Lulume Bayigga, Vice Chairperson of the Buganda Parliamentary Caucus and Member of Parliament for Buikwe County South, voiced strong opposition to the proposal.

Bayigga described the agriculture ministry, the institution set to absorb the UCDA’s functions, as inefficient and incapable of managing the coffee sector.

Bayigga emphasised that the UCDA’s 23-year history has been marked by success in improving the quality and marketing of Ugandan coffee, significantly boosting foreign earnings.

“Unlike other agencies that the government seeks to rationalise, this agency makes a significant contribution to the national purse. Even if it stands alone, it can finance itself. It is a cash cow that should be maintained. Through licensing and cess tax alone, UCDA generated Shs82 billion in the last financial year,” he said.

Hon. Nathan Nandala-Mafabi, Chairperson of the Bugisu Cooperative Union, also expressed concerns, highlighting UCDA’s international recognition and accreditation for overseeing Uganda’s coffee exports.

He explained that dissolving the UCDA would leave Uganda facing a lengthy and uncertain process of accrediting a new entity, such as the agriculture ministry.

Such a transition, he noted, could take years, during which Ugandan coffee would likely be placed on international watch lists, delaying exports and harming farmers and traders.

“To move that responsibility from UCDA to the Ministry of Agriculture, in my view, would take us up to 10 years. Accreditation is vital for us, and the only entity currently accredited is UCDA,” Nandala-Mafabi, also the Budadiri County West Representative, stated.

He further emphasised that Uganda’s coffee industry is self-sustaining and generates significant revenue for the country. “Coffee is not like cotton, an annual crop. Even if the price falls worldwide, coffee farmers will still earn something and can wait for better prices later. We live on it, we grow on it, and it is dangerous to tamper with people’s livelihoods,” he said.

MPs’ opposition to the rationalisation of UCDA stems from concerns that disrupting coffee exports could destabilise the livelihoods of millions of Ugandans who depend on the industry.

Both Bayigga and Nandala-Mafabi stressed that dissolving such a pivotal institution, without a viable alternative, would create economic uncertainty and potentially cripple one of Uganda’s most valuable exports.

Hon. Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi (NUP, Butambala County) and also the Chairperson of Buganda Parliamentary Caucus said dismantling UCDA could result in a situation similar to Uganda’s vanilla trade, which is now controlled by a few individuals.

“The accreditation of vanilla exports in Uganda is in the hands of two or three people—individual companies—and it is now these individuals who set the prices. They are the buyers, processors, and exporters, and that’s why the vanilla trade, which once thrived, has collapsed,” he said.

Museveni’s take

Speaking to NRM MPs recently, President Museveni said returning government agencies into their parent ministries is meant to streamline operations by eliminating the unnecessary ones.

“When the committees were here, I said to you people, with rationalization, we need to remove what is not necessary and leave the one which is absolutely necessary,” said Museveni.

“If you say Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) is so crucial, then let’s remove the ministry and then we have UCDA and I could see the MPs really getting stuck,” said Museveni, adding that he does not agree to the argument that ministries are incapable of managing the huge task ahead because their staff are permanent and pensionable saying the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) who are also permanent and pensionable are doing well.