At least 3,000 direct jobs will be created for Ugandans as Itracom Fertilizers Uganda SMC Ltd, a subsidiary of Itracom Fertilizer, as the Burundian firm starts the construction of the multi-million dollar organic fertilizer producing factory in Kampiringisa, Mpigi District.
The ground levelling of the $180 million (Shs631.3 billion) project which sits on part of the 133-acre-land, is underway, with officials saying the final completion of the construction shall be done in 18 months.
Upon completion, the project will employ up to 1,000 technical staff and as well create more than 100,000 indirect jobs to thousands of locals especially farmers in the cattle corridor.
‘We expect to produce one million tons of organic and orga-mineral fertilisers every year which shall need at least 500,000 metric tons of cow-dung that shall be supplied by local farmers from the cattle corridor,’ Mr Jeanluc Bigirimana, the country representative of Intracom Fertilizers Uganda -SMC Ltd told reporters during a guided media tour around the facility.
This literally implies that the fertiliser firm which is extending its leg in Uganda after having been established in Burundi, Kenya, and Tanzania, will need a minimum of 1,300 tons of cow-dung per day.
Data from the 2021 National Livestock Census indicated that there are 1.6 million cattle in Buganda Sub-region, 1.8 million in Ankole, and 2.4 million in Karamoja Sub-region. The report further indicated that 6.8 million households were at least keeping cattle.
‘We shall train farmers on how to handle the cow dung before supplying to us,’ Mr Bigirimana said
Officials from Intracom Fertilizers Uganda -SMC Ltd, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) in the presence of the Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, in August last year, signed the offtake agreement which activated the project.
The initiative, which was backed by a presidential directive, resulted in the establishment of a $180m (Shs631.3b) state-of-the-art organic fertilizer factory in Kampiringisa that will enhance agricultural productivity through sustainable practices.
The new factory that will be constructed on 133 acres of land provided by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MOGLSD) in Kampiringisa, will produce organic fertilizer using cow dung and additional minerals.
Ms Nabbanja said, ‘With an investment of $180 million, Intracom Fertilizer Uganda aims to complete the project within 18 months. The facility will have a production capacity of 250,000 metric tons annually, with an offtake agreement guaranteeing purchase, provided the fertilizer is manufactured in Uganda.’
Mr Adrian Ntigacika, the proprietor of Intracom Fertilizer who attended the signing ceremony said that the firm’s broader plan is to establish several facilities, including an Agricultural bank, an Agricultural Insurance company, and logistics business for transporting fertilizer, and a factory making plastic packaging materials for the fertilizers.
Mr Museveni in the letter that was read by Ms Nabbanja chest-thumped on how the company will save Ugandans millions of dollars spent on importing fertilisers, which are later sold expensively to farmers.
‘Fertilizer use in the country is no longer an option. We have used our land for ages with little or no replacement of nutrients, which is aggravated by bad practices, deforestation, bush burning, etc. Production of key crops like tea, coffee, oil palm, maize, and Irish potato is therefore no longer profitable without fertilizer application. We are currently spending about $300m,’ the letter read in part
He added, ‘Our national fertilizer application is 15kg per acre compared to the required 50kg per acre. We are currently spending $300m annually on fertilizer imports. During January to June 2023, the country imported 150 metric tons of fertilizers giving a projected annual import of $300 million.’
Mr Bijirimana told reporters on Saturday that the factory is beginning to manifest following this paper work.
‘Right now, power has been extended to the site as it was agreed, we have also developed our own water as we wait for what the government promised but all I can say is that we are on course,’ he said.
A demonstration farm where Irish potatoes, beans, maize and other plants have been planted was established on part of this land where they are using the fertiliser being produced by similar firms in Tanzania.
Musa Majid Marjan the Farm manager at Itracom Fertilizers Uganda -SMC Ltd said that the success of the fertiliser on the crops they have grown is a ray hope that it will be useful to Ugandans who are suffering from expensive fake fertilisers.