Civil society organisations are calling for wider use of solar energy in agriculture to help farmers cope with increasingly unreliable rainfall and other climate-related disruptions threatening food production and household incomes.
Anthony Mugeere, a research fellow at the Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE), said solar power could support farmers across the agricultural value chain, from irrigation and livestock production to processing, cooling and storage.
‘Solar has always been understood as light, charging phones, but we are saying, whatever you do, whatever form of livelihood you think of, how you can benefit from that energy,’ Mugeere said.
‘For the farmers, we are saying, every agriculture value chain, from planting to irrigation, to harvesting, to harvest processing, to storage, can we think of a solar solution?’
Mugeere said greater use of solar-powered equipment could also reduce farmers’ reliance on generators and other fossil-fuel-powered machinery, helping cut greenhouse gas emissions.
‘Solar is important because that energy is free. And it’s available, so if you leave it to just go to waste, and go on buying a generator, to putting hydro and all these things, then you are the loser,’ he said.
Mugeere was speaking at a capacity-building workshop in Kampala on integrating productive use of solar energy (PUSE) into national and local government plans and budgets. The workshop was organised by ACODE with support from Heifer International Uganda under the Distributed Renewable Energy Ecosystem Model (DREEM) Hub project.
The project aims to expand the use of renewable energy across the agricultural value chain to improve farmers’ incomes, strengthen resilience to climate shocks and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Farmers in parts of Uganda are already facing prolonged dry spells that have affected crops, while livestock farmers have reported declining pasture and water availability, reducing production and threatening food security and incomes.
Mugeere urged the government to include PUSE in national and local government budgets and strategic plans, while calling on civil society groups to strengthen advocacy at district and community level.
He said larger civil society organisations could engage the ministries of Finance, Energy and Agriculture through policy submissions, strategic meetings and national budget conferences, while community-based organisations could take the advocacy to local governments and communities.
An ACODE Capacity Needs Assessment for 2026 found that although civil society organisations play an important role in farmer mobilisation, climate-smart agriculture and value-chain support, capacity gaps continue to limit their ability to scale up PUSE interventions.
The assessment, however, identified an enabling policy environment, growing demand for climate-smart agricultural solutions and opportunities for private-sector engagement and value-chain development as potential drivers for expanding the use of solar energy in productive activities.
Ronald Wabwire, programme technical lead at Heifer International Uganda, said solar-powered irrigation, milk cooling and water pumping could help farmers maintain production and improve the quality of agricultural products despite climate pressures.
‘We have challenges with climate change, yet irrigation can be a game changer. We are talking about irrigation systems powered by solar, how can we use solar energy as a cold storage solution? Talk about solarising milk collection centres, having solar water pumps and having forage cutters that are powered by solar,’ Wabwire said.
‘By promoting PUSE, we are looking at harnessing all these technologies to ensure that production and productivity is enhanced and also quality is improved.’
Wabwire said the high cost of some solar technologies remained a major barrier, but partnerships between private companies, financial institutions and government subsidy programmes could improve farmers’ access to the equipment.
He also encouraged farmers to form organised groups, saying collective approaches could make it easier to access support and technology. He said Heifer International Uganda aims to reach one million households by 2030.
Julius Ochieng, a senior energy officer at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, said the government was supporting farmers to access solar equipment through the Uganda Energy Credit Capitalisation Company (UECCC).
He said accredited companies can provide solar equipment to eligible farmers under subsidy arrangements covering up to 80 percent of the cost.
‘There are pre-qualified lists of companies where farmers can approach the companies and they benefit from the subsidies,’ Ochieng said.
He added that the government, through the Uganda Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers (UgIFT) programme under the Ministry of Agriculture, also supports smallholder farmers to acquire individual irrigation equipment through government-supported matching grants.