The numerous black-and-white dairy cows grazing across farms in Kyankwanzi district and neighbouring Ngoma, Nakaseke district, are a clear sign of the transformation in cattle keeping that has taken place over the last 15 years.
Until recently, most of these farms kept local breeds primarily for beef and as part of the traditional cattle-rearing practices.
Today, the area has embraced improved dairy breeds, leading to a significant increase in milk production.
According to the 2021 Uganda National Bureau of Statistics Livestock Census, Buganda North — comprising Kyankwanzi and Nakaseke — is now among Uganda’s top milk-producing areas, generating about 750 million litres annually.
This places it behind Ankole (with one billion litres) and Buganda South (900 million litres).
In terms of improved milking, Buganda North ranks second nationwide — with about 740,000 head of cattle — following Ankole, which has over one million.
Despite these advances in dairy farming, one major challenge threatens to derail progress — the bad state of roads.
Bad roads setback
“We make losses because the roads into our farms are bad,” says Mohammed Kakooza, the vice-chairperson of Kanyogoga Kigando Farmers’ Co-operative Society in Ngoma.
Monday Vianney John Mary, the founder and director of Soul Foods Limited in Ngoma, Nakaseke district, echoes the concern. He says the bad road infrastructure affects milk transport and storage.
“During the rainy seasons, roads become impassable, disrupting the collection and delivery of milk,” he says.
Every week, an average of 50 trucks visit Ngoma to collect both milk and beef cattle. During the dry season, they endure the dusty conditions, while in the rainy season, they struggle through muddy and flooded roads.
“It becomes very difficult to move the produce from farms to the co-operative,” Monday said.
In addition to livestock, Kyankwanzi district is a major maize-producing area, yet it also suffers from poor access roads. Except for a few tarmacked bridges, most of these routes remain murram and become nearly impassable during the rainy season.
Feeder roads such as Ngoma-Kanyogoga and Wakyato-Gayaza-Mityomere are in even worse condition, despite being located in key milk and cattle production zones.
“It’s not just about transporting milk,” Godson Rwabushande, a farmer, said. Kyankwanzi district has four vibrant livestock markets namely, Lubiri (Kyankwanzi sub-county), Mbali (Nsambya sub-county), Katanabirwa (Butemba Town Council), Lwanyetta (Wattuba sub-county) While a milk cooler has recently been installed in Buyana, Mukono district, the road from Ngoma town to the site is still in poor condition.
“The community has enough milk to fully utilise the new facility, but the road network must improve to ease transport,” Dan Abaho, the chairperson of the Buyana co-operative milk group.
“We have heavily stocked livestock and milk-producing areas like Kijumba sub-county. Tens of trucks go there for milk and cattle, but whenever it rains, the roads become impassable. This is why I urge the Government to construct ‘milk roads’, just as it has built ‘oil roads’ in the oil-producing areas,” Enock Nyongole, the MP for Nakaseke North, said.
Hope on the horizon?
In 2018, the OPEC Fund for International Development extended a loan of $11.5m (about sh41b) as the co-financing for the upgrading of the Luwero-Butalangu road, which spans 29.6km and connects Nakaseke residents to the Kampala-Gulu highway.
The Government also pledged to upgrade Butalangu-Ngoma road, Butalangu-Kapeeka-Kituuma road and Kapeeka-Kisuule road.
Main access roads
1. From Bukomero in Kiboga district to Kyankwanzi district: A wide murram road stretching about 70km
2. From Kyankwanzi district to Ngoma, Nakaseke district: A short bridge over River Mayanja, built and tarmacked by the Government over 10 years ago.
3. From Luwero to Ngoma, Nakaseke district: Via Butalangu-Wakyato, roughly 80km on murram road.
4. From Katugo, Nakasongola district to Ngoma, Nakaseke district: Through Kaweweta.
5. From Masindi district to Ngoma: Via the Bulyamushenyi bridge.
6. From the north: Bukwiri (after Kiboga) to Kyankwanzi.
LEAD PHOTO CAPTION: Monday Vianney John Mary, the founder and director of Soul Foods Limited in Ngoma, Nakaseke district on his farm.
