The Director of the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO), Dr. Moses Biruma, has appealed to the government for a significant increase in funding to enable the organisation to expand its research and technology dissemination activities.

He noted that NARO currently operates on approximately shs800 million annually, but at least shs4 billion is required to significantly improve its capacity to develop and roll out critical technologies to farmers.

Dr. Biruma made this statement on Saturday, September 5, 2026, before the Parliamentary Committee on Science, Technology, and Innovation, which is headed by Kole North MP, Dr. Samuel Opio Acuti.

The meeting, held in Arua City, also saw the committee emphasise the importance of combining indigenous knowledge from local communities with scientific research to develop technologies that are better suited to Uganda’s changing climate and evolving agricultural needs.

Citing challenges affecting the center, the Director pointed to shortages of transport, basic laboratory equipment, and inadequate training facilities.

Also read: NARO told to account for shs1.3 billion surplus expenditure

Following his report, the Parliamentary Committee on Science, Technology, and Innovation called for a wider roll-out of agricultural technologies developed by NARO to farmers across the entire country.

While addressing the committee, chairperson Dr. Samuel Opio Acuti, who represents Kole North in Kole district, Lango sub-region, stated that more investment in specialised personnel and technology is urgently needed.

He emphasised that such investment would increase agricultural production and strengthen the contribution of research to the national economy.

Chairperson Acuti noted that the committee has identified several challenges hindering the wider adoption and scaling of agricultural technologies. These include inadequate staffing, weak linkages with local seed multipliers, insufficient infrastructure for artificial insemination of cattle, and limited access to irrigation and mechanisation technologies.

He specifically mentioned technologies such as the Mubende goat breed, coffee production, improved seed varieties, and climate-smart agriculture as innovations that should be taken directly to the grassroots.

To that end, the committee assessed technologies and innovations in livestock and crop production, beekeeping, and climate-smart agriculture, among other areas, to establish how effectively these innovations are moving from research centers to farming communities.

In addition, the committee noted that technologies with the potential to improve agricultural productivity should not remain confined to demonstration and research sites but must be scaled up and made accessible to farmers nationwide.

The committee made these calls during an oversight visit to Abi Zardi in Arua City, one of the institutions being assessed as part of its wider field visits to science, technology, and innovation institutions across the country.

During the visit, it was also revealed that the entire NARO has only two bee specialists, despite the immense importance of honey production to both Uganda’s local and export markets.