• Uganda, South Korea launch $4M rice seed project under K-Rice Belt
• Tochi scheme to yield 13,000 tons of certified seeds yearly
• Aims to cut imports; Uganda averaged 344,000 tons annually (2020–23)

In Entebbe last Saturday, the Ugandan Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) and its South Korean counterpart (MAFRA) launched the "Development of an African Rice Seed Cultivation Complex" project. The new initiative, part of the K-Rice Belt Program, aims to support the development of rice farming.

With a budget of $4 million, the five-year project will rehabilitate 50 hectares in the Tochi irrigation scheme in the country's north. A statement on the Ministry of Agriculture's website says the project will also produce nearly 13,000 tons of high-yield certified seeds annually, which will serve as a reference for local farmers.

According to local news outlet Daily Monitor, the seeds are expected to yield an estimated 5 tons per acre, or about 12 tons per hectare. By comparison, Uganda's average annual rice yield was only 1.4 tons per hectare between 2020 and 2023, according to the FAO.

For Kampala, the challenge will be to increase local rice production, which is still insufficient to meet domestic demand. FAO data shows that Uganda imported an annual average of 344,000 tons of rice, with an average value of nearly $152 million, between 2020 and 2023 to meet its needs.

Beyond the technical and financial support provided by Seoul, the success of the initiative will depend on the ability of local cooperatives to adopt the innovations.

Stéphanas Assocle