Research
Research Agenda
NARO’s research agenda is guided by 10-year strategic plans that spell out research priorities over the period. The last strategic plan cycle, which stretched from 2008/09 to 2017/18, focused on the improvement of agricultural production and productivity.
The current strategic plan themed: “Market-Oriented Research Spurring Agro-Industrialization”, started in 2018/19 and will end in 2027/28.
To ensure inclusivity, a broad-based team comprising different stakeholders including the private sector, universities, MAAIF, NARO Secretariat and PARIs developed this strategic plan through a countrywide consultative process.
Classification
The NARO Research Agenda is classified into two broad areas of Technical and Institutional Research.
Technical Research
The Technical Research scrutinizes farm power and mechanization specifically to help move the majority of farmers from subsistence to commercial agriculture through the adoption of affordable agricultural mechanization.
Between 2008 and 2018 NARO’s agricultural engineering arm released nine (9) designs of agro-machinery prototypes and one (1) drying method. These include the fishing kiln, thresher, water pump.
Also carried out under Technical Research are food nutrition, health and industrial health, genetic resources harnessing and management, market and marketing enhancing technologies, post-harvest handling and value addition studies plus production and productivity, technology development, access and application.
Institutional Research
Under the Institutional Research Agenda, the focus is more on policy and partnerships, research capacity (human and infrastructure) and funding and funding diversity.
NARO operates under the Medium Term Expenditure Framework where funding is obtained from the Government of Uganda.
Technology and Innovations
Technology and Innovations are the outcomes of most of the research programs we take on at NARO. These technologies are grouped into crop Research interventions and Livestock Innovations.
Ongoing Research Projects
Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU)
This project seeks to chase poverty and hunger in northern Uganda by diversifying food systems for food and nutrition security, poverty reduction, and inclusive development. With an implementation period of 40 months, the DINU project targets eight (8) districts in two (2) livelihood sub-regions of Acholi and Lango. It has a total indicative budget of 6,375,941.00 EUR, of which 5,738,346.90 EUR is the requested EU contribution. The consortium partners include: SOLIDARIDAD, SG 2000, PALM Corps, Lira University, AUPWAE, AGRENES, and Muni University.
Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) Project
In August 2019, the CSA Concept was developed, presented, and approved by ASWG for submission to the MFPED Development Committee. Relatedly, the process of securing a consultant (CIAT Nairobi) to conduct a climate risk profiling for the different agro-ecological zones (12) and four (4) value chains is on-going. For capacity building, NARO and MAAIF teams will participate in a Climate Risk Profiling activity with CIAT. The CSA concept note is scheduled for presentation to the Development Committee (MFPED) on August 11th, 2020.
Feed the Future Initiative
The FtF NARO activity is a research and development initiative between the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) and USAID with the aim of promoting the use and commercialization of improved technologies with yield and nutritional enhancing characteristics in Uganda. In order to achieve this objective, the activity will focus on the continued improvement of crop genetics, bio-fortification, and integrated pest and disease management for both crops and livestock, in response to social and market needs and other emerging threats. The project started in 2020 and will last for five years at a cost of ten million dollars.
Developing a Market–Oriented and Environmentally Sustainable Beef Meat Industry in Uganda Project (MOBIP)
This project seeks to improve the competitiveness and productivity of the beef sub-sector through fostering gender-responsive, inclusive, and sustainable rangeland, agro-forestry, and water resources management in Uganda.
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