HOW SCIENCE IS CREATING JOBS AND BOOSTING UGANDA'S ECONOMY

By Serina Nagujja

Uganda aims to build a USD 500 billion economy by 2040. To achieve this goal, the country must boost agricultural productivity, add value to local crops, and create stable jobs. Today, national research institutions are leading this transformation.

Through the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) helps young innovators turn raw farming ideas into profitable businesses.

This initiative addresses a major hurdle for Uganda's youth. While more than 800,000 students graduate from universities and vocational institutes each year, only a small fraction secure formal jobs. To bridge this gap, NARO runs business incubation programs that teach young entrepreneurs food processing, packaging, quality control, and marketing.

Turning Beans into a Brisk Business Ramizah Namatovu, the founder of HarvGuard Ezzy Beans, is among many young entrepreneurs benefiting from NARO’s training. After struggling to find a job, she decided to start her own agribusiness.

Through NARO's incubation program, she learned to process ordinary beans into a fast-cooking, ready-to-eat product. Workers boil, dehydrate, and package the beans so consumers can cook a nutritious meal in just ten minutes.

Today, a 200-gram packet of Ezzy Beans sells for UGX 3,000. Her growing business already employs five young people in processing, packaging, and distribution.

"After failing to find a job, I decided to create my own opportunity," Ramizah says. "NARO's training gave me the skills to develop a product that now creates jobs for others as well."

Taking Science from the Lab to the Market NARO designed its incubation program to help researchers and entrepreneurs move ideas from the laboratory to store shelves.

Cephas Nuwakunda, a scientist at NARO, explains the program's primary goal: "We want to help innovators develop market-ready products. By focusing on quality control and official certification, we ensure that these local businesses can compete in the open market."

To make a real difference, research must improve everyday lives, adds Frank Mugabi, NARO's Head of Communications.

"Research must create a real impact. We prioritize quality control and market access so these innovators can build lasting businesses."

Beyond Beans: Driving Broad Growth Ezzy Beans is just one success story. NARO continues to develop new processing technologies for coffee, grains, sorghum, and fruits. These innovations help farmers cut post-harvest losses, increase their profits, and earn higher incomes.

For Uganda to achieve lasting economic growth, scientific research must move beyond laboratories and into active businesses, homes, and communities. For self-starters like Ramizah Namatovu, agricultural innovation is already proving that science can create jobs, secure food supplies, and transform lives. Ends.