The Chairperson, Public Accounts Committee in Parliament, Muwanga Muhammad Kivumbi, has questioned the UGX 7.4 million spent by the Ministry of Agriculture (MAAIF) on the procurement of exotic and local goats, respectively, despite the fact that 409 of the 850 goats handed to farmers perished within the first week.

This revelation was made on October 2, 2024, at parliament while presenting the findings by the Auditor General, where MPs criticized the exorbitant cost charged for the sickly goats.

On April 21, 2021, the Ministry of Agriculture signed a MoU with Sembeguya Estates Uganda Ltd (SEUL) to undertake the Goat-Roll-Out Project (GRP), valued at UGX 15 billion, in a 5-year-old project for  the seven districts of Gomba, Kyankwanzi, Nakaseke, Nakasongola, Mubende, Wakiso, and Sembabule.

“On average, each goat was bought at UGX 7.4 million and UGX 400,000 for the exotic and local breeds, respectively, which was very expensive. The Ministry of Agriculture needed to have done proper due diligence to determine the adaptability levels of the animals vis-à-vis the locations where they were to be distributed. And also the investigations carried out after the goats had been infected were done late, “Muwanga remarked.

Muwanga also added that the auditor noticed a very high mortality rate of the goats distributed under the project.

”For instance, in Nakasongola district, all the distributed 150 goats worth UGX 52.5 million died; in Gomba district, out of the 700 goats distributed worth UGX 245 million, only 259 goats, representing 37%, died. Thus, a total of 409 goats out of 850 distributed in Gomba and Nakasongola had died by the time of the audit in September 2023,” Muwanga said.

The Committee further expresses reservation on the capacity of Sembuguta Estates, the company contracted to deliver the goats, for performing poorly and causing financial loss in managing such projects, and urged Parliament to grant the committee at least 2 months to investigate specifically the goats project under the Ministry of Agriculture.

In response, the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry, and Fisheries, headed by Frank Tumwebaze, informed the Committee that the Ministry suspended the activities of the project, carried out epidemiological investigations, and established that the goats were dying of Pestes de Petite Ruminatia (Goat Plague/PPR), a highly infectious viral disease of goats and sheep that was resolved through vaccination drives.