UNOC’s bulk procurement system and strategic fuel reserves provide some protection against sudden supply disruptions. The company is responsible for bulk petroleum imports and has a mandate to manage storage facilities and strategic reserves, measures intended to strengthen Uganda’s security of supply. However, strategic reserves cannot repeal the laws of the global oil market. If international crude prices remain elevated, the cost of replacing imported fuel eventually rises. Storage can provide breathing room but it cannot permanently insulate Uganda from international prices.

“When I came here and heard Pastor Kayanja talking about African integration, I said, ‘Praise the Lord,’ because we have already started the AfCFTA,” Museveni noted.

The three-day festival is being held under the theme, “Brewing Prosperity, Cultivating Heritage: Advancing Coffee & Cocoa Value Chains for Youth Employment and Economic Transformation in Busoga.”

Officials explained that the PDM payment system is intended to ensure that beneficiary information is accurately captured and payments are made directly, while also reducing the risks associated with handling cash and travelling long distances to access funds.

The immediate phase will focus on crops that can mature quickly, including sorghum, green gram and white peas. Museveni cautioned households against relying heavily on maize, which he said takes longer to mature and is less suited to Karamoja’s dry conditions.

The success of the Tenfold Growth Strategy, therefore, will not be measured by GDP figures alone. It will be seen in the number of businesses that grow, the industries that emerge, the products Uganda is able to export, the farmers who gain access to better markets and the jobs created for the country’s workforce.

For Mityana’s women farmers, the challenge is to turn the growing interest in insect farming into businesses that can stand on their own, and make insects a lasting source of opportunity.