Cash transfer scheme for Uganda's poor
Thirty-nine percent of Ugandans live in poverty. According to 2002 census, 1.6 million of people are over 60 years old and more than 2.6 million are orphans.
In a drive to eradicate poverty, the Ugandan government announced it would pay $10 per month to "chronically poor." Though the government still needs to determine eligibility criteria for this mainly foreign aid-backed program, John Ssebaana Kizito, the leader of the Democratic Party, who calls for employment creation and skills training as the best way to help the needy, fears corruption will undermine the effort:
In our society, the elderly depend on the younger ones. But what is happening today in Uganda is that the younger generation, who would have helped the aged, have no jobs and the agriculture they used to rely on doesn't exist
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From the desk of Dr. Sidney Okolo...
“In our society, the elderly depend on the younger ones. But what is happening today in Uganda is that the younger generation, who would have helped the aged, have no jobs and the agriculture they used to rely on doesn't exist”
Correctly so, but the elderly has turned to family members outside Africa as a source of income. Rather than farming in the land of Africa, the elderly today depend on their children for “farming” in the foreign land via other careers. How long will that last?
The time has come to go back to agriculture. It is an opportunity, whose time has come. To turn away from agriculture is to give up the family privilege accorded to land of Africa and its people. In the period, where using pesticides, fertilizers, and chemicals on foods and beverages have made negative impact on the lives of people, the emerging of cancer could be mitigated. Africa has inadequate medical facilities and not enough medical practitioners as they have left Africa to seek fortune in developed countries. The natural thing to do is to resort to organic food, which will naturally play a vital role in revitalizing the human body. The longevity of Africans may be attributed to the consumption of organic foods while the internal organ illnesses may be attributed more, to consumption of inorganic foods and not genetics or metabolism.
Inexperience farmers in Africa are ignorant of the different between organic and inorganic foods. When Farmers are presented with the fertilizers, they will be glad to see how fast their crops will grow without knowing the consequences of their actions. Learning how to use it, and in what quantity will enhance in the mechanization of farming and mitigate the health problems that may occur. Anything used in moderation may be less harmful; hence farmers need to be educated on how to apply fertilizers in the farm. They need to know the pros and cons of eating inorganic foods as to organic foods in order to make choice on which ones to grow and eat.
In Africa, there are almost no restrictions on foods, and if there were, there are little enforcement due to corruption and venality. Most farmers may choose to grow both organic and inorganic foods, and will then choose to keep the organic ones for consumption, while they sell the inorganic ones to consumers. This approach is unethical if consumers do not know where their foods come from. With bad systems of government and inadequate government inspection, if any, no individuals can control the industry. Lack of good governance is bad for Africa, which needs help with leadership and eradication of corruption.
Dr. Sidney Okolo
http://www.linkedin.com/in/ibaweb
Posted by: Dr. Sidney Okolo | Dec 3, 2007 9:50:35 AM