Assessing factors affecting coffee profitability among farmers in Kamengo Sub County, Kamengo, Sub County, Mpigi District

Abstract

Agriculture accounts for 70% of employment on small farms and occupies half of all land area in Uganda providing half of all exports and one- quarter of the county’s GDP. It’s considered the leading sector for future economic growth and economic inclusion in the current national Development. In Uganda coffee was introduced in 1900s from Malawi and Ethiopian high lands and since then it has always been the leading cash crop in Uganda. Coffee employs over 3.8 million families through it activities. Uganda’s dependence on agriculture and her aspirations for modern agriculture descended in the time since the 1960s. Current information indicates that at least 1.7million households rely on the coffee industry for income though the sector also employs a large number of people both directly and indirectly. It’s estimated that there are over 122 districts that grow coffee in Uganda and among these 88 grow Robusta, 15 grow and 9 grow both Arabica and Robusta. The highest percentage of coffee farmers’ practice subsistence farming and these are small scale farmers owning farm land size from 0.18 hectares to 5 hectares and they contribute the largest percentage of the country’s coffee. The main objective of this study was to assess factors affecting coffee profitability among farmers in Kamengo Sub County, Kamengo, Sub County, Mpigi district. Specific objectives were; to identify social economic characteristics of coffee farmers and undertaking gross margin analysis of the coffee enterprise. This study was conducted in Kamengo Sub County and a sample of 60 farmers was selected using random sampling method to participate in the study. Linear regression model results revealed the most significant factors affecting coffee profitability among farmers and these included gender, farm size and the form of coffee. The study recommended that farmers should be encouraged to operate on large scale to enjoy the economies of scale to increase on their profitability, the problem of gender inequality also had to be addressed to enable female farmers make more profits through also engaging in decision making. Coffee farmers were also recommended to form groups and associations to collectively bargain and to enable government assist them financially to purchase machines to increase on the value of their coffee which fetches for more profits and also fight exploitation by the middlemen.