400 casual laborers from Busoga arrive to plant sugarcane in Lamwo

Lamwo, Uganda |  THE INDEPENDENT | Up to 400 casual labourers from Kamuli district in Busoga region have been deployed at Ayuu Alali sugarcane project site in Palabek Kal sub-county, Lamwo district where they were taken to plant sugarcane.

The labourers were transported aboard Gateway buses on Sunday by Horyal Investment Holding Company Ltd. The company contracted by the government is implementing sugarcane growing in the district on behalf of Ayuu Alali sugarcane cooperatives society.

Their arrival comes nearly a month after the government cleared Ayuu Alali sugarcane cooperative society management to source labourers from elsewhere in the country following a manpower shortage at the sugarcane plantation.

Francis Ojwiya, the chairperson Ayuu Alali sugarcane cooperatives society confirmed the arrival of the casual labourers in an interview with Uganda Radio Network on Monday. Ojwiya notes that the casual labourers commenced seed cane planting on Monday morning.

He says all labourers underwent mandatory quarantine from Kamuli district and have been issued with quarantine certificates adding that they were also tested for covid-19 before boarding buses to Lamwo district.

Last month, Horyal Investment Holding Company Ltd said that they were losing billions of Shillings from rotting seed canes at the plantation due to a manpower shortage. Ojwiya says that additional casual labourers are expected to plant seed canes on an estimated 4,000 hectares of land within the next two months adding to that 1,500 hectares that the locals had planted.

He adds that some 400 Local Defence Unit personnel who had been deployed early this month at the sugarcane plantation to plant sugarcane have finished their three weeks contract and are expected to leave the plantation this week.

The LCIII chairperson Palabek Kal sub-county Geoffrey Nyeko welcomed the sourcing of the casual labourers from Kamuli citing that it will boost speedy works at the plantation which had been affected by high turnover of local labourers. At least 200 out of the 400 locally sourced labourers left their work in the last month complaining of low pay and tedious work.

Nyeko, however called on the management of Horyal Investment to ensure the newly sourced labourers don’t mix with the community to limit contacts and possible spread of COVID-19.  The company is targeting the recruitment of more labourers to hit the 900 workers required to complete the planting of seed canes on 6,500 hectares of land ploughed for commercial sugarcane planting.

The Ayuu Alali Sugarcane Cooperatives Society comprises of some 3,000 out growers who have distributed five hectares to each member for sugarcane plantation.

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