Director General NARO Dr. Yona Baguma received heavy duty fabrication Machines and value addition prototypes from Feed the Future USAID. The ceremony was held at the AEATREAC facility in Namalere. DG encouraged NARO fraternity to engage with private sector in development and commercialization of products to leverage on the market opportunities for value added products. He tasked teams to identify flagship products for promotion.
The equipment for manufacturing machines are specifically for AEATREAC while complete machines are meant for other Institutes of NARO supported by feed the future USAID.
Present at the function were Directors of Research and representatives from National Agricultural Research Laboratories NARL Kawanda, National Crops Resources Research Institute NaCRRI, Rwebitaba Zonal Agricultural Research Development Institute and National Semi-arid Resources Research Institute NaSARRI.
Dr. Simon Byabagambi from Feed the Future USAID encouraged NARO fraternity to utilize modern and old equipment that can be of use if well maintained and ultimately utilized . He urged NARO to involve young engineers with open innovations to addressing challenges in the development and fabrication of equipment. Arthur Musinguzi from New Gem a private sector fabricator in Kampala noted that partnering with NARO will enable them access machinery they can not afford yet essential to their work .Mr. Kagwa Abdullah encouraged building partnership with a wide range of stake holders including academia and informal sector players.