By Dr Barnabas Taremwa
Last week, a three-year-old Ankole cow sold for R2.1m (sh491.5m) in an auction on South Africa President Cyril Ramphosa’s ranch.
The cow is traced back to President Yoweri Museveni’s Kisozi Ranch herd, from which Ramaphosa, using artificial insemination, got the embryos of 43 Ankole cows more than 15 years ago.
The price was a record for an Ankole cow, overturning last year’s record of R700,000 (sh164m) paid for a five-year bull from the same herd.
The wonder Ankole cow is just an example of the many unique things we have as a country but rarely appreciate these treasures in our midst.
On top of the traditional tourism attractions like the mountain gorillas and unique species of birds and other animals, we have a lot of untapped tourism potential in agriculture.
Agri-tourism has potential to earn the country millions of dollars while creating jobs.
Uganda is gifted by nature and over 60% of the land in the country is conducive for farming.
As part of our tourism strategy as a country, we should amplify agri-tourism. We have a comparative advantage in the region to earn big from agri-tourism. But it will take concerted efforts of the key stakeholders in the tourism sector to achieve this.
We can identify unique farming projects in each region and support the owners to enhance them to the level of agri-tourism attractions.
Agri-tourism involves tourists visiting working farms for entertainment and learning and is popular in some countries.
We should borrow a leaf from some of these countries and deliberately promote agri-tourism.
Government should deliberately support farmers with unique projects to offer agri-tourism activities and attractions on their farms.
Agro-tourism is increasingly gaining ground as an alternative source of income for rural communities. It has great capacity to generate employment and offer alternative sources of income to rural communities. Uganda Tourism Board should prioritize agro-tourism as a major potential income earner which can increase the country’s gross domestic product. Unfortunately, many farm owners out there are not aware of the enormous benefits that accrue from agro-tourism.
There is need for sensitization and education of farmers on the potential of agro tourism and how to position themselves to benefit.
Agro-tourism can be established by an individual farmer, agricultural cooperative institute, farmer organisation or an NGOs that work with farmers.
If well promoted and packaged, this venture can offer an alternative sources of income from sale of local food, crafts and experiences such as contact with wildlife, visits to exceptional landscapes and also learning about products and animals.
This form of tourism also works well not only for international tourists, but also for the locals.
In developed countries, the percentage of farms that offer tourist services is 8% in Germany and the Netherlands, 4% in France and 2% in Italy, while in Spain, undoubtedly one of the main tourist countries of the world, only 0.5% of farms practice it. In some countries, however, the percentage exceeds 10% (Austria) or even more like in Sweden and Switzerland where kit is 20%.
NOTE: The writer is the Chairman Rainbow Group Ranchers
Good news for ankole cows breeders