By Jurugo Emmanuel Ogasto
The high demand for agricultural inputs at the beginning of the first planting season has led to increase in prices of some commodities in Pagirinya refugee settlement of Uganda’s Obongi district.
The highly demanded commodities whose prices have hiked in the market are; beans, groundnuts and maize.
Seeds are the basic inputs and the most important catalyst for other inputs to be cost effective.
Karame Scovia, who deals in business in Pagirinya main market admitted that, the prices have gone high, and she attributes this to the current planting season triggering high demand and supply.
“There has been some change because the wholesale prices of produce have gone high. I mostly realized increase in the prices of groundnuts because this is the period for people to buy seeds,” Karame said.
Meanwhile according to Taban James, the increase in prices also upsets the buyers who demand for them to reduce.
For his part Jamal Asibuku, a senior sales agronomist said, as the demand for field crops is rising, the demand for vegetables is dropping every day.
“Right now, the demand for field crops like maize has gone high, but for vegetables, the demand has gone down because people mostly grow vegetables during dry season when their demand is high,” he said.
Farmers are getting set for the fast-planting season by carrying out various preparatory activities, and buying of seeds is one of the most prominent preparations they are undertaking.