Improving Institutional Capacity:
Strengthening Farmer Organizations in the OIC Member Countries
39
UCFA
(Apex body)
Kitenge DC
(District-level member organization)
 Advises and instructs on financial
management for DC leaders; negotiates
favorable financial terms for DCs
 Encourages of village-level savings &
loan associations through constituent
producer organizations
 Negotiates with buyers and selects /
introduces most favorable buyers to
member DCs
 Liaises with government on provision
of inputs, requests for extension
services, and some limited policy
advocacy
 Coordinates co-operative activities
that allow farmers to capture value
from their product (e.g. hulling and
packaging) and currently exploring
other ways to do this, including the
development of an in-house brand to
capture more downstream value
management; negotiates favorable
financial terms for members at local
banks
 Keeps records of production and sales
(using smartphone application
developed by donor partner GIZ) to
facilitate member access to credit
 Negotiates (through the broader UCFA)
with buyers and disseminates price via
SMS
 Buys coffee and provides bulking,
hulling, and transport to sales centres
 Occasionally provides some inputs
such as pesticides
Membership
profile
Direct members are 82 Depot Committees
(district-level organizations) across
Uganda, which in turn represent individual
farmers
Approximately 600 farmers are members,
of which ~75% are male and 25% female
DC membership is geographic, covering
villages within ~10km of the DC office
Business
model
Registered as a Limited Company. Earns
revenue through:
 Commissions paid by international
coffee buyers
 Activities that allow farmers to capture
value from their product (e.g. hulling
and packaging)
Expansion efforts are primarily funded by
donors such as GIZ and the Hans Neumann
Foundation, while ongoing costs are largely
met through own revenues
Applying for direct budgetary support from
the Government of Uganda, in recognition
of the UCFA’s role as a primary extension
provider
Registered as a Limited Company. Earns
revenue through:
 Commissions paid on coffee delivered
to international buyers
 Membership fees paid by individual
farmers
Any surplus is re-invested in either input
provision or expansion of processing and
ancillary services
3.1.1. Performance of Kitenge DC
The performance of Kitenge DC can be assessed by using the Farmer Organization Scoring
Tool. Scores are given out of 1.0, and category scores are a weighted average of the component
scores (where weights are based on the total number of points in each category). UCFA is not
assessed, as it is an apex organization of FOs rather than an FO itself, and is thus one step
removed from its farmer members. As shown below, Kitenge DC is very strong in Governance
and Economic Gains, moderately strong in most other areas, and weaker in Strategic Potential.