The new five-year Strategic and Investment Plan commits NAGRC&DB to expanding access to affordable, high-performance breeding stock for PDM farmers, while strengthening service delivery and accountability.
Uganda took a decisive step toward a more productive, resilient and commercially competitive livestock industry this week, as the National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Data Bank (NAGRC&DB) launched five institutional documents designed to turn policy commitments into results farmers can see and feel.
Together, the instruments link national breeding priorities to how NAGRC&DB plans, serves clients, measures performance and shares knowledge. They are the Client Charter (FY2025/26 to 2029/30); the Service Delivery Standards (FY2025/26 to 2029/30); the Uganda National Animal Breeding Strategy and Action Plan (NABSAP); the Strategic and Investment Plan (2025/26 to 2029/30); and the Communication and Knowledge Management Strategy (2026/27 to 2030/31).
Hon. Bright Kanyontore Rwamirama (PhD), Minister of State for Animal Industry, officially launched the documents at NAGRC&DB headquarters, and set the tone with a firm reminder to staff, management, the Board and partners: “the value of these documents will not be measured by the launch today.” Their worth, he said, would depend entirely on how effectively the commitments are carried through into tangible results.
The Minister called on NAGRC&DB to use the instruments to strengthen accountability, improve service delivery, promote modern animal breeding technologies and increase livestock productivity. He urged staff of NAGRC&DB, a semi-autonomous body under the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries established under the Animal Breeding Act, 2001, to ensure the new direction translates into visible benefits for farmers and other stakeholders.
National Animal Breeding Strategy and Action Plan (NABSAP)
NABSAP is the flagship framework for transforming animal breeding into a productive, inclusive, climate-resilient and economically sustainable contributor to Uganda’s development. Published in 2026, it guides the sustainable use, development and conservation of animal genetic resources, responding to persistent constraints: low genetic productivity, weak breeding infrastructure, limited access to quality breeding materials, uncontrolled cross-breeding, climate shocks and inadequate identification and traceability systems.
Its four priority areas cover characterisation, inventory and monitoring of animal genetic resources; sustainable use and development; conservation; and stronger policies, institutions and capacity. For farmers and breeders, effective implementation should mean wider access to productive, market-oriented and climate-resilient genetics, alongside protection of the indigenous genetic diversity that future adaptation and breeding will depend on.
Strategic and Investment Plan: Supporting PDM Farmers
The Strategic and Investment Plan translates the national breeding direction into NAGRC&DB’s medium-term priorities, investments and expected results. Covering 2025/26 to 2029/30, it commits the agency to accelerating the breeding and multiplication of productive, farmer-preferred dairy and beef cattle, goats, pigs, poultry and fish to increase access and affordability. It also prioritises the conservation of indigenous animal genetic resources, production of quality and affordable animal feeds, and stronger institutional capacity for efficient service delivery.
Under the Plan, NAGRC&DB is tasked with stepping up support for farmers participating in the Parish Development Model (PDM) by making farmer-preferred, high-performance livestock breeds available at highly subsidised prices for wealth creation. Particular emphasis will be placed on providing breeding stock for dairy cattle, piggery and poultry enterprises.
NAGRC&DB’s farms and ranches will serve as breeding, multiplication and technology-transfer hubs, working with local governments, farmer organisations and relevant PDM structures to reach beneficiaries. By connecting PDM financing with quality breeding stock and technical guidance on breeding, feeding and enterprise management, the intervention is expected to support productive and sustainable livestock enterprises.
This commitment aligns with the PDM’s overarching goal of achieving socio-economic transformation through improved productivity of households and enterprises at parish level, including increasing household incomes and moving subsistence households into the money economy. Progress under the Strategic and Investment Plan will be monitored through indicators tracking the livestock breeds and poultry genetic resources introduced, multiplied and made available to PDM farmers.
Client Charter and Service Delivery Standards
The Client Charter and Service Delivery Standards make NAGRC&DB’s service commitments answerable to the public. The Charter functions as a social contract between NAGRC&DB and its clients, setting out services, rights, obligations and commitments, as well as channels for feedback, complaints, monitoring and continuous improvement. Under the Charter, complaints must be acknowledged within 48 hours, while those requiring investigation must be concluded within 14 days.
The Service Delivery Standards translate those commitments into measurable benchmarks. These include attending to clients within five minutes of their arrival at service points, responding to written correspondence within five working days, and providing clear, accurate, timely and relevant information. Together, the two documents give farmers, livestock breeders, suppliers and other clients a clear basis for knowing what to expect, raising concerns and assessing NAGRC&DB’s performance.
Communication and Knowledge Management Strategy
The Communication and Knowledge Management Strategy (2026/27 to 2030/31) provides the system through which information, evidence and institutional learning are meant to support delivery.
It prioritises public awareness; farmer communication and informed uptake; knowledge management and organisational learning; stakeholder partnerships and knowledge exchange; digital communication and information access; and institutional identity and issues management. It also assigns clear roles for generating, validating, packaging, preserving and disseminating technical knowledge, so farmers and decision-makers alike can access reliable information on the agency’s programmes, technologies, products and services.
Board and Government Remarks
Speaking on behalf of the Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Eng. Robert Ssenozi, the Board member representing farmers in the Central Region, framed the occasion as a commitment to action rather than ceremony: the “launch is not just about unveiling documents. It is about launching possibilities.” He tied those possibilities to NAGRC&DB’s mandate to lead the commercialisation of animal breeding and to undertake activities that improve animal genetics and productivity.
The event also featured remarks from the NAGRC&DB Executive Director and a representative of the Uganda National Farmers Federation. A representative of the Office of the Prime Minister, speaking on behalf of the Deputy Head of Public Service, congratulated NAGRC&DB and urged employees to uphold the standards set out in the documents and demonstrate exemplary performance.
Representing the Director of the National Planning Authority, Dr Israel Mugezi, Senior Planner, Agriculture, underscored the need for a competitive and sustainable animal industry built on climate-resilient, high-yielding and affordable genetics, linking this to sustaining Uganda’s export base for value-added products such as milk powder, and to the value-addition agenda of the Agro-Industrialisation Programme under the Fourth National Development Plan.
A Coordinated Framework
Taken together, the five instruments form a single, coordinated framework: NABSAP sets the national breeding direction; the Strategic and Investment Plan defines NAGRC&DB’s priorities and investments, including support to PDM farmers; the Service Delivery Standards specify performance benchmarks; the Client Charter establishes accountability to users; and the Communication and Knowledge Management Strategy keeps information, feedback and lessons flowing across the system.
Implementation should therefore be visible at the point where farmers and clients meet the agency: more accessible and affordable quality breeding materials, better information, timely and respectful service, transparent complaint handling, stronger conservation of indigenous genetic resources, and clear reporting on results. That is the practical measure the Minister set, and the standard by which the launch should ultimately be judged, in farmers’ livelihoods and in the transformation of Uganda’s livestock sector.
About NAGRC&DB: The National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Data Bank (NAGRC&DB) is a semi-autonomous institution under Uganda’s Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, established under the Animal Breeding Act, 2001, to lead the commercialization of animal breeding and improve animal genetics and productivity nationwide.
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