Apart from the high-level conference featuring expert speakers, the event will this year also feature more than 45 exhibitors, free training workshops and agronomy consultations, roundtable discussions as well as live demonstrations and crop trials. Entrance to the expo is free.
Agri experts, industry representatives and suppliers who will be at Agribusiness Congress East Africa include:
�I look forward to Agribusiness Congress East Africa developing into a platform that enables business to business engagement leading to actual sales.� - Chris Kaijuka, chairman of The Grain Council of Uganda and speaker at Agribusiness Congress East Africa. The TGCU is a returning, key partner in the event.
�We are heavily committed to agriculture and remain that way. MASCOR is committed to serve all that till the land. We are excited about the development in the small, medium and emerging sectors and the interest in the commercial developments. Uganda is the promised land for agriculture. Many opportunities exist. Commercial farming has great potential.� - Martin Kusel, Mascor's Country Manager in Uganda. Mascor and John Deere are platinum sponsors for this year�s event and have been long-time supporters of the event.
�Land tenure and affordable finance are the major challenges to expanding and developing the agri sector. Current interest rates put enormous stress on agribusiness and are often prohibitive. We need to look at novel ways to finance the agri sector, and get around using land as collateral. Fortunately we are starting to see special purpose funds enter the market space, offering new opportunities for those looking to raise finance, be it for working capital or infrastructure.� - Jon McLea, Director, Agricona, session chairman at Agribusiness Congress East Africa
�The agriculture sector in the sub-region is undergoing a slow recovery from several decades of misplaced policies. There is a need to harmonise our policies so as to improve intra-regional trade and thereby create a better environment for trade and regional markets.� - George Magai, Director Trade and Markets at the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa - Alliance for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa.
�ENGSOL works more as a partner, building long term relationships, rather than just as a supplier and the standards of our products and support are tested on our model farm.� - Ian Walker, MD of ENGSOL, gold sponsors.
�Let us put our money where our mouths are, let us invest in commercializing smallholder agriculture.� - Dr. Juliana Rwelamira, Managing Director, Sasakawa Africa Association, Ethiopia and speaker at the event.
�Farm Concern�s Commercial Villages for Market Access and Financial Services Project (COViMAP) seeks to improve market and trade efficiency for smallholder farmers and wholesale buyers along target value chains.� - Tomson Okot, Senior Programme Director Farm Concern International � a supporting industry partner of Agribusiness Congress East Africa. Mr Okot is also part of a panel discussion at the event.
�We see the professional management of farms as one of the main ways of achieving East Africa's goal of reaching its food-producing potential.� - Geoffrey Morley, Director, Cross Agriculture Ltd, bronze sponsors.
�Currently East Africa is a net importer of food but has sufficient land and water resource to be at least self-sufficient, if not an exporter. By providing farmers with the required knowledge and technology this shift can be achieved.� - Andy Watt, Managing Director, Qualibasic Seeds, Kenya, speaker and Qualibasic Seeds is also a bronze sponsor at the event.
�Although big projects are essential to the food security and economy of countries in Africa, it is equally important to find ways of bringing the smaller farmers into the agricultural economy.� - Rod Watson, Managing Director, Chief Industries, returning silver sponsors.
Industry and sector support
Other leading agricultural and economic partners of Agribusiness Congress East Africa include: Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS), The Grain Council of Uganda (TGCU), Agricultural Council of Tanzania (ACT), Eastern Africa Farmers Federation, Eastern African Grain Council, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), SA Capital Equipment Export Council (SAEEC), National Crops Resources Research Institute (NaCRRI) and VECO East Africa.
As in previous years, the technology and services industry in the sector has come out in huge support of the event and with the expo this year, they have even more opportunities to showcase their offerings. Leading farming equipment suppliers John Deere and Mascor as well as Heartland Global are platinum sponsors at Agribusiness Congress East Africa while Case, Engsol, Tafe and Toyota are gold sponsors.
