CAIRO: A cooperation agreement between Egypt and Uganda in the field of agriculture and land farming has been the center of heated debate in the local media in both countries, with Uganda denying its existence altogether. Earlier this month, Amin Abaza, minister of agriculture, told the local press that Uganda has allocated 2 million acres of land for Egyptian companies to grow wheat and corn. Abaza also said that a delegation of government officials and businessmen will head to Uganda to evaluate the land and agree on the final details of the agreement, which will start with 200 thousand acres in the initial phase. However, Ugandan newspaper the Daily Monitor reported that government officials did not know anything about the deal, quoting several agriculture and land officials as saying that the deal does not exist. Omara Atubo, Uganda's land minister, told Daily Monitor that dedicating 840,145 hectares of arable land for Egypt's use would be impossible, asking rather cynically, "Do we have such land in Uganda to give out? Maggie Kigozi, the executive director of Uganda Investment Authority (UIA), told Daily Monitor from New York that 2 million acres of land would never be sourced within Uganda for wheat growing since the crop does well mainly in highland areas. The country has only a handful of mountainous districts such as Kapchorwa, Bundibugyo and Kabale. "UIA deals with private companies and if this arrangement is between [Uganda] government and [Egyptian] government, I have not yet been informed about it, she said, adding, "But it is not possible to get 2 million acres of land anywhere in Uganda [for investors] - I would be challenged if directed to do so. Moses Byaruhanga, the special presidential assistant on political affairs, said he has no information about the reported land transaction. Arthur Katsigazi, counselor and head of the chancery at the embassy of Uganda in Cairo, told Daily News Egypt that Ugandan press tend to exaggerate, clarifying that while there has been an agreement between officials on both sides, no deals have been signed. In June, Agriculture Minister Amin Abaza and International Cooperation Minister Fayza Aboul Naga, visited Uganda and agreed with Ugandan officials on importing Egyptian expertise and capital for investment in Uganda, Katsigazi said. However, the [reports] of 2 million acres is not accurate because Uganda doesn t have this amount of land, he added Katsigazi said the agreement entitles only the private sector to invest in Ugandan land - not the Egyptian government. We have the advantage of fertile land with plenty of sources of irrigation and we need Egyptian expertise and capital in this project that will benefit both countries, Katsigazi added The deal was highly criticized by the Egyptian press who claimed that Egypt doesn t need to invest in agriculture outside the country when Egyptian land is being wasted and is in dire need of attention. Members of the Ugandan parliament asked the government to explain the circumstances under which Egyptians are claiming at least 2 percent of Uganda's fertile agricultural land for wheat and corn plantations. "I request that Parliament gets this contract between Uganda and Egypt as a matter of urgency, leader of the campaign Betty Kamya told Daily Monitor. She said the agreement with the Egyptians, believed to be in final stages, was a matter of "serious concern and national importance considering that farming is the mainstay of most struggling Ugandan families. Several cooperation projects already exist between both African nations. Uganda exports coffee and fish to Egypt while Egypt has two factories operating in Uganda for milk and meat. Egypt's Ministry of Agriculture wasn t available for comment by press time.
