Coffee nursery bed owners in Lwengo district who supplied seedling to government through the Uganda Coffee Development Authority in 2018 have cried out to government after banks seized their property over loans.
These say they borrowed money from commercial banks to invest in nursery beds to supply seedlings to government but say even though the seedlings were supplied, government has faulted on payment.
The operators also claim that government has not only failed to pay them for the coffee seedlings but has also been unresponsive to their pleas for assistance.
Nakintu Scovia, a resident of Kalisizo village in Lwengo Rural subcounty said she used her house as security to get a loan that she thought would be able to save it when government pays her.
She says she has never received any amount since 2018.
Nakintu, a mother of eight said that her seedlings were worth shs10 million but government has never given her any single amount.
Nakintu who had a big house now lives in a makeshift shelf while her children are no longer studying due to lack of school fees.
This situation has prompted the affected coffee nursery operators to raise their concerns to government.
The coffee industry in Lwengo district, which had a potential for growth, is now facing uncertainty due to this crisis.
The fate of these coffee nursery operators hangs in the balance as they continue to hope for intervention from the government to save their businesses and prevent the losses of their properties.
Contacted for a comment , Uganda Coffee Development Authority spokesperson Laura Walusimbi said she doesn’t have any idea about the matter .
On the other side, Wasswa Charles, a UCDA chief in Lwengo said he too has written letters but no one has ever responded.
The Bukoto mid-west member of parliament Isaac Ssejjoba appealed to government and UCDA to respond to the matter or else he would be force to raise the matter on the floor of parliament.
However, Lwengo RDC Hajji Walugembe Ramadhan urged the coffee suppliers to remain calm and assured them that the government is ready to pay their money.
