Uganda’s National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Data Bank (NAGRC&DB) has pledged faster and more accountable services to farmers and livestock breeders as it rolls out a new five-year plan aimed at raising animal productivity and expanding access to improved genetics.
Under the new service standards, clients arriving at NAGRC&DB service points should be attended to within five minutes, while written correspondence should receive a response within five working days.
The agency also says complaints will be acknowledged within 48 hours, with cases requiring investigation expected to be resolved within 14 days.
The commitments are contained in the NAGRC&DB Client Charter and Service Delivery Standards for 2025/26 to 2029/30, unveiled in Entebbe alongside three other policy and planning documents.
Minister of State for Animal Industry Bright Kanyontore Rwamirama, who launched the documents, said their value would be measured by implementation rather than their publication.
He urged NAGRC&DB staff, management, the board and partners to turn the new commitments into better services, higher livestock productivity and wider adoption of modern animal breeding technologies.
The Client Charter outlines the agency’s services, clients’ rights and obligations, as well as channels for feedback and complaints. The service standards establish measurable targets against which NAGRC&DB’s performance can be assessed.
The documents form part of a broader five-year framework intended to strengthen Uganda’s animal breeding industry and improve the agency’s engagement with farmers.
Also launched were the Uganda National Animal Breeding Strategy and Action Plan (NABSAP), the Strategic and Investment Plan for 2025/26 to 2029/30, and the Communication and Knowledge Management Strategy for 2026/27 to 2030/31.
Together, the five instruments are intended to connect national breeding priorities with investment, service delivery, accountability and access to information.
The strategic plan places particular emphasis on supporting farmers under the Parish Development Model, including through access to affordable, high-performing breeding stock for dairy, piggery and poultry enterprises.
NAGRC&DB farms and ranches are expected to operate as breeding, multiplication and technology-transfer centres, working with local governments, farmer organisations and PDM structures.
NABSAP identifies low genetic productivity, inadequate breeding infrastructure, limited access to quality breeding materials, uncontrolled cross-breeding and weak animal identification and traceability systems as key constraints to the sector.
It also promotes climate-resilient genetics and the conservation of Uganda’s indigenous animal genetic resources.
The communication strategy, meanwhile, seeks to improve farmers’ access to timely and reliable information on NAGRC&DB programmes, technologies, products and services.
Eng. Robert Ssenozi, a NAGRC&DB board member representing farmers in the Central Region, said the new framework should be viewed as a tool for delivering tangible results.
“The launch is not just about unveiling documents. It is about launching possibilities,” he said.
Dr Israel Mugezi, Senior Planner for Agriculture at the National Planning Authority, urged the agency to prioritise high-yielding, affordable and climate-resilient genetics as Uganda seeks to build a more competitive livestock industry.
He said greater animal productivity would be critical to the country’s ambitions to expand value addition and exports, including processed dairy products such as milk powder.
The new framework will now face its most important test: whether commitments made on paper translate into faster services, affordable and quality breeding materials, better information, transparent complaint handling and measurable gains in livestock productivity for farmers.
