IFPRI in collaboration with Uganda’s National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), an autonomous public research agency under the auspices of the Ministry of Agricture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, has collected soil health data at plot level together with intra-household socioeconomic data and laboratory analyses of soil samples since 2003. The most recent data collection took place in 2024 with support from the CGIAR Initiative on NEXUS Gains and data are analyzed with support from the CGIAR Policy Innovation Program.

Using this 3-round, long-term panel data set on soil health in Uganda, IFPRI, NARO and APRC researchers are empirically investigating long-term changes in soil health and land degradation on women’s and men’s plots during 2003 – 2024; as well as gendered responses to soil health challenges and land degradation. Findings were presented to a national policy seminar audience in Uganda in support of Uganda’s implementation of the African Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan: 2023-2033.

The results show that feminization of agriculture has increased during 2003-2024, increasing the pay-off to identify and address women farmers’ soil health challenges. Despite this, use of irrigation, and fertilizer remain more common on men’ plots. While fertilizer use has increased overall, adoption rates are still very low. On men plots, fertilizer use increased from 1% in 2003 to 9% in 2024 , while on women’s plots application rates increased from 0% to 5% in the same period. While agro-forestry remains an important soil health management strategy, the practice is declining. According to workshop participants, this might well be due to declining farm sizes due to population pressure in rural Uganda.

Welcome Remarks on Soil Health and Gender: Why Gender Intentionality is Essential for Africa’s soil health future (Presentation)

• Claudia Ringler, Director, Natural Resources and Resilience (NRR), IFPRI

Remarks by a Representative of the Ministry of Agriculture: Policy perspectives on soil health

• Onesmus Semalulu, Principal Research Officer, National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), Ministry of Agriculture

Presentation by APRC: Highlights of the African Soil Health Program (Presentation)

• Florence Lwiza, Department of Agribusiness and Natural Resource Economics, School of Agricultural Sciences, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University

Presentation by Makerere University: Sustainable Crop Intensification Requires Soil-Crop Specific Fertilizer Blends (Presentation)

• Peter Ebanyat, Department of Soil Science & Land Use Management, Makerere University

Presentation by NARO: Long-term Changes in Soil Health Conditions (Presentation)

• Crammer Kayuki Kaizzi, Senior Research Officer, National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO)

Presentation by IFPRI: Long-term changes in Uganda’s soil health conditions and women’s responses to land degradation: A contribution to the African Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan 2024-2034 (Presentation)

• Edward Kato, Senior Research Analyst, IFPRI-Uganda office

Closing Remarks

• Onesmus Semalulu, Principal Research Officer, National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), Ministry of Agriculture
• Bernard Bashaasha, Department of Agribusiness and Natural Resource Economics, School of Agricultural Sciences, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University
• Claudia Ringler, Director, Natural Resources and Resilience (NRR), IFPRI