UGANDA, Amuru | Real Muloodi News | Atiak Sugar Factory, under the ownership of Horyal Investment Ltd., anticipates employing 1,580 workers upon its projected restart in mid-2025.
Ahmed Mohamud, the factory’s director for planning and development, emphasises the role of mechanisation in bolstering production.
Mohamud asserts, “Currently, we have 543 workers, but when we resume production, we will have 1,580 workers. Agriculture will require 750 workers, with each machine accommodating three operators.”
He elaborates on the broader economic impact, stating, “Once we achieve this substantial workforce and resume sugar production, it will catalyse the growth of ancillary industries. These include ethanol production, animal feed processing, and molasses for livestock, thereby supporting the local dairy industry. This presents a significant opportunity for our community.”
Historically reliant on manual labour, the factory could only process approximately 1,200 tonnes of cane with the assistance of around 5,000 casual labourers.
To facilitate mechanisation, Parliament allocated USh108 billion in the supplementary budget to the Uganda Development Corporation in the Financial Year 2022/23 for the Atiak Sugar factory’s modernisation.
Francis Mwebesa, the Minister for Trade, Industries, and Cooperatives, underscores the government’s optimism regarding the factory’s revival.
He outlines the anticipated benefits, including enhanced farmer incomes, community prosperity, job creation, commercial farming promotion, export promotion, and the attraction of additional investments to the Acholi sub-region.
The government holds a 40% stake in Atiak Sugar Factory through the Uganda Development Corporation, with investments totalling USh485.1 billion.
The factory ceased sugar production nearly three years ago due to various challenges, prompting a reconceptualisation and redevelopment effort, which saw an additional USh109 billion investment from the government.
Amina Hersi Morghe, the CEO of Horyal Investment Ltd., highlights the imperative of reducing production costs and boosting yields to address the factory’s challenges.
She acknowledges the government’s support in developing sugarcane production through mechanisation and irrigation, emphasising the importance of workforce training to maximise equipment efficiency.
While mechanised production diminishes the need for manual labour, Morghe assures that alternative strategies are in place to indirectly benefit and uplift neighbouring communities.
These strategies include diversification initiatives aimed at providing market linkages and crop production support to local farmers, along with extending irrigation facilities to farmer groups in the project area.
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