The Ugandan National Policy on Fertilizer integrated the fragmented policies and regulations of Government regarding fertilizers into a single document. Government served, for many years, as the central agency responsible for fertilizer importation and delivery to designated points in the country, until the liberalization of the sub-sector began in 1990. The main policy and regulatory document, during this period, that was in force – was the Control of the Agricultural Chemical Statute of 1989. The statute regulates the importation and distribution but not the production or use of fertilizers in the country. Consequently, there were no policies on the promotion of fertilizer production and use in the country. These policy-related issues are, for the most part, scattered across different policy and regulatory frameworks and have not been properly articulated into a single internally consistent document for quick reference by stakeholders, including Government. As such, it is not easy to relate policy actions in the sub-sector to one another and make effective decisions. Hence, there is need for a comprehensive national fertilizer policy that consolidates the Government position and synthesizes existing policies to facilitate referencing and decision-making. The fertilizer policy is consistent with the overall long-term development strategies of Uganda – the Vision 2040 and the second National Development Plan. The Plan recognizes agriculture as one of the key productive sectors driving the economy. It hinges on the National Agriculture Policy and the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), which commits the Government to a 6% average
annual growth rate for the agricultural sector.
