Kagadi coffee farmers tighten buyer rules as theft eats into incomes

A coffee farmer who also leads a village in Uganda’s Kagadi District says he has recorded about 15 theft-related cases since the previous coffee season. Three suspects were convicted; others fled. Now Simon Habyarimana’s community is paying for its own security group, part of a wider effort by coffee-growing villages to protect a cash crop that supports household incomes, according to Daily Monitor Uganda.

Residents and local leaders have adopted village and sub-county by-laws aimed at coffee theft, immature harvesting, unlicensed buying and children’s involvement in sales. Leaders say the rules took effect immediately, with residents and police expected to enforce them together. Farmers partly blame middlemen who advance money to people to collect coffee. Residents say some recipients turn to stealing from gardens when they cannot account for that money.

Closing the market to stolen coffee

In Kyakabadiima Sub-county, chairperson Augustine Ngomiranze said the measures include a 500,000 Ugandan shilling penalty for anyone caught stealing coffee, or a trader found buying or sun-drying immature coffee. Buyers must register with local authorities and obtain licences. Operating without the required documents could bring penalties, arrest and court proceedings. Ngomiranze said the aim was to stop stolen beans finding buyers, while also tackling farmers’ harvesting of immature coffee for quick cash.

Ngomiranze’s argument is that cutting off buyers for stolen coffee would remove the incentive to steal.

Kyakabadiima Sub-county chief Ivonne Kyalisiima urged farmers to deal only with traders carrying proper documents. She said traders pay 50,000 shillings for a card and are then directed to the Uganda Revenue Authority before obtaining a local trading permit. The measures also put responsibility on parents or guardians when children are found selling coffee. Ngomiranze said some suspected thieves send children to sell produce stolen at night, making the adults harder to identify.

In Hamugyi, Habyarimana said a village security group has about 30 members, with each farmer contributing 10,000 shillings monthly to its activities and emergency responses. He said the money would help theft investigations and follow-up in court, which had previously been hampered by a lack of funds. Seized immature coffee would be burned to keep it out of the market. Moses Alinaitwe, a farmer and chairperson of Kyakabadiima Cell, separately said residents had agreed to a monthly contribution of 2,000 shillings per community member for security emergencies and court processes.

Traders support controls, but question enforcement

The stakes extend beyond missing harvests. The report puts immature coffee at 2,300 shillings a kilogram, dried coffee at 6,000 shillings and processed coffee at 11,000 shillings. In Burora Sub-county, chairperson Tombola Matayo said the local administration had adopted a 200,000-shilling penalty and prosecution for coffee theft. He linked theft to betting and gambling. The sub-county has banned betting centres, ordered operators to remove machines and confiscated some equipment.

Business representatives support curbing theft but see a risk of uneven enforcement. Venansi Ningabiiye, chairperson of the Kyakabadiima business community, warned that compliant traders could face strong competition from outside buyers who do not follow the same rules. That concern leaves local leaders balancing protection for growers against the treatment of authorised businesses.

The next test is whether the measures can be enforced consistently and brought into line with national law. Kagadi District agricultural officer Desire Mpalana welcomed the initiative but said technical officers had not been consulted during drafting. Some local penalties do not match national coffee legislation, which he said sets much heavier penalties for certain offences. He also urged action against unlicensed nurseries and mills, unauthorised planting-material sales and tampering with coffee to increase its weight.