Government Rolls Out IT System to Register All Sugarcane Farmers

What the report says

Uganda’s government has introduced a new digital platform, the Sugar Industry Information Management System (SIIMS), to register sugarcane farmers and centralise data across the sector. According to Nile Post, the system was developed by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives together with the National Sugar Stakeholders Council and was presented during stakeholder meetings with Sugar Council members, millers and farmers.

The ministry says SIIMS is intended to improve planning, monitoring and performance by bringing together information on growers, acreage under cane, milling capacity and other parts of the sugar value chain. Trade, Industry and Cooperatives Minister Sanjay Tanna said the platform, which is linked to satellite technology, should help officials identify growers nationwide, measure cane acreage and monitor activity in real time.

Tanna used the launch to restate long-running concerns in the sugar sector, including low yields, harvesting of immature cane, cane poaching and strained relations between farmers and millers. He also warned licensed millers not to buy from unregistered growers and said those who ignore registration, weighing and payment rules could face penalties. He further raised concern over factory-gate deductions and prices being reduced below an agreed figure, while urging farmers to honour contracts and avoid premature harvesting.

Sector leaders and farmers at the meeting welcomed the system, saying it could improve coordination and help address dishonest practices. More broadly, the initiative reflects government efforts to tighten oversight of an industry that remains important to rural livelihoods and national production, while encouraging better compliance across the sugar value chain.