Ugandan Farmers, Researchers Co-Create First Agroecology Research Framework

Small-scale farmers, university scientists, and policy advocates convened at Fairway Hotel in Kampala on June 12 to jointly develop a farmer-rooted, evidence-based research framework for measuring the pace and impact of agroecological transition in Uganda.

The workshop was organized by the Eastern and Southern Africa Small-Scale Farmers Forum (ESAFF) Uganda under the ECOTOPIA programme, a community-owned initiative operating in Mayuge and Kumi districts with support from DKA Austria and Horizont3000. The event formed part of the six-month Enhancing Transformative Agroecology Programme (ETAP) and sought to lay the foundation for a research framework capable of generating credible evidence on agroecological transition.

The meeting followed an agroecology mapping exercise conducted in May 2026 across Mayuge, Kumi, Busia and Bugiri districts where 138 farmers participated in documenting existing agroecological practices. The exercise generated a compelling baseline that now demands a rigorous, multi-institutional research response. The workshop aimed to validate the baseline findings, identify priority research gaps, develop a jointly owned indicator framework aligned with the 13 Agroecology Principles, and agree on a participatory research methodology protocol.

Across Eastern Uganda, thousands of farmers are already practicing agroecology through organic input production, intercropping, seed saving, and community-led soil restoration. However, without a shared and credible framework for measuring outcomes, validating data, and translating findings into the language of policy and investment, much of this transition remains invisible to institutions that influence funding and legislation.

Speaking during the workshop, Sir Bob Sunday George, the Agroecology Focal Person at the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), underlined the transformative role of research in shaping the transition to agroecology in Uganda.

“We are moving from theory now to evidence-based arguments, if we say agroecology is a science, where is the science? Our advocacy must be grounded in data; we need to ask ourselves whether we have enough evidence on agroecology. We need clear, compelling, and well-produced publications so that when we sit at the policy table, we have the data and evidence required to defend and advance certain agroecological policies and initiatives,” he said.

The workshop sought to answer that question by initiating the development of tools capable of documenting, measuring, and validating agroecological change.

Despite growing interest in agroecology from government, academia, and civil society, Uganda's agroecology research landscape remains fragmented. The internationally recognized 13 HLPE Principles of Agroecology provide a widely accepted conceptual framework, but the indicators needed to assess Uganda's food systems against these principles have never been systematically agreed upon.

This gap carries significant consequences. Without agreed indicators, programmes struggle to demonstrate impact to funders. Without validated methodologies, farmers' knowledge remains excluded from policy processes. Without a shared research agenda, institutions continue to work in isolation, generating findings that rarely connect and seldom reach the farmers whose experiences inspired them.

Nancy Mugimba, National Coordinator of ESAFF Uganda, said this disconnect has persisted for years. “Small-scale farmers say they don't understand the research from the research institutions,” she said. “Then we have interventions that are well-meaning, but they don't seem to be answering the questions of the small-scale farmers.”

She noted that the workshop was designed to break this cycle by ensuring that identified research gaps reflect not only academic interests but also the lived realities and priorities of farmers in Mayuge and Kumi districts.

Lira University and Busitema University's Arapai Campus, ECOTOPIA's designated research partners, brought expertise in agricultural systems and ecological dynamics in Northern and Eastern Uganda. The Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) Uganda contributed a continental perspective on the evidence standards required to strengthen agroecology advocacy and influence policy at regional and international levels.

Addressing the role of agroecological research in overcoming market barriers faced by small-scale farmers, Jonathan Lubega, Policy Analyst at SEATINI Uganda, emphasized the need for research to generate credible evidence on the economic benefits of agroecology.

He also highlighted the challenge of traceability, noting that research can help establish mechanisms for distinguishing agroecological produce from conventionally produced food. Such systems, he argued, would strengthen consumer confidence, improve market recognition, and create fairer economic opportunities for farmers practicing agroecology.

Together, participants worked out something rarely attempted: co-creating a research framework that places farmers' experiences at the centre of knowledge generation while producing evidence capable of influencing policy and shaping the future of agroecological transition in Uganda.