Cattle farmers in Kazo and Kiruhura districts are struggling to find water for their animals as communal dams are drying up as a result of the drought in the area.
Steven Bugiri Kashaka, a farmer in Kanyaryeru Sub County says that almost all the dams that have been constructed in the area have dried up due to the heavy drought.
According to him, communal dams dried up first after being overwhelmed by the animals because farmers could not afford the cost of excavators and bulldozer machines to dig their own dams.
He says that this has been worsened by both the COVID-19 lockdown, an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease -FMD and the resultant quarantine.
James Asiimwe, a Farmer in Kazo district says the movement of cattle to community dams has always escalated the spread of Foot and Mouth Disease and appeals to the government to provide water units at the local government level so that farmers can access them and dig up their own water dams.
Kiruhura District Chairperson Dan Mukago says that they have secured one machine from Kamwengye district to dig up at least 20 to 30 dams across the district with five to six dams in every Sub-county.
