Overview
The Private Sector Investment in a Changing Climate: Resilient Rice Value Chain Development in Uganda (PSI-Climate) initiative explored how domestic private sector investment decisions can enable climate risk management by different actors along the rice value chain in Uganda. The initiative specifically focused on rice value chains because rice is one of the priority crops for achieving food security and improves household income, as stipulated in the National Rice Development Strategy 2008-2018.
The research was conducted through two case studies. The first case study focused on domestic private investments in quality rice seeds (including climate-resilient seeds) in Northern Uganda in partnership with a domestic seed company, Equator Seeds. The second focused on investments in financial products by a commercial bank, the Centenary Bank, in Eastern Uganda. Data collection in both cases was based on focus group discussions, interviews and dialogue processes with key actors along the selected rice value chains, as well as engagement with relevant experts.
The initiative was led by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and implemented in partnership with the Economic Policy Research Center (EPRC) and the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) during the period 2014- 2016.
Purpose and objectives
The PSI-Climate initiative aimed to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and commercial banks make more informed decisions that lead to more sustainable outcomes. It also endeavoured to assist public sector actors with the development of policies and strategies that encourage private sector investment that promotes climate risk management along the rice value chains. The overarching research question for the project was: how can domestic private sector investments support climate risk management along agricultural value chains in Uganda?
Funding
The financial support for the initative was provided by the International Development Research Centre.
