Agri battles over 2 000 vacancies

Auleria Wakudumo

A shortage of 2 120 employees across the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform (MAFWLR) is one of the biggest obstacles to delivering critical agricultural, veterinary, land reform and water services.

One of the largest ministries in the land is battling mounting financial, operational and legislative challenges.

The staffing gap was among the issues highlighted during the National Council’s three-day stakeholder engagement with government offices, ministries and agencies this week. The engagement is aimed at strengthening the oversight capacity of members of the Seventh National Council by providing an overview of ministries’ strategic priorities, achievements, challenges and budget implementation.

This was laid bare in a presentation by the ministry’s strategic plan, chief development planner in the monitoring and evaluation division Petrus Uushona.

With 6 085 approved positions on its structure, only 3 965 are filled, leaving 2 120 vacancies across its operations.