AIRTEA: circular Dairy Innovation Centres

Three farmer-managed Dairy Innovation Centres in Wakiso (urban), Mityana (peri-urban) and Gomba (rural), each anchored in a district Multi-Stakeholder Innovation Platform. Delivered by a consortium of AGRENES (lead), AGRILIV, Makerere University, NARO and AGRITECH Advanced Systems.

Why it matters

Dairy supports more than 1.7 million Ugandan households, yet smallholders average only 5–7 litres per cow a day, mostly because feed is scarce and costly: it makes up 60–70% of production costs. Farm waste goes largely unmanaged, more than 70% of rural households cook with firewood or charcoal, and women and youth, over 60% of the farm labour force, are largely shut out of profitable dairy business.

Objectives

• Co-design and establish three farmer-managed Dairy Innovation Centres
• Form and facilitate district-level Multi-Stakeholder Innovation Platforms
• Pilot circular dairy technologies: biogas, Azolla, urea-molasses blocks, Black Soldier Fly larvae and forage conservation
• Build the skills of local farmers, women and youth
• Deploy a digital platform for e-extension, learning and market linkages

What we did

• Ran community meetings and participatory appraisals with more than 500 profiled dairy farmers to diagnose feed, waste, energy and market constraints
• Conducted a baseline survey from May to December 2022, followed by midline (2023–2024) and endline (2025) assessments
• Tested and refined each technology under farmer-managed conditions at the centres, measuring milk, feed, biogas and resource flows
• Ran more than 60 training activities: farmer field schools, workshops, exposure visits and digital modules
• Held focus groups and key informant interviews with farmers, extension officers, private sector and local government
• Built the e-MSIP platform and incubated youth-led enterprises around the centres

Results

• 3,080 farmers and value-chain actors trained, 34% women and 42% youth; 93 certified to run centre technologies
• Milk yield up about nine-fold, from 150 to 1,290 litres per cow per month
• Conserved forage up from 5,650 kg to over 13.7 million kg
• Eight circular technologies piloted and validated: biogas, improved forage, silage and hay, Azolla, urea-molasses blocks, Black Soldier Fly larvae, slurry-based horticulture and water harvesting
• 24 centre facilities built and operating, from cowsheds and biodigesters to feed processing, hydroponics and training spaces
• Farmers using circular technologies rose from 4 at baseline to 56
• 383 users on the e-MSIP platform, including 174 youth and 162 women
• 15 youth-led agribusinesses launched, with 11 trade agreements and 7 input–output contracts
• About 1,200 kg of biogas a month, replacing 1,670 kg of firewood