Makerere Made Juice Making Machine, Mulimi Tractor Shine at CBS Pewosa Expo

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SHIFRAH KAYAGA

Where as CBS radio station was celebrating 20 years of existence in Buganda from Wankulukuku, Makerere University used the chance to showcase its ground-breaking innovations in technology.

During the CBS Pewosa expo that kicked of on June 16 and is to end on June 24, Makerere's Prof William Kyamuhangire and Peter Walusimbi Kagole who is an engineer, a tractor operator and the mobile plant attendant, stole the match when they unveiled the juice making machine

It is intended to help thousands of small scale farmers increase their incomes from fruits they grow.

The duo said that after looking at how farmers suffer with getting a market for their fruits which are normally of poor quality, they thought of value addition, and constructed this machine to help in  juice making which can easily be sold than selling unprocessed fruits.

"Some of the fruits like mangoes are blessed with there own sugars which are fully important in our body system," Walusimbi said, adding "This tractor was constructed, purposely, for farmers who are operating on small scales. They can gather their mangoes and change them into juice before they get bad."

After the juice is got, the seeds and peelings are given back to them to help in fertilizing soils and animal feeds.” he said amidst cheers and rounds applause.

He added that on top adding value to farmer’s products, it also. provides employment to the others in production work where each employee earns at least Shs 10,000 daily, and more or less gives knowledge to university students who at the moment can manage constructing small tractors that help in food mixing for both animals and poultry.

Ronald Akankwaasa from the department of Agricultural and Bio Engineering added that the MVM Mulimi tractor was constructed from Kabanyolo where the workshop for Agricultural Engineering is located.

He said: “This tractor is affordable and performs five basic functions which includes cultivation or tilling of the land, pumping of water for irrigation and for home consumption.

"It has a TPO where we trap power that can be used for freshing of maize or any other implement that uses rotary motion, the fourth is transporting harvests to the store or market and lastly, is to do with electrical power that is used for charging for example phones or anything else.”

He added that the tractor also helps in feed mixing that uses a technology called "double ribbon" that enables It do back and forth preparation of feeds. It is a bunch mixer that out puts half a tarn at ago and then will mix them according to the ration prescribed by an agriculturalist.

"Therefore, this machine came out to help Uganda in away that, in order to get maximum benefits from for example poultry, they need a rational that is mixed thoroughly and properly and thus farmers will get good grades after animals are given supper quality food..

EXPOS BY OTHER INSTITUTES

Buganda Royal Institute which is located in Mengo Kareem's near Super FM in Rubaga division was also among the institutions that attracted a lot of people’s attention

It was so creative when It managed coming up with a Gnut crushing crushing machine that was made by these students in effort to ensure production of high quality ground nut paste and in quantity, without using a lot of energy.

Kampala University that is located at Gabba Lake view came along with the catering department which is part of the peltry section and their cakes, cookies and other snakes were seen on tables. Also brought. the film school which includes the media and photography, leisure tourism and hotel management, cosmetology of cosmetics department, the nursing school that came specifically to examine people in terms of blood pressure, sugar levels.