KAMPALA, Uganda, June 21 (UPI) -- High prices for food in Southern Sudan are luring subsistence farmers in Uganda to sell the produce they need to survive, U.N. officials say.
Patrick Amuriat, a member of the Ugandan Parliament representing Kumi County, said peasants there do not have any other way to get money, the U.N. Integrated Regional Information Service reported.
"Food exports to Southern Sudan are having a big impact on the food security of the country," Amuriat said Thursday. "Peasants are attracted by the good prices in Sudan to sell off whatever food production there is and they remain with nothing to eat."
Tarsis Kabwegyere, the Ugandan disaster preparedness minister, said the government has set aside $5 million to buy emergency food supplies. Martin Owor, who works on emergency management in the prime minister's office, said recent weather has been difficult for Ugandan farmers.
