It began as a packed ballroom in Kampala, but by mid-morning it had transformed into something else entirely: a crossroads of ambition, money, and possibility.
More than 120 firms from Uganda and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) sat face-to-face, exchanging handshakes, business cards, and promises.
And with each introduction, Uganda’s economic ties with the Gulf deepened, one conversation at a time.
This year’s UAE-East Africa Trade and Investment Mission, led by the Sharjah Exports Development Center and the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, arrived with a clear message: the Gulf is ready to do business, and Uganda is firmly on its radar.
State Minister for Trade Wilson Mbasu Mbadi captured the moment, noting that: ‘Non-oil trade between Uganda and UAE has now surpassed $2b annually. And this is just the beginning. Our target is to grow this tenfold.’
Behind that ambition lies a growing ecosystem of partnerships. Already, more than 120 memoranda of understanding have been signed between Ugandan and UAE firms, ranging from agribusiness and ICT to energy, manufacturing, and infrastructure.
Uganda-UAE relations have matured into what Mbadi called a ‘robust and dynamic relationship’, one built on mutual trust and investment.
Uganda now exports gold, coffee, tea, fish, and fresh produce to UAE. In return, UAE supplies petroleum products, vehicles, machinery, textiles, and electronics, a trade that has been accelerated by the UAE’s world-class logistics network, from Dubai Ports to Emirates SkyCargo.
But trade alone is not the final goal. Mbadi said Uganda’s push for industrialisation under the Tenfold Growth Strategy will need investors who can turn raw materials into textiles, pharmaceuticals, packaging, agro-processing, and light manufacturing.
‘We are building the infrastructure to support it,’ he said, pointing to the Entebbe Airport expansion, Kampala-Jinja Expressway, the revival of Uganda Railways, and the development of Bukasa and Port Bell inland ports.
Rosa Malango, Special Envoy on Tourism and Trade, stepped forward with a different pitch, one centred on energy, financing, and innovation.
‘With 6.5 billion barrels of oil reserves, 2,000 megawatts of hydropower, and exceptional solar prospects, Uganda offers over $20b in investment opportunities,’ she said.
‘We need partners in upstream development, petrochemicals, refinery construction, and the Kabale Industrial Park.’
She pointed to Amea Power, a UAE firm investing $20m in a 20-megawatt solar plant in Arua, as proof that Gulf investors are already betting on Uganda’s clean-energy future.
Malango also floated the idea of a Uganda-UAE Business Council, framed under the AfCFTA to ease policy coordination and open continental markets to Emirati investors.
From the Uganda Investment Authority, Rita Nabateregga laid out Uganda’s case.
‘Uganda sits at the heart of Africa,’ she said. ‘Invest here, and you gain access to 1.3 billion consumers across EAC, COMESA, and AfCFTA.’
UIA’s One-Stop Centre, she added, now brings together 15 agencies to streamline investor processes, from licensing and tax registration to visas and utilities.
Uganda’s incentives: 10-year tax holidays, zero import duty on machinery, and deductions for R and D, continue to lure investors seeking scalable opportunities.