By 9am, Mr Hebert Adriko, a youthful, brawny man, is already sweating as he loads trucks with building materials destined for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Go Down Road in Arua City.
Adriko says the growth in local manufacturing has opened up new income opportunities for him and many others in the sub-region. ‘We are now seeing the benefits of the electricity because now, mineral water, wine and other products are being manufactured from here. In the past, we could only wait for goods from Kampala or Jinja, which took time to reach here,’ he says.
Adriko says the change has directly increased his earnings.
‘In the past, I used to earn about Shs78,000 a day, but now I can earn Shs150,000 because I work from morning until evening. I can now be able to pay rent and feed well and save for the future,’ he says.
Ms Sally Oyenya, a salon operator in Arua City, says steady electricity has helped her regain customers she had lost.
‘I can now work smoothly for hours without power going off. I have recovered the lost customers because I didn’t have a generator as backup when power used to disturb a lot,’ she says.
Her monthly income has more than doubled, from about Shs230,000 to Shs500,000.
‘This money can now enable me to pay part of the school fees for my children and meet other needs,’ she says. For years, lack of electricity slowed down investment and industrial growth in West Nile.
Leaders blamed government policy, saying it denied the region a fair chance to develop. Businesses such as spinning mills, metal workshops, bakeries, hotels, hospitals and lodges operated below capacity, with few workers and low revenues. On August 3, 2024, several districts in West Nile were connected to the national electricity grid.
During the commissioning, Energy minister Ruth Nankabirwa said electricity demand in the region was expected to grow from 3.5 megawatts to 10 megawatts within a year, driven by new businesses and investments.
Manufacturing has picked up. Small factories are emerging across the sub-region, producing goods that were previously transported from central Uganda. Local investor Bob Oyoma, who runs Oyoma General Stores Limited in Parombo Town Council, Nebbi District, says unreliable power previously made it hard to meet demand, leading to huge losses.
‘.people are waiting to see whether the connection fees are going to be subsidised because this can attract more investors to do proper business,’ Mr Oyoma says. His wine factory employs about 500 skilled and semi-skilled workers and he has since expanded into grain milling. Other factories are also resuming or expanding operations. These include the Parombo Cotton Ginnery, Ayuda (Okoro Coffee) Union Processing Factory, and Kyagulanyi Coffee Factory in Zombo District.
In Yumbe District, Nilezilla Ltd, a Shs30 billion mango juice factory now employs about 200 people directly and 1,500 indirectly. It produces five metric tonnes of juice per hour and injects about Shs1.5 billion into the regional economy each year. Full operations began after connection to the national grid. The Chief Executive Officer of Nilezilla Ltd, Prof William Kyamuhangire, says electricity has enabled expansion plans.
‘We are now ready to expand abundant retail packaging and explore value-added products from mangoes and seed oil extraction. The factory will address post-harvest losses by converting abundant local mangoes into high value puree for both regional and export markets,’ he says.
Factories such as 7 Hills Adrikos Gin in Arua, soap manufacturing plants in Koboko, bread-making micro-factories in Arua City, cereal processing units, tobacco factories and chicken feed processing plants are also benefiting from stable electricity. Mwanzita Beverages, producing wine and mineral water in Arua District, is among the latest companies attracted by the improved power supply. State Minister for Investment Evelyne Anite says power availability has created a foundation for industrial parks in the region.
‘With the adequate power in place, this has given us the opportunity to kick-start the industrial parks in West Nile. We now need value addition on all products. We expect construction of better roads that can facilitate the movement of raw materials,’ she says.
She adds: ‘Ugandans should move to manufacturing, ICT and value addition investments. Now, I believe we can attract foreign-based investors and West Nile people in diaspora can utilise the land and resources here.’ Ayivu East MP aspirant Bernard Atiku says: ‘The reliable electricity means West Nile will begin to enjoy its strategic location for industrialisation. There is no better place for establishing factories for manufacturing various products destined for eastern DRC, Central African Republic, South Sudan and the Sudan than West Nile.’ Mr Joel Aita, the director of Joadah Consults Limited, says improved infrastructure will further boost investment.
‘With the connection to the national grid, more investment opportunities will open up. upgrading of Arua Airfield into an international airport. will open international business opportunities,’ he says.