Germany has committed pound 50 million (about Shs236.2 billion) in grants to Uganda to support local economic development, climate-smart agriculture, energy and water projects, with particular focus on the West Nile sub-region.
The new funding commitment was announced following two days of government-to-government negotiations between Uganda and Germany at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development headquarters in Kampala.
The agreements were formalised through the signing of summary records of the Uganda-Germany government negotiations on development cooperation on November 3.
Uganda’s Minister of Finance, Mr Henry Musasizi, said the funding comprises pound 30 million in financial cooperation and pound 20 million in technical cooperation.
‘These two days of negotiations have concluded with a commitment of pound 50 million in grants, of which pound 30 million is in financial cooperation and pound 20 million in technical cooperation. We appreciate this support. It comes at a time when resources for overseas development support are under pressure across Europe given the ongoing global challenges,’ he said.
Mr Musasizi said the interventions were aligned with Uganda’s National Development Plan and the Tenfold Growth Strategy, which seeks to expand the economy to $500 billion by 2040 through agro-industrialisation, tourism, mineral development, and science, technology and innovation.
He said pound 35 million, representing 70 per cent of the new commitment, would go towards water and electricity, while pound 10 million would support agribusiness and local economies. The remaining pound 5 million would support the participation of refugees and host communities, among other interventions.
Mr Musasizi said the funding would also strengthen trade and investment between the two countries, particularly in coffee, tea, fish, machinery and chemical products.
He called for increased German investment in production, processing, exports and skilled employment, proposing structured engagement to identify viable investment opportunities.
On regional infrastructure, Mr Musasizi said pound 18 million earmarked for electrification in West Nile would support businesses and farms in an area that trades with eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
He said the benefits of German support extended beyond the new commitments, citing water systems at Karuma designed to serve more than 480,000 people and four systems handed over in West Nile in March 2026, expected to benefit about 70,000 people.
He also said the Renewable Energy Training Centre had trained more than 1,000 technicians and practitioners, about 60 per cent of them women.
Germany’s support also contributes to Uganda’s efforts to host approximately 2.05 million refugees and asylum-seekers, alongside the communities accommodating them, he added.
The head of the German delegation and Central and East African Division of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Mr Joachim Schmitt, said the negotiations had reviewed development priorities, ongoing projects in water, energy and rural development, refugee support and opportunities to involve the private sector.
Mr Schmitt said Germany supported Uganda’s ambition to graduate from least developed country status and that its development cooperation would remain aligned with Uganda Vision 2040, the Tenfold Growth Strategy and the Fourth National Development Plan.
He said the two countries would increasingly focus on private-sector participation, including Ugandan, German and other European businesses, to unlock economic opportunities and create jobs.
Mr Schmitt also commended Uganda’s refugee-hosting policy, describing it as generous and noting that the country hosts the largest refugee population in Africa.
The German Ambassador to Uganda, Ms Sigrid Sommer, said the latest commitments marked another milestone in more than 60 years of development cooperation between the two countries.
‘Today’s successful conclusion of our government negotiation marks another important milestone in our relationship. It builds on our long-standing partnership, through which more than 60 years of German-Uganda cooperation have generated tangible results for the people of Uganda,’ she said.
Ms Sommer said the additional bilateral commitments reaffirmed Germany’s partnership with Uganda and provided a basis for cooperation in the coming years, aligned with the country’s development priorities.
She added that Germany accounts for nearly 25 per cent of European Union funding.