Uganda Investment Proposal
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Uganda Investment Plans and Opportunities |
The Proposal
The Hand in Hand initiative aims to pilot the development of investment plans such as milk processing, animal feed manufacture, Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine and maize processing, based on the Hand in Hand typologies in four national zones covering more than 30 districts. These value chains are considered key in Uganda as the livestock sector contributed approximately 4% to the national GDP and 17% to the agricultural sector in 2022. Agriculture is Uganda’s leading sector, employing 70% of the workforce and contributing 24% to GDP and 42% to export earnings. The sector benefits from the country’s fertile land, favorable climate, and mineral resources. Uganda has a total area of 241,038 km², of which 80% is arable land, yet only 35% is currently cultivated, leaving significant room for expansion. The agricultural growth rate in FY 2023/24 was 5.1%, driven by increasing production and private sector investments, which are projected to boost GDP growth to 6.0% in FY 2024/25. In addition, maize, dairy and beef are among the 12 strategic value chains in the National Development Plan for food security, export earnings and agro industrialisation.
.jpg?sfvrsn=6d72652_1 "Mechanisation")
Total Investment | 541.2 Million USD |
IRR Value | 24.53% |
NPV Value | 104.57 Million USD |
Direct Beneficiaries | 960,000 |
Indirect Beneficiaries | 1,500,000 |
Total Beneficiaries | 2,460,000 |
Per capita income increase | 700 USD/year |
ExACT TOOL | 1.5 Million tCO –e 2 |
Total Investment | 230.075 Million USD |
IRR Value | 26.71% |
NPV Value | 45.6 Million USD |
Direct Beneficiaries | 1,200,00 |
Indirect Beneficiaries | 2,000,000 |
Total Beneficiaries | 3,200,000 |
Per capita income increase | 677 USD/year |
ExACT TOOL | 1.9 Million tCO –e 2 |
Total Investment | 104.5 Million USD |
IRR Value | 23.47% |
NPV Value | 6.6 Million USD |
Direct Beneficiaries | 500,000 |
Indirect Beneficiaries | 250,000 |
Total Beneficiaries | 750,000 |
Per capita income increase | 286 USD/year |
ExACT TOOL | 1.2 Million tCO -e2 |
.jpg?sfvrsn=769e2dcc_1 "Foot and mouth")
Total Investment | 93.0 Million USD |
IRR Value | 24.0% |
NPV Value | 46.8 Million USD |
Direct Beneficiaries | 2,500,000 |
Indirect Beneficiaries | 500,000 |
Total Beneficiaries | 3,000,000 |
Per capita income increase | 300 USD/year |
ExACT TOOL | 1.9 Million tCO -e2 |
Uganda Typologies
Poverty
Potential
Efficiency
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Government of Uganda: Investment cases in Uganda
Uganda Investment Cases and Interventions
 | Dairy Processing facilities541.2 Million USD2,460,000 Beneficiaries |
Dairy processing
With the livestock sector's growing contribution to the economy, there is currently limited value addition to benefit dairy and cattle feed market actors. To address this, the Hand in Hand (HiH) initiative supported the identification and prioritization of investments in milk production and processing.
The first investment case focuses on developing milk processing capacity to increase exports, domestic consumption of processed dairy products and create jobs. This initiative aims to process 730 million litres of raw milk annually through the installation of four processing facilities, the acquisition of six modern milk tanker trucks, and installation of 100 milk coolers. The annual targets include producing 139 million litres of UHT milk, 146 million litres of yoghurt, 43 million tons of milk powder, and 70 million litres of pasteurized milk. This private sector investment, estimated at approximately USD 507 million, is expected to yield an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 25%, directly benefiting 960,000 dairy farmers and workers. The government is committed to supporting this investment by providing land, and establishing necessary infrastructure such as roads, electricity, internet, and water supply, valued at around USD 34.2 million, bringing the overall investment to USD 541.2 million. Consequently, the remaining investment gap of USD 506.62 million is open for private-sector financing.
.jpg?sfvrsn=620e88a6_1) | Animal feed facilities230.075 Million USD3,200,000 Beneficiaries |
Animal feeds manufacturing
The investment in animal feeds is aimed at addressing critical challenges in the livestock sector across the four selected zones in Uganda. The key issues identified include the inaccessibility of pasture seeds, leading to limited milk production and cattle mortality during dry seasons; inadequate animal feeds exacerbated by climate change and prolonged drought; limited preservation technologies for pastures; and a lack of necessary machinery and equipment. These challenges contribute to a significant deficit in animal feed supply, with Uganda facing shortages up to 70%. To tackle these problems, the proposed investment involves establishing 4 Nucleus estates with 1 silage banker (capacity of 122,400 tonnes/year), a hay ban (capacity of 400,000 tonnes/year), a dairy meal plant (capacity of 102,820 tonnes/year), a poultry feeds plant (capacity of 250, 920 tonnes/year, a pig feeds plant (capacity 263160tonnes/year). This investment aims at producing well-balanced and nutritious animal feeds alongside pastures for preservation as silage and hay. This private sector investment is estimated at approximately USD 204.6 million and is expected to yield an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 26.7%, benefiting 1.2 million farmers and businesses. The government is committed to supporting this investment by providing land, and establishing necessary infrastructure such as roads, electricity, internet, and water supply, valued at around USD 25.5 million, bringing the overall investment to USD 230.1 million. Consequently, the remaining investment gap of USD 205 million is open for private-sector financing.
.jpg?sfvrsn=1f4eaba9_1) | Maize Processing Facilities104.5 Million USD750,000 Beneficiaries |
Maize processing
Currently, the government of Uganda loses 9.2 million USD in tax due to rejected maize exports. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the maize quality by improving the cleaning, storage and processing of maize as well as adding value to raw maize products. This will not only increase raw product exports, but processing maize will lead to an increase in value-added exports. Investments are focused on modern machinery for processing to produce three high-value maize products including cornflakes, maize oil and maize starch. The target is to process 28,800 tons of high-quality maize to produce 8,550 tonnes of cornflakes, 144 litres of maize oil, and 4,309 tonnes of maize starch annually. This private sector investment estimated at approximately USD 77.4 million is expected to yield an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 23.5 %, benefiting 100,000 maize farmers, traders and maize factory workers. The government is committed to supporting this investment by providing land, and establishing necessary infrastructure such as roads, electricity, internet, and water supply, valued at around USD 27.1 million, bringing the overall investment to USD 104.5 million. Consequently, the remaining investment gap of USD 77.4 million is open for private sector financing.
 | FMD Vaccine facility85.4 Million USD3,000,000 Beneficiaries |
Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine
Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) poses a significant threat to the growth and progress of Uganda’s livestock sector, limiting exports and causing substantial losses to farmers. Losses at the processing level due to FMD can reach up to 80%. Currently, Uganda has around 15 million cattle heads that require FMD vaccines twice a year (30 million dozes), while goats, sheep, and pigs require 50 million doses per year, all of which are imported. The inadequacy in vaccine supply and high costs lead to frequent outbreaks and quarantines, discouraging investment in the livestock sector. To address these challenges, the proposed investments are focused on establishing an FMD vaccine manufacturing and commercialization facility with laboratory infrastructure and a vaccine cold chain. This target to produce 30 million dozes to vaccinate 10 million heads of cattle and 20 million heads of other ruminants. This will allow to improve the quality of milk and beef for export, reduce cattle and other livestock mortalities, and reduce quarantines. The private sector investment is estimated at approximately USD 85.4 million with expected Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 24%%, benefiting 2.5 million farmers and traders. The government is committed to supporting this investment by providing land, and establishing necessary infrastructure valued at around USD 7.6 million, bringing the overall investment to USD 93 million. Consequently, the remaining investment gap of USD 85.4 million is open for private sector financing.
Investment Opportunities in Uganda |  |