The third Uganda EU Business Forum was organized from 5-7 March 2024 in Kampala, Uganda at Speke Resort. The Forum placed special attention to key economic sectors that offer significant opportunities for European investors to develop partnerships with entrepreneurs in Uganda including in Agribusiness, Sustainable Mining, Enabling Infrastructure and Sustainable Tourism.

Flying Food was present as well. Mathilde Miedema of TNO and Marian peters of NGN attended the conference and had a booth on crickets in the exhibition area. The president of Uganda, H.E. Museveni, many Ministers from Uganda, EU representatives, Ambassadors, Investment Banks paid a visit to our booth. Most of them were excited and not aware of the huge opportunities of insect for business and societal impact. At the closing session Mr Nzeyi – Chair of Private Sector Foundation Uganda said: “I learned a lot these days. I knew already that Uganda is a leading country in coffee, but I learned that we are also great in insects!’

During the business forum several investment facilities in sustainable agriculture were launched:

• The START Facility, funded with €11.5 million, supports Ugandan agribusinesses through concessional loans, technical assistance grants, and credit guarantees
• The €50 million EIB loan to Centenary Rural Development Bank (CERUDEB) benefits microentrepreneurs, especially women, aiming for nearly 2 million loans over seven years.
• The €12 million EU and Denmark investment in the Agricultural Business Initiative (ABI) aids 200,000 Ugandan farmers in improving climate resilience and productivity via matching grants and Business Development Services (BDS).

The EU Global Gateway strategy provides the framework for the EU’s external action. It is the EU’s positive offer to partner countries aiming to narrow the global investment gap with value-driven investments from public and private sectors, support global economic recovery and accompany the twin green and digital transitions outside the EU. Across the world, Global Gateway aims to mobilize up to €300 billion in investments between 2021 and 2027 with a mix of grants, concessional loans and guarantees to de-risk private sector investments.

See for more information about the conference: Home – Uganda-EU Business Forum (ugandaeuropebusinessforum.com) and the summary of the results :3rd Uganda-EU Business Forum Highlights: €200 million in investments for Uganda, 3,600 participants | EEAS (europa.eu)