By Ben Musanje
Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development Lt. Gen. Henry Tumukunde has responded to concerns raised by Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) representative Robert Ssewagudde over the inclusion of people with disabilities in government economic empowerment programmes, saying thousands of PWDs have benefited from various interventions.
Tumukunde’s response, submitted to Parliament following a request for an update on the Generating Growth Opportunities and Productivity for Women Entrepreneurs (GROW) Project, shows that 79,509 persons with disabilities have benefited from the National Special Grant to Persons with Disabilities programme, with government disbursing Shs53.54 billion to PWD groups across Uganda over the past seven financial years.
The figures are contained in a statement to Parliament on the status of implementation of the GROW Project, following concerns raised by Ssewagudde during discussions on the 2026/27 national budget in June.
Ssewagudde had questioned the extent to which women with disabilities were benefiting from GROW, arguing that PWDs were tired of appearing in government reports and statistics without seeing tangible improvements on the ground. He called for greater transparency, accountability and evidence of inclusion.
According to Tumukunde, the National Special Grant has supported 11,147 groups since 2019/20, benefiting 39,906 males and 39,603 females.
The grants support groups of between five and 15 PWDs and have financed enterprises including poultry farming, bull fattening, agricultural produce trading, knitting, tailoring and restaurants.
PWDs among GROW beneficiaries
The minister also provided specific figures on PWD participation in the GROW Project.
As of March 31, 2026, 26 women entrepreneurs with disabilities had borrowed Shs570.9 million under the GROW loan component. Three of the beneficiaries had completed their first loans and proceeded to obtain repeat financing.
Overall, GROW had made Shs133.1 billion available to 6,584 women entrepreneurs across 11 cities and 129 districts, out of Shs186 billion earmarked for lending.
The loans are being provided through 14 participating financial institutions, including commercial banks, microfinance deposit-taking institutions and savings and credit cooperatives.
The minister said an Apex Fund for the GROW Loan is also being designed following a Cabinet directive. The fund is expected to become operational by December 2026 and will manage loans and recoveries on a permanent basis.
More than 500 PWDs trained
Tumukunde said PWD participation also extends beyond access to credit.
A total of 12,921 women entrepreneurs have received essential business skills training, including 525 entrepreneurs with disabilities.
The training covers financial management, business formalisation, technology use, customer care, sustainability and developing a resilient entrepreneurial mindset.
Another 1,208 women entrepreneurs have completed workplace-based learning, including 14 persons with disabilities, while 593 others are still undergoing training.
The apprenticeship programme covers sectors such as construction, dairy farming and processing, poultry, baking, beauty and cosmetology, tailoring and textiles, and paint manufacturing.
Shs4.3 billion earmarked for enterprises supporting PWDs
The government has also approved support for common-user production infrastructure intended to benefit women entrepreneurs.
Tumukunde said infrastructure grants worth Shs6.94 billion were awarded to nine enterprises in 2025, while the Solicitor General has approved grants worth Shs97 billion for an additional 183 enterprises across the country.
Of this allocation, Shs4.3 billion has been earmarked for enterprises supporting persons with disabilities, including organisations belonging to PWD unions and associations.
Among the planned interventions is an application designed to help entrepreneurs with visual impairments identify different denominations of the Uganda shilling. Another initiative will support digital marketing applications for products made by women entrepreneurs with disabilities.
Government cites other programmes
Tumukunde also pointed to programmes outside GROW as evidence of government efforts to expand economic opportunities for PWDs and other vulnerable groups.
Under the Parish Development Model, 44,604 PWDs had benefited under the Special Interest Groups component, according to figures cited from the PDM Secretariat.
The minister further highlighted the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme (UWEP) and Youth Livelihood Programme (YLP), which together have disbursed Shs358 billion to 49,636 groups and 509,352 entrepreneurs since their inception.
He said beneficiaries of UWEP can transition to financing opportunities available under GROW, PDM and other government economic empowerment programmes.
Ministry calls for greater PWD participation
Tumukunde said the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development remained committed to implementing GROW with an “inclusion lens”, with particular attention to women with disabilities, refugee women and other vulnerable groups.
He called on Members of Parliament to help mobilise eligible PWD women entrepreneurs to participate in GROW, including its training, workplace placement and upcoming business grants competition.
The ministry plans to launch the business grants competition in August 2026, targeting about 2,600 women-owned micro and small businesses, with grants ranging from Shs3.7 million to Shs110 million.
Tumukunde said Parliament would also be given an opportunity to receive further orientation on GROW so that MPs can help increase awareness and uptake of the programme in their constituencies.
The response comes as government faces continued calls from PWD representatives for economic empowerment programmes to move beyond beneficiary statistics and demonstrate measurable impact among persons with disabilities at community level.
While the figures show substantial government spending and participation through the broader PWD grant programme, the specific GROW figures indicate that only 26 women entrepreneurs with disabilities had accessed GROW loans by March 2026, highlighting the gap between overall PWD support programmes and direct participation in the flagship women-focused GROW financing component.
The GROW Project, funded through a grant from the World Bank’s International Development Association, became effective in January 2023 and is scheduled to run until December 2027. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
