Trade, Industry and Cooperatives Minister Sanjay Tanna has challenged Ugandans to recognize the Uganda Development Corporation (UDC) as one of the key institutions behind the country’s industrial transformation, tracing its contribution from historic national projects to emerging manufacturing enterprises such as Bukona Agro-Processors.
Tanna, who was the guest of honor, said UDC’s contribution to Uganda’s development stretches beyond the 10 years since its re-establishment in 2016, pointing to its historical involvement in major industrial and infrastructure projects, including Owen Falls Dam and Tororo Cement.
He made the remarks on Friday while commissioning Bukona Agro-Processors’ ethanol-petrol blending facility in Malaba, Tororo District, ahead of the 18-20 November, 2026 celebrations marking UDC’s 10 years since its revival.
The Minister, also Tororo Municipality MP said the corporation had been deliberately restored to provide government with an investment vehicle for supporting strategic enterprises, particularly businesses requiring substantial capital and carrying risks that private investors may be reluctant to take.
“UDC in its current state was designed to act as the government’s primary vehicle for investing in strategic high-impact enterprises that the private sector alone may find too capital intensive and risky to invest in,” Tanna said.
He explained that the corporation had historically played a role in tje country’s industrial development, including through the establishment of institutions that supported major projects such as Owen Falls Dam and Tororo Cement.
Tanna said the re-establishment of UDC under President YK Museveni was intended to restore government’s capacity to participate directly in strategic investments and accelerate domestic industrialization.
The Minister said the corporation has now spent the past decade playing a catalytic role through equity participation, enterprise rejuvenation and industrial infrastructure development.
Sanjay Tana cited the investment in Bukona Agro-Processors as evidence that government-backed capital could help revive businesses, attract private investment and retain more economic value within Uganda.
UDC acquired a 28.5% stake in Bukona in 2021 when the company was experiencing financial difficulties, in a corporation which also provided working capital to support its recovery and diversification into new products, including ethanol for clean cooking and petrol blending.
Tanna said such investments were consistent with the country’s development priorities under the Fourth National Development Plan and the broader tenfold growth strategy.
Uganda is seeking to expand its economy from approximately $50 billion in 2025 to $500 billion by 2040, an ambition that requires increased production, stronger domestic value chains, import substitution and expansion of export markets.
The Minister identified agro-industrialization as a major pillar of this transformation, arguing that Uganda must move beyond exporting raw agricultural produce and instead process it into higher-value industrial products.
He said Bukona’s conversion of cassava and maize into industrial ethanol demonstrates the kind of structural economic transformation government wants to promote.
UDC Executive Director (ED) Dr Patrick Birungi said the corporation’s investment philosophy is centred on enterprises that stimulate domestic production, create employment, strengthen value chains and reduce dependence on imports.
He said UDC was not simply interested in providing money to companies but in building businesses that could adapt, diversify and develop productive capacity.
Dr Birungi also highlighted other projects being showcased ahead of the corporation’s 10-year celebrations, including a packaging manufacturing facility in Namanve, additional glove manufacturing lines and a fish-feed processing facility at Masheda along Mityana Road.
He said the projects demonstrate UDC’s growing involvement in different industrial sectors.
Tanna said his ministry would continue championing the strengthening of UDC to ensure it receives the resources required to deepen government investment in domestic value addition, including agriculture, strategic manufacturing and the petroleum industry.
He, however, emphasized that public investment must produce measurable development outcomes, commercial sustainability and stronger linkages with local micro, small and medium enterprises.
The corporation is expected to showcase more of its investments during the celebrations, with Birungi inviting stakeholders to attend the Uganda Industrialization Conference scheduled for November 18 to 20, 2026, at Speke Resort Munyonyo in Kampala. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
