John Masaba
Investment prospects in Uganda’s coffee industry are expected to dominate this year’s UK-Uganda summit as some of the world’s top business executives and investors from the UK and Europe, with an eye on Uganda’s agricultural industry, meet on September 8 in London.
Other areas that are expected to feature include infrastructure, oil and gas, Information Communication and Technologies, tourism, service, health, mineral, and manufacturing.
“[The event will] serve as a buyer-seller trade summit, facilitating increased offtake from the Ugandan agricultural industry to markets in the UK, Europe, and the Commonwealth,” Julie Davies, the events partnership manager revealed.
“We will have an exceptional side session solely dedicated to coffee, where UK and European importers and roasters can meet Ugandan exporters, with the aim to initiate introductions, discuss all coffee related matters, and generate or increase business between parties.”
She noted that at least 600 delegates are anticipated to attend the event at the Blue Orchid Hotels in London.
Annual event
Now in its 13th year, the annual UK-Uganda business summit creates awareness, supports, and promotes trade and investment between Uganda and the United Kingdom.
It combines high-level plenaries with business networking. Its side events offer capacity building for trade, with deal-maker dedicated meetings, insights, and partnerships for exporters and importers, businesses to engage in the UK and Commonwealth markets, according the organizers’ website.
It also promotes Ugandan exports and identifies export opportunities, so that the export earnings close the gap with the import demand, and facilitates the transformation of Uganda from a current consuming nation into a producing nation.
As well as hosting investors, exporters and importers seeking opportunities in different areas, the event also features renowned personalities making speeches at the event.
Uganda is one of the countries attracting the most Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in East Africa. According to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s 2022 World Investment Report, FDI in Uganda increased by 30.6 percent from $874m in 2020 to $1.1b in 2021. Uganda is rich in natural resources and its geographic location in the heart of sub-Saharan Africa gives it an ideal strategic base to become a regional hub of trade and investment.
