President Museveni has pledged government support for the establishment of the $200 million Nonda Coffee Park in Nakaseke, a major agro-industrial project expected to strengthen Uganda’s coffee industry by adding value, creating jobs, and increasing export earnings.
Museveni made the commitment during a meeting at State House Entebbe with a delegation from Nonda Coffee Park led by the company’s chief executive officer, Tonny Miiro Kibuuka.
The delegation briefed the President on the progress of the project and requested additional government support ahead of the groundbreaking ceremony scheduled for October this year.
The proposed coffee park will be built on a 100-acre site in Butalangu Town Council, Nakaseke. Once completed, it is expected to become the largest single coffee processing facility in East and Central Africa.
The factory will have the capacity to process 42,000 metric tons of coffee every year. It will source coffee from Uganda’s central region and other coffee-growing areas across the country.
According to Miiro, the project is part of the Great Uganda-Saudi Coffee Corridor under the Value-at-Source Coffee Project. The initiative is a private sector-led programme that aims to ensure more of Uganda’s coffee is processed locally before it is exported.
“The President has committed his support to this project, particularly in mobilising coffee farming households to prepare for the increased demand for coffee that will be required by the factory,” Miiro said after the meeting.
He explained that Uganda has traditionally exported most of its coffee as raw beans, earning less than it could from the crop. The Value-at-Source initiative seeks to change this by processing coffee within the country, allowing Uganda to earn more from its leading export commodity.
The coffee park is expected to cost about $200 million, making it one of the largest agro-processing investments in Uganda.
Miiro said about $160 million will be invested directly in the construction of the coffee park and related infrastructure on the 100-acre site in Butalangu.
Government is expected to contribute $44 million, while the remaining funding will come from private investors from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Miiro said one of the project’s biggest strengths is that it already has a ready export market.
He revealed that processed coffee from the factory will be exported to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under an existing commercial arrangement.
“This project is already mapped to the off-take market in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. There is a ready market waiting for the coffee because we are the first Ugandan company to own coffee shops in the Middle East,” he said.
He added that the company currently operates two Ugandan-branded coffee shops in Saudi Arabia.
The facility is projected to generate more than $800 million in annual revenue, significantly increasing Uganda’s foreign exchange earnings from coffee exports.
Preparatory works have already begun at the project site, and construction is expected to be completed within the next 24 months.
Miiro said preparations are also underway for the official groundbreaking ceremony in October.
“Our purpose in meeting the President was to thank him for the support he has committed to this project and also to inform him about the proposed groundbreaking ceremony later this year,” he said.
