Museveni Orders UGX 310 Billion to Rescue Uganda’s Struggling Tea Sector
President Yoweri Museveni has directed the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Finance to urgently allocate UGX 310 billion to support Uganda’s ailing tea industry. The funds are intended to aid tea factories, subsidize fertilizers and settle outstanding payments to seedling suppliers.
In a statement dated August 26, 2025, addressed to Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, Museveni emphasized the critical need to revive the sector which is vital for employment and foreign exchange earnings. The breakdown of the emergency package includes UGX 152 billion for tea factories, UGX 46 billion as fertilizer subsidies to tea growers and UGX 112 billion to clear arrears owed to seedling suppliers.
The directive follows a meeting the President held with tea farmers in Bushenyi town on August 19. During the meeting, farmers from various regions voiced concerns over persistent challenges undermining the industry. Key issues raised included lack of fertilizers, inadequate regulation of leaf quality, absence of a factory in Zombo district, frequent power outages damaging tea production, poor feeder roads in tea-growing areas and unpaid seedling suppliers since the NAADS program.
In addition to financial support, Museveni instructed Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the tea sector. The resulting technical report will advise the government on whether tea should be classified as a “high-value” or “low-value” crop and will inform long-term industry policies.
Prof. Kamuntu appointed Edson Tumusiime Batuuna, Arthur Babu Muguzi, and Robert Egiku as key contributors to the review. Museveni underscored that since the tea industry employs over 154,000 Ugandans and generates millions of dollars annually, it is imperative to prevent its collapse.
Furthermore, the President directed the Ministry of Agriculture to formulate regulations aimed at standardizing cultivation practices, quality control and marketing strategies.
Ugandan tea production has grown exponentially from 3 million kilograms per year to about 60 million kilograms contributing an estimated USD 85.5 million to the national economy. The government’s intervention aims to sustain and further boost this vital sector.
