Uganda is seeking Thai investment in mineral processing, coffee, manufacturing and technology, with Finance Minister Henry Musasizi projecting annual returns of 15–25% as the country targets a $500 billion economy by 2040.
Uganda is courting Thai investors with projected annual returns of 15–25% in mineral processing, agro-industrialisation, high-tech manufacturing and tourism as the government pursues its ambition to grow the economy to $500 billion by 2040.
Speaking at the Uganda Investment and Business Opportunities Forum in Bangkok, Thailand, on October 12, 2026, Finance, Planning and Economic Development Minister Henry Musasizi said Uganda was seeking to deepen economic ties with Thailand through joint ventures, industrial partnerships and export-oriented investments.
Musasizi told investors that Uganda’s macroeconomic fundamentals, strategic location, expanding infrastructure and access to regional and continental markets offered opportunities for businesses seeking to expand their presence in Africa.
“Uganda’s macroeconomic fundamentals are strong. Investing in Uganda is secure,” Musasizi said, citing investment incentives, unrestricted repatriation of profits and dividends, and provisions allowing full foreign ownership of businesses.
He said investment registration takes one day, while fiscal incentives, including tax holidays, industrial parks and export processing zones, were intended to lower business costs and accelerate industrialisation.
Uganda is particularly targeting Thai investors interested in processing its mineral resources into higher-value products instead of exporting raw materials.
Musasizi identified opportunities in electric battery manufacturing using lithium, automotive steel and construction materials from iron ore, organic fertilisers from phosphates, and electrical conductors and rechargeable battery components from copper and cobalt.
He also highlighted opportunities in petrochemicals linked to Uganda’s oil resources, as well as specialised metal alloys and machine components derived from wolfram, tin, titanium and chromium.
Such investments, he said, would help Uganda move up the global manufacturing value chain, create jobs and increase export earnings.
Other targeted sectors include pharmaceutical manufacturing, steel products, cement, fertilisers, processed meat and dairy products, information and communications technology equipment, e-commerce, financial technology, electric mobility and data centres.
Musasizi said Thailand’s experience in agro-processing, food exports, tourism and advanced manufacturing made it a suitable partner for Uganda’s economic transformation.
He added that the targeted sectors align with Uganda’s Tenfold Growth Strategy, which prioritises agro-industrialisation, tourism, mineral development, including oil and gas, and science, technology and innovation.
Uganda Positions Itself as a Gateway to African Markets
Uganda is also marketing its geographical location and access to regional trade arrangements as advantages for foreign investors seeking to serve African markets.
Musasizi said Uganda’s membership in the East African Community Customs Union provides access to a regional market of approximately 530 million people, with a combined gross domestic product of $577 billion.
He added that the African Continental Free Trade Area offered further opportunities to reach markets across Africa, whose population he put at 1.6 billion people and combined GDP at $3.6 trillion.
According to the minister, Thai businesses could use Uganda as a production and distribution base for regional trade and exports to the Middle East, Europe and Asia, subject to applicable trade rules and market-access requirements.
“Through joint ventures and partnerships, Thailand investors can easily establish successful businesses in a fairly short time, earning profits ranging from 15–25% per year,” Musasizi said.
He suggested that returns could be higher in selected high-technology sectors, including ICT infrastructure, data centres, fintech and electronics.
However, the projected returns are investment targets cited by the minister, not guaranteed profits. Actual performance would depend on capital costs, operating expenses, market demand, competition and other commercial risks.
Uganda is seeking Thai investment in agro-processing as it pursues greater value addition to agricultural exports.
Musasizi said Uganda’s position as Africa’s leading coffee exporter presented opportunities for investors to establish processing facilities that could increase the value of coffee and other agricultural commodities before they reach international markets.
He cited government interventions, including the Parish Development Model and the Agricultural Credit Facility, as initiatives intended to improve access to financing, increase agricultural production and productivity, and connect farmers to markets.
Investors, he said, could tap into Uganda’s agricultural output by establishing factories to process coffee, dairy products, meat and other commodities for domestic consumption and export.
Such ventures could strengthen links between agriculture and manufacturing while creating jobs and providing farmers with more reliable markets.
Economic Growth and Infrastructure
Musasizi told the forum that Uganda’s economy had recorded average annual growth of about 6% in recent years, with its GDP estimated at approximately $70 billion.
He attributed the country’s investment appeal to macroeconomic stability, relatively low inflation, a largely stable exchange rate, legal protections for contracts and an open economy that allows capital to move freely.
He also cited investments in transport, energy, ICT, irrigation and other economic infrastructure as measures intended to reduce production and transportation costs.
Uganda’s youthful workforce and growing domestic market, he added, offered businesses access to labour and opportunities for expansion.
The government’s target of growing the economy to $500 billion by 2040, Musasizi said, would require greater private-sector participation, foreign direct investment and a shift towards value addition and higher-productivity industries.
Musasizi urged Thai businesses to translate diplomatic relations into commercial partnerships that generate employment, expand exports and support industrial growth in both countries.
He invited investors to visit Uganda and engage with the Uganda Investment Authority to understand investment procedures and identify suitable opportunities.
“Together, let us turn the friendship between our two countries into factories, export growth, jobs and shared prosperity,” Musasizi said.
The Bangkok forum forms part of Uganda’s broader effort to attract foreign capital into productive sectors, strengthen export competitiveness and accelerate economic transformation.
The test will be whether the investment pitch translates into concrete commitments, new factories, technology transfers and sustainable employment capable of supporting Uganda’s ambitious growth target.