- AfDB Approves US$140 million Irrigation Programme to Boost Uganda’s Agro-Industrial Drive
The African Development Bank Group has approved a US$140 million financing package for a major irrigation and agro-industrialisation programme in Uganda, as multilateral lenders increase support for climate-resilient food systems and rural economic transformation across Africa.
The funding will support the Uganda Multipurpose Water for Climate Resilient Irrigation Development and Agro-Industrialization Programme in the country’s Bunyoro subregion, where authorities are seeking to reduce dependence on rain-fed agriculture and unlock private investment across agricultural value chains.
The African Development Fund, the concessional lending arm of the Bank Group, will provide the bulk of the financing as part of the programme’s estimated total cost of US$207 million.
Additional support is expected from the OPEC Fund for International Development, the End School Age Hunger Fund, the Government of Uganda and project beneficiaries.
The programme is expected to finance a large-scale water conveyance system linked to irrigation networks covering more than 4,000 hectares in its first phase, with potential expansion to 13,000 hectares under a second phase.
Beyond irrigation infrastructure, the initiative will support climate-smart farming technologies, certified seed systems, soil restoration, livestock watering facilities and mobile veterinary services.
The intervention is aimed at improving agricultural productivity, strengthening rural resilience and reducing the vulnerability of farming communities to erratic rainfall and climate shocks.
The project will also invest in storage, aggregation and cold-chain facilities to reduce post-harvest losses and improve market access for farmers, cooperatives and agribusiness operators.
Development finance institutions are increasingly backing integrated agricultural infrastructure projects as African economies confront rising food insecurity, volatile weather patterns, weak rural industrial capacity and growing pressure to expand domestic food production.
The African Development Bank estimates that more than 121,000 households will directly benefit from the programme, while over 13,000 jobs are expected to be created through investments in farming, agro-processing, logistics and rural enterprises.
School feeding initiatives linked to local agricultural production are also expected to reach about 21,000 children, strengthening the connection between food security, education and local farmer incomes.
Women are projected to make up roughly half of all beneficiaries, while 30 per cent are expected to be youth, reflecting the programme’s focus on inclusive rural economic development.
“This is therefore not simply an irrigation project,” said Alex Mubiru, the Bank’s Director General for East Africa. “It is a program that addresses a binding constraint, unlocks a clear opportunity, and does so through an approach that is integrated, scalable, and focused on delivery.”
The programme is also expected to support Uganda’s wider agricultural transformation agenda by improving the reliability of water supply for production and creating stronger links between farmers and agro-industrial value chains.
For Uganda, the investment comes at a time when governments across the continent are under increasing pressure to shift from subsistence agriculture toward more productive, commercially viable and climate-resilient farming systems.
Irrigation remains central to that transition. Across much of Africa, agricultural output continues to depend heavily on rainfall, exposing farmers to production losses during droughts, delayed rains and changing weather patterns.
By expanding irrigation infrastructure and linking it to storage, processing, logistics and market access, the Uganda programme is expected to support higher farm yields, reduce losses and improve the supply of raw materials to agro-processing enterprises.
The initiative aligns with Uganda’s Country Strategy Paper 2022 to 2026, which prioritises infrastructure expansion, agricultural transformation and industrialisation as drivers of long-term economic growth and private-sector development.
The African Development Bank’s support also reflects a broader policy shift across the continent, where agricultural investment is increasingly being treated not only as a food security intervention, but also as an industrial development strategy.
With food imports, climate shocks and rural unemployment continuing to weigh on African economies, projects that combine water infrastructure, production support, storage and agro-processing are likely to remain a key focus for development finance institutions.
For Uganda’s Bunyoro subregion, the programme is expected to improve farm productivity, support rural jobs and create a stronger foundation for agro-industrial growth.
