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Museveni welcomed by leaders before addressing tea farmers at Bushenyi playground in August
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By Our Reporter
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has directed the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Finance to urgently provide Shs 310 billion to rescue Uganda's struggling tea sector.
In a statement dated August 26, 2025, addressed to Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, Museveni said the money is to be allocated to tea factories, fertilizer subsidies, and unpaid seedling suppliers.
Out of the total package, Shs 152 billion will go to tea factories, Shs 46 billion as fertilizer subsidies for growers, and Shs 112 billion to settle arrears for seedling suppliers.
“I direct that urgent measures are taken now that we know what the issues are. I was relieved to know that tea is still in demand worldwide, provided the quality of our tea is good,” Museveni said.
The directive follows a meeting the President held with tea growers in Bushenyi town on August 19, where farmers from different regions highlighted challenges crippling the sector.
Among the issues raised were: lack of fertilizers, poor regulation of leaf quality, absence of a factory in Zombo, frequent power outages affecting factories, poor feeder roads in tea-growing areas, and unpaid seedling suppliers since the NAADS program.
The committe investigating the tea sector
During the same meeting, Museveni also instructed his Senior Presidential Adviser, Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu, to investigate the sector and produce a technical report. The report will guide government on whether tea should be classified as a high-value or low-value crop and inform long-term policy decisions for the industry.
To support the review, Prof. Kamuntu appointed Edson Tumusiime Batuuna, Arthur Babu Muguzi, and Robert Egiku as contributors to the report. Museveni emphasized that since the tea industry employs over 154,000 Ugandans and earns the country millions of dollars annually, government cannot allow it to collapse.
He further directed the Ministry of Agriculture to develop regulations to streamline cultivation, quality control, and marketing. Tea production in Uganda has grown from 3 million kilograms per year to 60 million kilograms annually, generating an estimated USD 85.5 million for the country.
Torch Media Africa
