Uganda is seeking to attract Italian investment, technology and expertise in agriculture, manufacturing, renewable energy and other sectors as the two countries prepare for their first Business and Investment Forum in Rome next month.
The forum, scheduled for October 13 and 14, 2026, is expected to allow Uganda to showcase its agricultural products, investment opportunities and access to the wider East African market while seeking partnerships that can support value addition, job creation and technology transfer.
The two-day forum, themed “Shared Opportunities,” will bring together government officials, investors, business leaders, financial institutions, development partners and private-sector actors from Uganda and Italy. Uganda’s Ambassador to Italy, Elizabeth Paula Napeyok, said the country can offer Italian businesses access to its growing domestic market as well as the wider East African and African markets.
She said Uganda’s agricultural potential also provides opportunities for Italian companies to invest in processing and value addition, particularly in coffee, cocoa, cotton, fruits and vegetables. Napeyok said Uganda wants to move beyond exporting raw commodities and instead develop partnerships that can support processing, packaging and branding of Ugandan products for local, regional and international markets.
She said Italian expertise in industrialisation and manufacturing could help Uganda develop more competitive value chains while creating employment and expanding opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises. “We want to move from traditional diplomatic engagements to practical economic partnerships that can create jobs, attract investment, facilitate technology transfer and support sustainable development,” Napeyok said.
Italy has identified Uganda among its 23 priority countries for economic cooperation, alongside Kenya, Ethiopia and Tanzania, according to Napeyok. She said this provides an opportunity for Uganda to deepen economic ties with Italian businesses and attract investment into sectors including agribusiness, food processing, renewable energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, machinery, tourism, textiles, oil and gas.
Napeyok said Ugandan businesses could also benefit from access to Italian technology, expertise and potential joint ventures. The forum will include business-to-business meetings intended to connect companies from the two countries with potential investors, technology providers and strategic partners. Napeyok said the Ugandan Embassy in Italy will seek to bridge the gap between businesses in the two countries and facilitate direct engagement between the private sectors.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Henry Mayega, Head of International Economic Cooperation at Uganda’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the forum is expected to contribute to Uganda’s development priorities under the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP IV) and Vision 2040. Mayega said Uganda will use the forum to promote trade, agriculture and technology while seeking to attract more tourists and investors.
For Uganda, the partnership offers an opportunity to attract capital and technical expertise while positioning the country as a production and investment base for the wider region. For Italian businesses, Uganda presents opportunities to source agricultural products, establish processing and manufacturing operations, access a growing consumer market and use the country as a base for expanding into other African markets-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
