Sugar production in Uganda
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Uganda is the largest producer of granular brown sugar in the
East African Community The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation composed of seven countries in the Great Lakes region of East Africa: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the United Republic of Tanzania, the Republics of Kenya, Burundi, ...
, accounting for about 500,000 metric tonnes annually as of May 2017. By 2021, national annual sugar output had increased to about 600,000 metric tonnes of brown sugar and 60,000 metric tonnes of industrial sugar. In October 2022, it was projected that the country would produce 822,000 metric tonnes in calendar year 2022. Of that, about 720,000 metric tonnes would be brown table sugar and about 102,000 metric tonnes would be white industrial sugar.


History

In 1920, the Vithaldas Haridas & Company (VHC) was under the management of
Muljibhai Madhvani Mulji Prabhudas Madhvani (1894–1958), commonly referred to as Muljibhai Madhvani was an Indian-born Ugandan businessman, entrepreneur, industrialist and philanthropist. Born in India, he migrated to Uganda when he was only 14 years old. In 191 ...
, a 26-year-old Indian-born Ugandan businessman, entrepreneur, industrialist and philanthropist. VHC purchased of land in
Kakira Kakira is a town in the Eastern Region of Uganda. It is the location of the International headquarters of the Madhvani Group. Location Kakira is located in Jinja District, approximately east of downtown Jinja on the highway to Iganga. The coor ...
, between Jinja and Iganga, for the purpose of starting a sugar factory. Madhvani later became the managing director of VHC. In 1930, that sugar complex opened, later renamed the
Kakira Sugar Works Kakira Sugar Works Limited, often called Kakira Sugar Works, is a leading sugar manufacturer in Uganda, the third-largest economy in the East African Community. Location The main factories of the company are located in the town of Kakira, in Jin ...
. In 1924, under the stewardship of
Nanji Kalidas Mehta Nanji Kalidas Mehta, MBE (17 November 1887 – 25 August 1969) was an industrialist and philanthropist from Gujarat. He founded the Mehta Group of Industries in British East Africa, now having its head office in India. His son Mahendra Mehta, d ...
, another industrialist of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n descent,
Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited Sugar Corporation of Uganda Limited (SCOUL) is a sugar manufacturer in Uganda, the third-largest economy in the East African Community. Overview SCOUL is the third-largest manufacturer of sugar in Uganda, producing an estimated 60,000 metric ton ...
(SCOUL) was founded as Uganda Sugar Factory at Lugazi. This marked the beginning of the Mehta Group, with headquarters in India and businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa and on the Indian sub-continent.


21st Century

Until September 2011
Kinyara Sugar Works Limited Kinyara Sugar Limited (KSL) formally Kinyara Sugar Works Limited (KSWL), is a sugar manufacturer in Uganda. Location The main factories of the company are located in the town of Kinyara in Masindi District in Uganda's Western Region. Kinyara is ...
(KSWL), Uganda's second-largest sugar factory, was majority owned by the Central Government of Uganda. Since then, the majority shares in the business have been owned by the Rai Group, domiciled in
Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
. , the shareholding in KSWL is as illustrated in the table below: * Note: In Uganda the Rai Group of Mauritius has transformed into the
Sarrai Group The Sarrai Group of Companies, commonly referred to as the Sarrai Group, is a privately owned conglomerate in East Africa and Southern Africa. The group maintains its headquarters in Kampala, Uganda, with subsidiaries in Kenya and Malawi. Th ...
of Uganda. Following a drought that adversely affected the water levels of
Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
, which ended around 2011 or 2012, two misconceptions arose in
Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...
's political and industrial circles: (a) Uganda was incapable of growing enough raw cane for domestic consumption and (b) any claim by Uganda that it had a sugar surplus was based on the fact that Brazilian sugar barons were dumping sugar on the Ugandan (and Kenyan) markets. Starting in 2013, a more reasoned approach by both governments, allowed the development of a verifiable, inter-government database showing Uganda's production, consumption and export data.


Expansion

In 2016, construction began on a new sugar factory in Gem Village, Pachilo Parish, Atiak sub-county, Kilak County, in Amuru District, in the Northern Region of Uganda. Known as
Atiak Sugar Factory Atiak Sugar Factory Limited (ASFL), also Atiak Sugar Factory, or Atiak Sugar Limited, is a sugar manufacturing company in Uganda. Location The company's headquarters and main factory are located in Gem Village, Pachilo Parish, Atiak sub-county, K ...
, it has capacity to crush 1,650 tonnes (1,650,000 kg) of raw cane daily, producing 66,000 tonnes (66,000,000 kg) of powder sugar annually. In 2017, the stakeholders for the Madhvani Group reached consensus to lease of land in the villages of Kololo, Lakang, Bana, Omee, Lujoro, Lwak Obito and Pailyech in Amuru Sub-county, Amuru District in order to establish Amuru Sugar Works. In March 2020, a delegation of
Tanzanian government The politics of Tanzania takes place in a framework of a unitary presidential democratic republic, whereby the President of Tanzania is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the ...
officials visited Uganda, to ascertain the country's ability to manufacture sugar and its ability to generate surplus for export. After touring Uganda's four largest sugar factories, the delegation, led by the Tanzanian Minister of Agriculture, Japhet Hasunga, agreed to place an initial order of 30,000 metric tonnes, the first order in nearly two years. As of May 2020, Uganda's annual sugar output, by the 11 largest manufacturers, was estimated at 510,000 metric tonnes. With Uganda's annual sugar consumption of 360,000 metric tonnes, approximately 150,000 metric tonnes were available for export. In 2022, most of Uganda's surplus sugar was marketed to
South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...
, the
Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
and a new market in western
Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
. That year, the Ugandan Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives estimated annual national sugar production at "greater than 600,000 metric tonnes".


White industrial sugar

In 2022, Kinyara Sugar started manufacturing "industrial sugar" for use in breweries, soft beverage production and in bakeries and confectioneries. The initial production capacity was 60,000 metric tonnes annually. In 2023 that capacity was increased to 75,000 metric tonnes annually. That brought the national production of white industrial sugar to over 120,000 metric tonnes annually. Other manufactures of industrial sugar in the country include GM Sugar Uganda Limited and Mayuge Sugar Industries Limited.


See also

*
List of sugar manufacturers in Uganda A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...


References

{{Africa topic, Sugar production in Economy of Uganda Sugar production Agriculture in Uganda