Uganda must turn bankable ideas into investable projects – Afreximbank’s Nwugo
Humphrey Nwugo, Afreximbank Regional Director for Eastern Africa, spoke to New Vision about Uganda’s prospects, the “infrastructure paradox”, industrialisation, project preparation, SMEs and Afreximbank’s ambitions for the region.
Humphrey Nwugo, Afreximbank Regional Director for Eastern Africa. (Courtesy)
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Afreximbank has set its sights on expanding its presence in Uganda over the next decade, with financing expected to support industrialisation, value addition, infrastructure, SMEs and greater participation in intra-African trade.
Humphrey Nwugo, Afreximbank Regional Director for Eastern Africa, spoke to New Vision about Uganda’s prospects, the “infrastructure paradox”, industrialisation, project preparation, SMEs and Afreximbank’s ambitions for the region.
Q: Uganda hosts Afreximbank’s Eastern Africa regional office. What does that mean practically for Uganda?
Nwugo: The philosophy behind our regional offices is to bring the Bank closer to our stakeholders. Afreximbank is headquartered in Cairo, but we operate across Africa and the Caribbean Community. Without regional offices, it would be difficult for some stakeholders to access our services.
Uganda was particularly proactive in expressing its interest and readiness to host the regional headquarters.
Being here means government, the Central Bank, commercial banks, businesses and other stakeholders can literally walk into our offices and talk to us about how we can support them.
As of June 30, 2026, Afreximbank’s total assets and contingencies stood at about $52 billion, while our single counterparty limit had increased to almost $2 billion.
We are also developing the $100 million Kampala Afreximbank African Trade Centre on Yusuf Lule Road, which demonstrates our long-term commitment to Uganda and reinforces Kampala's potential as a regional trade and investment hub.
Q: How significant has Afreximbank’s financing in Uganda been so far?
Nwugo: Over the last six to seven years, we have deployed approximately $1.4 billion in Uganda. That financing has gone into manufacturing, health and medical services, the public sector, transport and construction.
Going forward, one of my immediate priorities is to rebuild and deepen partnerships with government, government agencies, development finance institutions, commercial banks and the private sector.
We also want to identify strategic national and regional projects that can accelerate industrialisation, promote value addition and strengthen regional integration.
Q: There is an argument that Africa can leapfrog industrialisation and move directly into services and technology. Does industrialisation still matter?
Nwugo: Absolutely. We cannot do without industrialisation.
What we are talking about particularly is commodity-based industrialisation. Africa has natural resources — agriculture, minerals and many other commodities. Instead of exporting these commodities raw, how do we add value to them within Africa?
It is very difficult to leapfrog that stage completely. You first establish that productive base.
Then you can talk about the Fourth Industrial Revolution, artificial intelligence, technology and the efficiencies that these technologies can create.
That does not mean services are unimportant. The creative industry, for example, is huge. Afreximbank is supporting areas such as sports, film, fashion and other creative industries.
Trade is not only about goods. Services can also cross borders and generate income. We therefore need both goods and services to take advantage of Africa's resources and capabilities.
Nwugo: This is a very important issue.
You have project sponsors and businesses saying, “We cannot access capital.” At the same time, capital providers are saying, “Where are the viable projects?”
That is the infrastructure paradox.
The bridge between the two is bankability.
It is almost impossible to find a genuinely bankable project that cannot attract the right financing.
For example, Afreximbank has a balance sheet of about $52 billion and can lend almost $2 billion to a single project. We are sitting here in Kampala while there are people saying there is no capital.
That illustrates the paradox.
The issue is therefore not only whether capital exists. We need to ask whether the projects being presented have been developed sufficiently for someone to put money behind them.
Q: What makes a project bankable?
Nwugo: The promoter of a project naturally believes very strongly in his or her idea.
But an independent person must be able to look at the same project and reach a similar conclusion.
Bankability means independent technical, financial, legal, environmental and other experts can assess the project and demonstrate that it is viable, that the risks can be understood and managed, and that it can generate the revenues required to repay the financing.
The word I would use is confidence. You have to develop the project to the level where someone who was not involved in creating the idea can look at it and say: “Yes, this works.”
Q: But preparing projects to that level can itself be expensive. How does Afreximbank help?
Nwugo: That is precisely why we have our Project Preparation Facility.
A promoter may have a good concept, but you may need technical experts, financial advisers, lawyers, environmental studies and feasibility work to demonstrate that the project is viable.
Those experts cost money.
Project preparation financing provides early-stage funding required to undertake this work and take a project towards bankability.
That is one of the ways we try to bridge the infrastructure paradox — helping move a project from being a good idea to something financiers can actually fund.
Nwugo: There is significant capital available within Africa. Capital is held by pension funds, insurance companies, central banks, financial institutions and other institutional investors.
The challenge is connecting that capital with appropriate opportunities.
And even where the required funding cannot be found within Africa, institutions such as Afreximbank have the capacity to leverage funding from outside Africa and bring it into the continent.
We have a strong syndications capability that allows us to mobilise other financial institutions alongside us.
Capital can also take different forms. Trade finance might be required for 30 days or 12 months, while project finance might run for 15 years.
The critical issue remains the same: promoters must develop bankability.
Once a project is genuinely bankable, you significantly improve its ability to attract capital from Africa or elsewhere.
Q: Does that mean any Ugandan company can approach Afreximbank directly?
Nwugo: We are a wholesale financial institution, so there are thresholds for direct corporate lending.
For an existing business, for example, we would generally be looking at a company with annual turnover of at least around $10 million based on its latest audited accounts.
But that does not mean companies below our direct financing threshold cannot benefit from Afreximbank.
We work through commercial banks and other financial intermediaries to reach smaller businesses.
Project finance is also different because there we are looking at the future revenue-generating capacity of the project rather than simply the existing size of the company.
Q: Which Ugandan sectors do you think offer the greatest opportunity?
Nwugo: Agriculture has already demonstrated significant potential through coffee, tea, fisheries and dairy.
Mining also has significant upside because Uganda has substantial mineral resources that remain largely untapped.
Manufacturing is closely connected to agro-industrialisation. If you can process agricultural commodities locally, you reduce import dependence, increase exports and retain more value within Uganda.
We are engaging institutions including the Chamber of Energy and Mines, the Ministry of Finance, UFZEPA and the Ministry of Trade to identify opportunities.
We are particularly interested in supporting special economic zones and industrial parks because they can concentrate the infrastructure and services required for manufacturing.
Energy and logistics are also critical enablers. You cannot industrialise without reliable energy and the ability to move goods efficiently.