Minister Amongi warns creatives against misusing sh28b govt fund

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Gender minister Betty Amongi has warned the youth in the creative industry against misusing the Government’s allocation of shillings 28 billion meant to support various segments of the sector.

Speaking on November 13, 2025, during a consultative meeting with creatives at Zegan Hotel in Lira city, Amongi said the Government wants the industry to grow, create jobs and contribute significantly to the national economy, just as it happens in countries like the US and the UK.

“We want to build the creative industry as an engine of job creation and economic development, and we expect the sector to use the money properly so that the country can realise its goals,” she said.

Amongi explained that the money is a revolving fund accessible through identified savings and credit co-operative organisations (SACCOs) at an interest rate of only 5% per annum.

Gender minister Betty Amongi (middle) posses for a group photo with creatives in Lira City. (Photo by Patrick Okino)

She noted that most people in the sector are not registered with the trade ministry, but arrangements have been made to fast-track their registration within ten days so they can qualify for the fund.

The domains set to benefit include fashion and design, dance, media and press, videography, photography, culinary arts and others.

“People will access this money through their cooperatives. However, we found that most creatives do not have SACCOs, so we have coordinated with all commercial officers in Northern Uganda to support them in registration so they can receive the funds,” she said.

Asked whether the initiative risks facing the same loan recovery problems that affected the Youth Livelihood Fund and the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme (UWEP), Amongi said creatives in Central Uganda have been tested and are successfully repaying their loans.

She added that UWEP continues to perform well because women are honouring their obligations, noting that most repayment challenges were with the Youth Livelihood Programme.

Lawrence Olobo, an official from the Ministry of Gender attached to the Uganda Cultural Centre, said the team is in the region to train, verify and select artistes working in different domains.

He noted that the five-year program targets creatives who have long been left out of government programming and often regarded as unorganised.

He added that the government has now identified an effective modality for supporting the sector, hence the allocation of funds.

According to the ministry, the Sh28 billion will be distributed as follows: Sh5 billion for musicians, Sh5 billion for copyright support and Sh18 billion for other creative SACCOs.

Innocent Ogwang lauded the government for the programme, saying it will boost the industry as well as improve creatives’ financial stability.

He added that the initiative is far better than borrowing from commercial banks, which charge very high interest rates.

Ben Opio, a graphic designer in Lira City, also welcomed the idea of channelling the money through SACCOs at a low interest rate.

He said many government programmes have too much bureaucracy, causing people to give up because of the long processes involved in accessing funds.