KAMPALA, August 26, 2026 — Uganda Development Bank [UDB] has increased its agricultural financing portfolio to approximately Shs 620 billion, representing 33 percent of its total loan portfolio of Shs1.9 trillion.
UDB Managing Director Dr. Patricia Ojangole said the bank’s total loan portfolio has grown significantly from about Shs130bln a decade ago when she joined the institution.
Posting on X [formerly Twitter] on Wednesday, she said the Shs 620bln invested in agriculture currently supports 362 businesses across Uganda, with the bank increasingly focusing on financing entire agricultural value chains rather than individual enterprises.
“Through value-chain financing, we have supported 95 agricultural cooperatives, enabling us to reach more than 50,000 farmers directly,” Ojangole stated.
She cited the financing of dairy processors such as JESA as an example of the bank’s value-chain approach, saying UDB considers farmers supplying raw materials to processors because the sustainability of processing businesses depends on reliable supplies.
The government-owned bank is also using digital financing solutions to improve access to credit for smallholder farmers. Through its AgriConnect initiative, UDB is supporting farmers organised under Village Savings and Loan Associations [VSLAs] to access short-term seasonal financing digitally.
Under the system, farmers can apply for loans, receive approvals and have funds disbursed directly into their mobile wallets without relying on conventional lending processes.
Initially piloted in Northern Uganda and West Nile, AgriConnect has expanded to 665 VSLAs and more than 15,000 individual beneficiaries.
The initiative is being implemented in partnership with Ensibuuko, with UDB financing provided at a subsidised interest rate of 5 percent per annum. Farmers access loans at 1.25 percent per month on a reducing balance over six months, including a two-month grace period designed to align repayment with agricultural production cycles.
Farmers who repay their loans on time are also eligible for a 2 percent cashback incentive.
Ojangole highlighted that a total of 53,428 individual members across the country have benefited from UDB’s agricultural financing interventions.
She said the figures demonstrate the bank’s broader strategy of using value-chain and digital financing models to extend development finance beyond large businesses to smallholder farmers, cooperatives and agribusinesses.
“The interventions demonstrate that UDB’s role is not limited to financing large businesses,” Ojangole posted, adding that the bank is seeking to strengthen the sustainability of Uganda’s agricultural ecosystem through financing across the value chain.
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