MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Uganda Development Bank to Issue “Small” Loans to Agricultural Businesses, Ugandan Regulators to Boost Enforcement of SACCO Regulations

The Finance Minister of Uganda, Matia Kasaija, recently announced plans to recapitalize the Uganda Development Bank (UDB), a public enterprise owned by the government of Uganda, with UGX 500 billion (USD 148 million). UDB also has set aside 50 percent of its loan reserves to help develop agriculture businesses, including processors, through “small” loans. These will carry a repayment schedule whereby the principal and interest on these loans are not payable until the end of the season, at harvest time. As of 2015, UDB reported total assets of UGX 205 billion (USD 61 million) and a total loan portfolio of UGX 142 billion (USD 42 million).

Meanwhile, Haruna Kyeyune, the Ugandan Minister for Microfinance, announced that savings and credit cooperative organizations (SACCOs) caught cheating clients will be closed down. This will be paired with stricter regulations on “Tier-4” non-banking institutions.

By Petra Barbu, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Resources

[1] Government to Close Errant SACCOs

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