Value-added manufacturing contributed 15.45% of Uganda’s GDP in 2019. The sector is largely engaged in the production of lowvalue added goods, comprising
basic consumer goods: processed foods; tobacco and beverages; non-metallic minerals and metallic fabrication; wood and wood products; chemicals and chemical products; leather and footwear; textiles and apparel; sawmilling, printing, and publishing (Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung, 2017). Much of the value addition is driven by food processing, which accounts for 40% of the manufacturing index (Economic Policy Research Center, 2018).
Small and medium enterprises, which generate over 80% of the manufactured output, are key to the sector. Investment in value addition manufacturing – and industrialisation more widely – is a core tenet of Uganda’s green growth strategy. Investment into the manufacturing and industry sector is critical to keeping greenhouse gas emissions low – thereby mitigating climate change – and in reducing pollution and environment degradation, and preserving natural resources such as water and forest cover. As the manufacturing and industrial sectors grow, low-carbon technologies, energy efficiency measures, and integration of manufacturing value chains into the circular economy offer opportunities for the sectors to drive green growth.