Building a safer alcohol market by tackling illicit trade

What the report says

In an opinion piece published by The Independent Uganda on August 22, 2026, Emmanuel Njuki argues that consumer safety should be central to Uganda’s alcohol policy as the government seeks tighter regulation of alcohol access and sales. Njuki, who is chairperson of the Uganda Alcohol Industry Association and head of legal and corporate affairs at Nile Breweries Limited, says the market remains heavily affected by illicit and unrecorded alcohol, leaving many buyers without clear information about what they are consuming or how it was made.

He cites research commissioned by the Uganda Alcohol Industry Association and conducted by Euromonitor International, which the article says estimated illicit alcohol’s share of Uganda’s total alcohol volume at 67.3 per cent in 2024, up from 64.5 per cent in 2020. The piece also refers to a 2025 study by Arrow Empirical Research & Skills Enhancement in Kampala and Arua that found poor hygiene, unsafe water, contamination risks and, in some samples, methanol. The author presents these findings as evidence that illicit production poses health risks and undermines legitimate businesses.

The commentary says a stronger response should combine public education, responsible retailing, formalisation of small producers and retailers, and firmer enforcement against counterfeiting and adulteration. It also urges coordination among local governments, the ministries responsible for health, trade and local government, the Uganda Revenue Authority, the Uganda National Bureau of Standards, law-enforcement agencies, civil society and the formal alcohol industry.

More broadly, the article argues that regulation should not make legal products so costly or inaccessible that consumers turn to unsafe alternatives. It says progress should be judged by fewer unsafe products, more compliant businesses and greater public confidence in traceable alcohol.