Uganda: Cotton in Uganda 64 Years After Independence

What the report says

Uganda’s cotton sector is the focus of a 12 October 2026 report by The Independent (Kampala), published via AllAfrica, as the country marked 64 years of independence. The article says cotton remains one of Uganda’s traditional cash crops, but production and export earnings are well below the crop’s historic role in the economy.

The report recalls that Uganda was once a major cotton producer in sub-Saharan Africa, with output reaching 84,000 tonnes in 1969. It says the industry later collapsed during years of political and economic instability, then partially recovered in the 1990s without regaining its former scale. The piece also describes the earlier cotton ecosystem of cooperatives, ginneries, spinning mills and textile factories that linked farmers to domestic processors and export markets.

A central theme is profitability. The article cites past research and recent farmer accounts showing that low farmgate prices, delayed payments, weak storage and limited market access discourage planting. It notes that farmers in Omoro District reported lower prices in late 2025, while wider structural problems include low productivity, weak input access and outdated processing equipment. The report says restoring competitiveness would require reliable buyers, better seed and pest control, stronger extension services and investment in domestic textile capacity.

The article places Uganda’s experience in a broader market context, noting that cotton continues to compete with synthetic fibres and that global production is expected to grow over the next decade. It argues that Uganda’s challenge is not only growing more cotton, but also rebuilding the processing chain so more value is retained locally.