Uganda mission brings 18 Tanzanian mining firms to Kampala mineral conference

What the report says

Uganda’s High Commissioner to Tanzania, Fred Mwesigye, used the 15th Annual Mineral Wealth Conference and Expo in Kampala to call for stronger regional partnerships in mining, saying small operators are often too small to secure finance and technical capacity on their own. According to Watchdog Uganda, the Uganda High Commission in Dar es Salaam helped bring 18 Tanzanian mining companies and organisations to the two-day event at Speke Resort Munyonyo, held from 29 to 30 September and organised by the Uganda Chamber of Energy and Minerals with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development.

The delegation included major industry names and institutions such as the Tanzania Chamber of Mines and several mining and minerals projects active in Tanzania. Mwesigye said the goal was to encourage collaboration rather than stand-alone investment, arguing that joint ventures can make firms more attractive to capital and help them expand. He also said the mission has previously taken Ugandan small-scale miners to Tanzania to learn from how that country organises and licenses artisanal operators.

The conference also focused heavily on mineral value addition. State minister for energy Sidronius Opolot Okaasai said Uganda is working to stop exporting unprocessed minerals and is putting in place incentives for refineries and processing plants. Watchdog Uganda reported that officials and diplomats from several Ugandan missions abroad attended, underscoring the government’s wider economic diplomacy push.

Humphrey Asiimwe of the Uganda Chamber of Energy and Minerals said the event drew more than 1,000 delegates from 30 countries, with 81 exhibitors. The article said the gathering was meant to support investment, processing and cross-border cooperation in a sector central to Uganda’s growth plans.