The East African Development Bank is the key development finance institution for the East African Community. The EADB’s support for East Africa’s development agenda is anchored by interventions in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.
In Uganda, for instance, the EADB offers essential support for the economy’s rapidly developing private sector. As Vivienne Yeda, Director General, explains “The EADB supports development. Many of the projects we finance are those that commercial banks will not touch. We are an incubator; we nurture businesses.”
The Bank supports large-scale projects in all key sectors of the economy, in particular agriculture and agribusiness, manufacturing, banking and telecom. It has a number of high-profile initiatives in the sugar sector, which involve cultivation of sugar cane as well as the conversion of sugar-cane waste products into energy. The bank is also active in Uganda’s hotel sector and supports a number of education projects.
Looking for Partnerships
The East African Development Bank’s strategic plan for Uganda 2010 to 2015 includes supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and participating in infrastructure projects in the high-potential agriculture sector.
The bank is currently looking for international partners to help finance these initiatives. “We would be able to take on much larger infrastructure projects if we had a bigger balance sheet,” Vivienne Yeda says. She praises Uganda as an investment target. She says, “Uganda is peaceful and business-friendly, and the EADB continues to make long-term investments in the country.”
Plot 4 Nile Avenue
PO Box 7128 Kampala
Tel: +256 41 711 2900
mailto:[email protected]
www.eadb.org
