Uganda has set out an ambitious economic roadmap under its Tenfold Growth Strategy, which aims to expand the size of the economy from $50 billion in 2022/2023 to $500 billion by 2040, while significantly raising per capita income.
Speaking at the 9th Economic Growth Forum (9EGF2025) in Kampala on Thursday, 28th August, 2025 at the Kampala Serena Hotel, senior government officials and development partners highlighted the need to address persistent structural challenges that hinder growth while pushing forward with the Tenfold Growth strategy.
This strategy is aimed at four priority sectors of ago-industrialization, tourism, mineral development including oil and gas, and science, technology and innovation, which the government believes can anchor structural transformation.
While speaking at the forum, which was run under the theme “Enhancing Uganda’s Competitiveness and Growth Amidst a Changing Global Economic Environment,” Finance Minister Matia Kasaija said these will be reinforced by massive investment in infrastructure, reforms to strengthen fiscal discipline, and policies to better integrate Uganda into global value chains.
However, Kasaija noted that Uganda might face challenges in the realization of this policy as the country continues to grapple with infrastructure gaps, low productivity, youth unemployment, and climate risks.
He pointed out that the country’s stability and steady progress create a foundation for optimism.
“With peace and stability, disciplined work, and focus, these challenges can be turned into opportunities,” Kasaija told the participants, adding that the forum’s purpose is to bring leaders, policymakers, and partners together to advance the vision forward.
Moses Bekabye, a technical advisor for economic affairs at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, identified low productivity across agriculture, industry, and services as well as weak integration into global value and supply chains as the main constraints to Uganda’s economic growth.
“The Tenfold Growth Strategy is a policy commitment that means increasing the size of the economy every five years and raising per capita income significantly,” Bekabye emphasized.
Uganda unveiled the ambitious Tenfold Growth Strategy, a long-term plan to transform the economy from USD 50 billion in 2022/23 to USD 500 billion by 2040.
The strategy aims to double the size of the economy every five years while raising per capita income from USD 1,039 (UGX 3,700,400) to around USD 7,000 (UGX 24,930,000).
It also sets bold targets of increasing savings to 40 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), raising the tax-to-GDP ratio to at least 25 per cent, boosting exports to account for half of national output, and attracting up to USD 50 billion in annual foreign direct investment.
Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury Ramathan Ggoobi stressed the importance of exploring new sources of funding, citing the limits of conventional financing options.
“We must tap into innovative finance if we are to take advantage of the global dynamics, which are confusing now. The traditional sources of financing are not getting us there,” he said.
Development partners, including the UNDP, praised Uganda’s resilience, saying the economy has bounced back strongly from recent shocks. The government and its partners are expected to roll out reforms and investments in innovation, industrialization, and inclusive growth as part of the country’s march toward its 2040 vision.
