Business Network Uganda Launched to Boost Uganda-Kenya Trade, Investment and Partnerships

Posted on : Friday, 2nd October 2026

A new business platform, Business Network Uganda (BNU), has been established to bring together entrepreneurs, professionals and investors while encouraging trade, investment, knowledge sharing and commercial partnerships between Uganda, Kenya and the broader East African region.

 

Operating under Bizsphere Club, BNU was officially launched in Kampala on September 19. Speaking at the launch, Kenya’s High Commissioner to Uganda, Ababu Namwamba, urged the private sector to take a more active role in advancing economic cooperation across the region.

 

Namwamba said closer collaboration among businesses could help convert the strong economic links between Kenya and Uganda into greater investment, industrial production, innovation and access to new markets.

 

“As neighbours and EAC partners, Kenya and Uganda share deeply interconnected labour and economic markets. The Kenyan diaspora in Uganda is therefore not an isolated community; it is part of a wider East African economic space,” Namwamba said.

 

According to Namwamba, BNU has the potential to turn these existing connections into concrete commercial opportunities for companies and investors in both markets.

 

The launch brought together Presidential CEO Forum Chief Executive Officer Irene Mugisha and Stephen Kalibbala, who attended on behalf of the president of the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

 

Speakers at the event also stressed the importance of private-sector participation in shaping policies that encourage investment, business expansion and deeper regional economic integration.

 

The launch comes as Uganda and Kenya continue to strengthen their economic relationship through the EAC. Namwamba has also identified commercial diplomacy and expanding bilateral trade as key priorities during his posting in Kampala.

 

He said Kenya’s diaspora in Uganda could contribute to the economy in ways that extend beyond remittances, including by helping mobilise investment capital, skills, technology and international business connections.

 

Figures from the Central Bank of Kenya indicate that annual diaspora remittances to Kenya reached approximately US$5.04 billion in 2025, compared with US$4.945 billion in 2024.

 

“The diaspora is no longer viewed simply as a source of remittances. Governments now frame the diaspora as a strategic development partner capable of mobilising capital, transferring skills and technology, opening markets and strengthening international networks,” he stated

 

He encouraged businesses in Kenya and Uganda to move beyond conventional cross-border commerce and consider opportunities involving joint investments, shared production and long-term business partnerships.

 

“An entrepreneur in Kampala should see Kenya not only as a place to send money, but as a market in which to invest, a production base with which to partner and an ecosystem in which capital, technology and expertise can be deployed,” Namwamba said.

 

He also called on BNU to collaborate with relevant government institutions, including the Diaspora Investment Support Office and the Kenya High Commission, to identify viable and investment-ready opportunities.

 

Potential areas of cooperation include assessing members’ investment interests and expertise, identifying suitable projects in both countries, supporting joint ventures and syndicated investments, and linking young entrepreneurs with mentors, markets and sources of finance.

 

“Let BNU become a platform for investment, innovation, knowledge exchange, mentorship, market access and Kenya-Uganda enterprise partnerships,” Namwamba said.

 

He further highlighted the wider economic contribution of diaspora communities, noting that their value includes professional knowledge, technological capabilities, international experience and business networks in addition to financial resources.

 

“The value of the diaspora is not only in shillings and dollars. It is also in knowledge, professional networks, technology, ideas and international experience,” he said.

 

He proposed initiatives such as professional exchanges, sector-focused forums, mentorship programmes and structured collaboration involving universities, professional associations and research institutions in both countries.

 

“Expertise acquired abroad does not have to remain abroad; it can circulate between Kenya, Uganda and the wider region for mutual benefit,” Namwamba said.