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The World Bank will provide Uganda with more than $2 billion in new financing over the next three financial years to support economic development projects, a senior official from the Ministry of Finance announced on Tuesday.
The decision marks the resumption of lending to the East African nation — a prospective crude oil producer — following a nearly two-year suspension of new funding. The freeze was imposed after Uganda enacted a controversial anti-LGBTQ law that includes the death penalty for certain same-sex offences.
“I am glad to announce that concessional financing is back. In the next three financial years the World Bank will disburse over $2 billion of new money to finance our development,” said Ramathan Ggoobi, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and Secretary to the Treasury, in a statement distributed to the media.
According to Ggoobi, the funds will be channelled into transportation, energy, ICT, agriculture, and other key sectors aimed at boosting growth and infrastructure development.
The World Bank has not yet issued a public comment on the announcement.
Traditionally, the lender has been Uganda’s largest source of concessional credit, alongside China. The suspension of World Bank loans had forced the government to rely more heavily on domestic borrowing, which came at a higher cost, according to finance ministry data.
Uganda is also in talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a new Extended Credit Facility (ECF) after the previous $1 billion programme expired last year before full disbursement.
The finance ministry projects that the start of crude oil production, expected around mid-2026, will propel economic growth to double digits in the 2026/27 fiscal year (July–June).
