Egypt investors eye Nakaseke for Shs3 trillion mega dairy plant to boost exports

Egyptian investors are planning a Shs3 trillion (multi-million-dollar) investment to build a state-of-the-art dairy processing plant in Ngoma, Nakaseke District, that could process up to one million litres of milk daily, President Yoweri Museveni said during a meeting with an Egyptian delegation. The project would be led by the Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI), a state-backed Egyptian conglomerate established in 1975, and aims to convert Uganda’s milk surplus into powdered milk, cheese and butter for continental markets under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

"We are now producing 5.4 billion litres a year and we are going to overtake Holland," President Museveni told the visiting delegation led by Maj. Gen. Khaled Shokry Ghaith, an AOI consultant. "With 5.4 billion litres, local consumption is still only about 800 million litres, meaning we have a surplus of about 4.6 billion litres."

Officials said the AOI team included Maj. Gen. Abdelkader Mohamed Nagy and Mr. Abdel Nasser Mohamed, and that the investors had already conducted field assessments in Ngoma and engaged with the Dairy Development Authority (DDA). The delegation signalled Cairo’s commitment to the venture; Maj. Gen. Khaled Abdul Nasser described the project as one that "will foster mutual economic benefits and deepen the historic ties between Uganda and Egypt."

Beyond the processing plant, investors plan to overhaul the local milk supply chain. Proposed interventions include the introduction of automated, hygienic milking equipment to eliminate manual handling, refrigerated transport networks to link farms with cooling centres, and modern pasture management. President Museveni urged a shift from traditional free-range grazing to zero-grazing systems, arguing that intensified pasture production would increase yields: "If you grow pasture, harvest it and feed the cows in the shed, one acre can feed eight cows. The yield will be higher because they are eating better."

• Planned plant capacity: up to one million litres per day
• Annual national milk production cited by Museveni: 5.4 billion litres
• Local consumption: about 800 million litres; estimated surplus: 4.6 billion litres
• Lead investor: Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI)
• Key Egyptian delegates: Maj. Gen. Khaled Shokry Ghaith, Maj. Gen. Abdelkader Mohamed Nagy, Mr. Abdel Nasser Mohamed, Maj. Gen. Khaled Abdul Nasser

President Museveni framed the investment as part of a broader national strategy to industrialise agriculture and reduce environmental pressure on the Nile basin, saying industrialisation and rural electrification would stop deforestation and enable modern farming: "There must be electricity in the tropics so that people stop cutting trees for firewood and engage in modern agriculture like in developed countries." He also highlighted planned genetic improvements to lift local cows’ yields to at least 20 litres per cow daily.

Officials have been directed to produce a comprehensive technical proposal mapping the efficient movement of milk from farms to the planned factory, and to fast-track mechanisation measures. For Uganda, which has faced trade disruptions and quotas in traditional East African markets, the Nakaseke project represents a strategic push to add value domestically and access new continental markets for dairy products.