The French Ambassador to Uganda, H.E. Virginie Leroy, has commended the rapid socio-economic impact of a joint agricultural financing initiative between the French Development Agency (AFD) and Pearl Bank, which has reached more than 170,000 individuals and smallholder farmer groups across the country.
The milestone was highlighted during a diplomatic and institutional field visit to beneficiary enterprises in Mbarara, marking the first major progress review since the €16 million (Shs 64 billion) facility was formalised in October 2025.
The multi-million-euro partnership consists of a €15 million (Shs 60 billion) concessional credit line alongside a €1 million (Shs 4 billion) technical assistance grant.
The facility is specifically structured to de-risk and boost agricultural micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), smallholder farmers, and Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations (SACCOs) that traditionally struggle to access commercial capital.
Ambassador Leroy noted that the deployment of these funds effectively targets rural entrepreneurs and cooperatives who form the backbone of Uganda’s agrarian economy.
The capital injection aligns directly with Uganda’s ambitious Tenfold Growth Strategy, an economic blueprint designed to aggressively scale the national economy from $50 billion to $500 billion by 2040.
Speaking during an engagement with members of the Rwanyamahembe SACCO, George Williams Walusansa, Head of Financial Institutions and Social Enterprises at Pearl Bank, emphasised that the primary sector employs over 70% of the population.
He noted that integrating these rural producers into formal agricultural value chains is a prerequisite for achieving the state’s long-term macro targets under the Agro-industrialization, Tourism, Mineral Development, and Science (ATMS) framework.
The credit facility’s structured retail distribution model relies heavily on tier-four financial intermediaries to achieve deep penetration.
Among the primary beneficiaries are the Rwanyamahembe SACCO with 12,000 members, Kyamuhunga Peoples’ Co-operative with 13,000 beneficiaries, and Ebo Co-Operative Savings, which supports 120,000 farmers.
Marc Trouyet, the Country Director for AFD in Uganda, stated that the early positive outcomes achieved through Pearl Bank demonstrate how targeted, affordable credit lines can unlock private investment across the agribusiness ecosystem, particularly among women and youth.
The financial institution plans to leverage the technical assistance component of the grant to design highly tailored, accessible credit products intended to enhance domestic food security, boost rural employment, and expand commercial export capacity into regional East African markets.