The Leader of Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, on Wednesday visited the Inspire Africa Coffee Park in Ntungamo, where he toured the state-of-the-art facility and observed its advanced coffee processing technologies.
Nelson Tugume, the chairman and coffee entrepreneur behind the project, urged Ssenyonyi to support the initiative for its success and potential replication across other regions.
“As the Leader of Opposition supports this project, its success will enable us to replicate it elsewhere. If it fails, expansion will not be possible,” Tugume explained.
Tugume lamented the lack of local support for Ugandan and African investors, contrasting it with the perceived favoritism toward foreign investors.
“I wonder why Ugandans and Africans resist their local investors but easily embrace foreigners. When it’s an Indian, it’s okay, but when it’s Tugume, there’s resistance,” he said.
He also spoke about the challenges his team faces, citing bureaucratic hurdles and lack of understanding within government structures.
“The biggest resistance we face is not from opposition leaders but from government bureaucracies that fail to understand how to support such initiatives,” Tugume noted.
The Inspire Africa Coffee Factory, valued at $132 million in its first phase, received $22 million in government support.
Tugume highlighted President Museveni’s belief in the project, urging opposition leadership to share the same vision.
“The President believed in this project, and so should the Leader of the Opposition,” Tugume emphasized.
But there are many projects that Mr Museveni has believed in and continues to sink the taxpayer's money into that Mr Ssenyonyi and the public hardly see sense about.
The irony must have been lost on Mr Tugume, who claimed to have sacrificed his properties in Kampala for the venture. He called for collective support.
“Everyone—whether in government or opposition—must protect this investment,” he added.
The Inspire Africa Coffee Park aims to revolutionize Uganda’s coffee industry, presenting an opportunity to elevate local investors while strengthening the country’s economic potential.