FAMReports News Desk | February 2026
The Uganda Development Bank(UDB) has unveiled the second edition of its annual RISE Forum, convening business leaders, investors, innovators and policy makers at the Sheraton Kampala Hotel under the theme “Shaping Uganda’s High Tech Future.”
The forum aims to unpack practical pathways for expanding industrial capacity, strengthening oversight frameworks and unlocking strategic investment to support Uganda’s long term economic transformation agenda.
The high level engagement brought together prominent figures including Patricia Ojangole, Managing Director of Uganda Development Bank; Arshad Rab, Chief Executive Officer of the European Organization for Sustainable Development; Alex Wanume, Country Manager of NAO Energy Services; and Herbert Wakabu, Executive Director of Kwama Infrastructure Group.
In her opening remarks, Patricia Ojangole described the RISE Forum as a critical platform for shaping industries that drive a sustainable economy.
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“We believe that the dialogue arising from this forum and the ambitions articulated on this platform will translate into investment ready guidelines and deliver tangible national impact, including improvements in air quality, employment, technology adoption, productivity and national competitiveness,” she said.
Ojangole emphasized that sustainable growth requires a shift from short term gains to long term value creation. She cautioned against fragmented interventions and isolated solutions that fail to address systemic challenges.
“For too long our economies have been shaped by short term gains, often at the expense of long term sustainability. Government led mindsets that compete through small standalone solutions will take us backward rather than forward,” she added.
Arshad Rab echoed the call for scale and structural transformation, arguing that Uganda’s ambitious growth strategy cannot succeed through incremental or fragmented efforts.
“Scale does not happen by accident. It is intentional and systematically engineered. Without scale, productivity does not rise, industries do not deepen and economies cannot compete,” Rab said. “The RISE Forum is the starting point to align industrialization, energy, agriculture, finance and skills into a coherent demand driven system.”
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Participants engaged in discussions centered on industrialization, energy transition, agricultural value addition, infrastructure development and financing models capable of supporting Uganda’s tenfold growth ambition.
The second edition of the RISE Forum reinforces Uganda Development Bank’s role as a catalyst for strategic investment and industrial transformation. By fostering dialogue among public and private sector stakeholders, the bank seeks to position Uganda for a competitive, resilient and sustainable economic future.
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