President Museveni has flagged-off the first consignment of powdered milk to Algeria, marking a significant milestone for Uganda’s agricultural sector.
The consignment was flagged off at a function held at State House Entebbe, attended by officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry, and Fisheries, led by Frank Tumwebaze, and counterparts
from Brookside Limited.
The first consignment of four containers of powdered milk was equivalent to 500 metric tons and is part of the total 2,100 metric tons of high- quality milk powder, worth over USD 8 million, that is to be sent to Algeria.
This export is a result of bilateral negotiations, and a Memorandum of Understanding signed during President Museveni’s visit to Algeria in March 2023, which opened markets for coffee, milk, and other products from Uganda.
“During my visit to Algeria in March 2023, I had good discussions with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune regarding Algeria’s interest in importing milk from Uganda. I am, therefore, happy to see the first shipment of whole powdered milk, starting with an initial batch of 500 tonnes,” President Museveni wrote on X.
Minister Tumwebaze congratulated Brookside and the dairy sector for the milestone, expressing hope that increased exports will sustain the market for farmers.
“Algeria is a market we’ve been pursuing for some time. When the president visited that country in 2023, one of the bilateral negotiations and the MOU we signed was to allow our coffee and milk. I want to congratulate Brookside, as well as the dairy sector and its farmers, on the opening of this market,” Tumwebaze said.
According to Mr. Kennedy Gatheru, the Director of Finance at Brookside Africa Limited, the partnership will open up a large market that the whole country can benefit from.
“It’s the beginning of many opportunities,” he said while expressing gratitude to President Museveni for his involvement in securing the Algerian market.
“From your personal trade intervention, and with your involvement, we are confident of securing further export opportunities for our range of dairy products,” Mr. Gatheru added.
During an official meeting on December, 13 2024, at State Lodge Nakasero, where President Museveni hosted Mr. Ahmed Attaf, Algeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and a special envoy of President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, the Ugandan leader commended the growing cooperation between Uganda and Algeria, expressing his gratitude to his Algerian counterpart for the tangible progress
made in implementing bilateral agreements.
In the same meeting, Mr. Attaf informed President Museveni that Algeria’s goal is to redirect its annual $700 million milk import budget towards Uganda due to its high-quality fresh milk.
Uganda’s Dairy Development Authority (DDA) has played a pivotal role in operationalizing the deal, ensuring all regulatory and procurement requirements were met on the Algerian side.
The country has seen a sharp increase in milk production from 2.81 billion litres in 2021 to 3.85 billion litres in 2023—representing a 37% growth.
Correspondingly, the value of Uganda’s dairy exports has more than doubled.
According to official figures, earnings from milk and related products rose from $102.6 million in 2022 to $264.5 million in 2023, showcasing the sector’s rising global competitiveness.
Despite facing occasional trade disruptions within the East African region, Uganda’s dairy industry continues to seek alternative markets.
Algeria, with its significant demand for dairy products, presents a promising and strategic outlet for Uganda’s surplus milk production.
Traditionally, Uganda’s dairy exports have been concentrated in neighboring countries such as Kenya, South Sudan, and Rwanda.
However, recently, Uganda’s milk and other dairy products were stopped from entering the Kenyan market for fear of competition as the coastal country practiced protectionism tendencies.
This prompted President Museveni to look at alternative markets for Uganda’s milk, leading to negotiations with Algeria while Nigeria is also in the pipeline.
The entry into the Algerian market marks a strategic shift toward North Africa and diversifies Uganda’s export base.
