The 2025 national solar expo opened Thursday at Silver Springs Hotel, Bugolobi, with calls from industry leaders, financiers, and government officials for stronger financing mechanisms, stricter quality standards, and wider adoption of renewable energy to close Uganda’s electricity access gap.
Organised by the Uganda Solar Energy Association (USEA) under the theme “Unlocking Solar for Growth and Resilience”, the three-day expo has drawn more than 300 exhibitors, policymakers, and banks showcasing innovations in solar irrigation, cold storage, e-mobility, and clean cooking.
USEA Chairperson Douglas Baguma Karugaba said solar has become Uganda’s fastest-growing power source, now supplying electricity to more Ugandans than the national grid.
He noted that while solar accounts for 28 percent of access compared to 19 percent from grid connections, the industry still faces challenges of affordability and counterfeit products.
“We have championed the fight against fake products to protect consumers and ensure solar delivers durable value. But we must also pull up our socks—without quality, this is where most of our consumers are having challenges with the solar industry,” Karugaba said.
He urged a policy shift beyond household lighting toward powering agriculture and industry with solar-driven milling, refrigeration, cold storage, and e-mobility.
Patrick Owere of the Uganda Energy Credit Capitalisation Company (UECCC), which is implementing a $110 million Electricity Access Scale-Up Project, said financing support was helping overcome the biggest barrier—upfront costs.
“In the last 12 months alone, over 320,000 households and 150,000 enterprises—including farms, hotels and dairies—have benefited. We have also supported more than 1,800 businesses to acquire solar for irrigation, water pumping and refrigeration,” Owere revealed.
On the financing front, Centenary Bank pledged continued investment, with Abdu Kyanika Nsibambi, Manager for Housing and Renewable Energy, saying solar was now “a mainstream power source” for homes and enterprises. He added that the bank is also powering some of its own branches with solar to demonstrate its viability.
The expo runs until Saturday, August 30, with exhibitions and policy dialogues expected to shape Uganda’s path toward a solar-powered economy.
