East African Business Notifier

The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) hosted a high-level delegation led by the Chief Justice of Uganda, Dr. Flavian Zeija, and the Governor of the Bank of Uganda, Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego, at Pump Station One in Kabaale, Hoima District, where they received a firsthand update on the progress of the pipeline ahead of Uganda's first oil. The delegation toured the facility and received updates on the construction of the 1,443-kilometre pipeline and its readiness to support Uganda's commercial oil production. The visit brought together Justices of the Supreme Court, officials from the Judiciary, the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), the Petroleum Authority of Uganda (PAU) and EACOP shareholders. Speaking during the visit, EACOP Deputy Managing Director, John Bosco Habumugisha, said the project has now reached 91 percent overall completion, against a planned progress of 94 percent, adding that the entire pipeline has already been welded. “As we ...

The evolution of banking from what it was, brick-and-mortar, to what we are witnessing today is all thanks to the growth in technology and innovations that have enabled digitisation in banking, so that more people are ushered into formal financial services through self-serve options. Gone are the days when customers had to queue in the banking halls for their transactions, such as money transfers, bill payments, loan applications, checking balances, or even opening accounts. Instead, mobile applications, digital wallets, smart ATMs for cardless withdrawals, and online banking are innovative solutions that allow one to transact at their convenience. In line with its purpose of fostering prosperity for Ugandans, Pearl Bank has placed digitization at the forefront of its strategy, and this can be evidenced through its alternate banking platforms like: Pearl Mobile App, ZeroFlex digital account, Wendi mobile wallet, and the online banking platform. Due to their customer-friendly interface,...

  BY PAUL TENTENA The Government of Kenya, together with the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), recently launched the Kenya National Inception Meeting under the project Accelerating Food Systems Transformation for Resilience to Climate Change in Africa . The meeting marked the operational start in Kenya of a three-year regional initiative that will also be implemented in Uganda and Somalia from 2026 to 2028. The project seeks to strengthen the resilience of livestock-based food systems to climate change and variability through four interconnected areas of work: livestock value chains, climate/index-based livestock insurance, land tenure security, and climate-land information systems for evidence-based decision-making. “Africa’s persistent hunger, despite its land, livestock, labour and market endowments, is fundamentally a problem of converting existing assets into value, jobs, tra...

  BY PAUL TENTENA How can the Congo Basin, the world ’ s second-largest tropical rainforest, be transformed into a powerful driver of industrialization, value addition and regional economic integration? This is the challenge that needs to be addressed by all stakeholders on the sustainable industrialization of Central Africa's timber value chain . Central Africa is home to one of the world ’ s most significant forest ecosystems. According to the OECD, the Congo Basin accounts for 70 per cent of Africa's tropical rainforest cover and nearly 800,000 square kilometres of protected areas. Yet this exceptional natural capital remains largely underutilized from an industrial perspective. While the subregion supplies 20 per cent of global tropical log exports, it contributes only 1 per cent of global sawn timber production, highlighting limited domestic processing, insufficient value addition and significant untapped potential for industrial employment and competitiveness. T...

Representatives of the COP30 and COP31 Presidencies joined ministers and senior officials from forest and donor countries to accelerate action on forests through 2030, alongside new initiatives on forest finance and commitments on land tenure.   Peru  formally announced its endorsement of the Intergovernmental Land Tenure Commitment (ILTC) and   Brazil  unveiled new measures to strengthen land tenure rights. The gathering underscored the growing importance of forests across the international climate agenda, bringing together representatives from multiple COP cycles to discuss how political leadership, finance, and implementation can help deliver the goal of halting and reversing forest loss by 2030.  The event, From Glasgow to Addis Ababa: FCLP and COP Presidencies Building Momentum on Forests from COP30 to COP31, focused on maintaining forests as a prio...

Merck Foundation , the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, has conducted the   13 th  Edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary 2026   through an online videoconference.   The annual conference was inaugurated by   Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, Chairman of Merck Foundation Board of Trustees , and   Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and Chairperson of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary  along with   The First Ladies of 12 African and Asian countries , who joined as the   Guests of Honor   and   Keynote Speakers. Senator Dr. Rasha Kelej (Ret.), CEO of Merck Foundation, President of “More Than a Mother”  and Chairperson of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary said that it was a great privilege to welcome distinguished Guests of Honor and Keynote Speakers, The First Ladies of Africa and Asia, who are the Ambassadors of our ‘More Than a Mother’ campaign to the 13 th ...