Stanbic Bank Uganda has partnered with the Buganda Kingdom to unveil a one stop agricultural business centre aimed at strengthening SACCO financing, organizing coffee value chains and formalising trade across the kingdom.
The initiative, dubbed Ssemaduuka, was launched at the Mayors Gardens in Mubende Municipality, marking the beginning of its rollout in Buweekula County.
Speaking at the launch, Tunde Thorpe, Executive Head of Business and Commercial Banking at Stanbic Bank, said the model is designed to bring farmers into a structured financial system.
“Through this model, SACCOs recommended by Bucadef will be formally assessed and onboarded. Farmers who were previously operating informally will gain structured access to credit, digital payments and secure market linkages,” Thorpe said.
He explained that the centre will enable the bank to finance the full agricultural cycle, from acquisition of inputs such as seeds and fertilisers to aggregation and export of produce, particularly coffee.
The programme is being implemented through the Buganda Cultural and Development Foundation, which will identify and recommend qualifying savings and credit cooperatives for support. Once approved, the SACCOs will access tailored credit facilities aimed at improving productivity, governance and financial management.
Buganda Kingdom’s Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Owek. Robert Waggwa Nsibirwa, described the partnership as a deliberate effort to modernise agriculture and build household wealth.
“You cannot expect farmers to go to Kampala all the time to find inputs. So it is the plan of the kingdom, working with Stanbic, to establish quality agro input supermarkets in all the 18 counties of Uganda,” Nsibirwa said.
He urged residents to embrace the initiative, noting that agriculture remains central to the kingdom’s socio economic transformation agenda.
“Agriculture is the backbone of our people’s prosperity. We want wealth to reach farmers directly in their gardens through better infrastructure and reliable market access,” he added.
As part of the formalisation drive, transactions will be digitised through Stanbic’s One Farm platform, enabling transparent payments and improved traceability within the coffee value chain. The bank’s agribusiness team said the digital system will also unlock trade finance solutions to support exports and link farmers to organised buyers.
The project is expected to ease long standing challenges faced by rural coffee farmers, including limited access to affordable credit, climate related shocks and crop diseases. By creating structured market linkages, aggregation centres and access to certified inputs, the partners aim to shift farmers from subsistence production to commercial agribusiness.
Officials noted that women make up more than 70 percent of members in the participating cooperatives, positioning the initiative as a driver of inclusive rural growth.
Stanbic Bank said the partnership forms part of its strategy to deepen agricultural financing and expand economic opportunities as it approaches 35 years of operations in Uganda in 2026.
