Uganda has told investors its minerals could be worth up to $12 trillion. The lower estimate stands at $4 trillion. Officials made the pitch this week at a major mining conference in Australia.
The Uganda mining investment case was laid out on Wednesday at the 24th Africa Down Under Conference in Perth. The three-day event has drawn governments, mining firms and financiers hunting for opportunities across Africa.
Uganda sent a full delegation. It included officials from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development. The Uganda Chamber of Mines and Petroleum also attended, alongside MP Ofwono Opondo and staff from Uganda’s diplomatic mission in Australia.
Humphrey Asiimwe leads the Uganda Chamber of Mines and Petroleum. He told delegates the sector is developing fast. Large deposits, he said, remain unexplored.
Mr Asiimwe listed six minerals driving the Uganda mining investment push. Gold, iron ore, graphite, rare earths, copper and cobalt all featured. Each sits inside growing global demand for critical minerals.
One project stood out. Makuutu, a rare earth site in eastern Uganda, has already drawn Australian mining interest, Daily Monitor notes. Mr Asiimwe called it a tangible link between Uganda and Australia’s critical minerals industry.
The timing is deliberate. Critical minerals feed electric vehicles, batteries and renewable energy systems. That global market is projected to exceed $770 billion by 2040.
Uganda wants a share early. The Uganda mining investment pitch is built around getting ahead of that curve, not chasing it once prices climb further.
Right now, mining contributes little to Uganda’s economy. Mining and quarrying make up just 2.2 per cent of GDP. The Uganda mining investment target under National Development Plan IV is 7.9 per cent by the 2029/30 financial year.
Closing that gap needs more than geology. Mr Asiimwe said Uganda now offers investors clearer geological data. Licensing rules, feasibility studies, infrastructure assessments and production projections are also on the table, he said, to help investors weigh risk before committing capital.
Dorothy Hyuha is Uganda’s High Commissioner to Australia. She said the conference connects Uganda’s mineral opportunities with international capital and expertise. Existing ties with Australia’s federal government and Western Australia’s government, she added, strengthen Uganda’s hand.
Those relationships matter for the Uganda mining investment drive. They can link Ugandan project owners directly with mining companies, investors and technical experts, Ms Hyuha said.
Mr Opondo pushed a different idea. African nations sharing mineral belts and transport corridors, he argued, would gain more pitching investors together. Competing individually for the same capital, he said, weakens everyone’s position.
Government is investing in supporting infrastructure, Mr Asiimwe said. But private capital is still needed to unlock the country’s full mineral potential.
The figures are eye-catching. Whether Uganda’s $4 trillion to $12 trillion valuation becomes signed deals is another matter, and it is the real test of this Uganda mining investment push. That answer depends on how fast Perth’s pitch turns into contracts on the ground.
