PERTH, AUSTRALIA

Uganda advanced its mining investment agenda at the 24th Africa Down Under Conference in Perth, using the annual Australia–Africa mining platform to position its mineral opportunities for investment, technology partnerships and value addition.

The Ugandan delegation was led by H.E. Dorothy Samali Hyuha, Uganda’s High Commissioner to Australia, and brought together Members of Parliament, technical officials from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, and representatives of the private mining sector, including the Uganda Chamber of Mines and Petroleum. The composition reflected a coordinated approach that brought diplomacy, legislation, technical expertise and business together around Uganda’s mineral investment agenda.

The conference was officially opened by Hon. Matt Thistlethwaite MP, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and Assistant Minister for Immigration of Australia, who underscored the importance of strengthening Australia–Africa economic and commercial engagement. The scale of Australia’s mining economy provided an important reference point for Uganda’s investment discussions. Australia remains one of the world’s major mining and mineral-processing economies, while Uganda’s mineral sector remains comparatively less developed, creating opportunities for exploration, financing, technology transfer, skills development, processing and value addition. Rather than competing on the scale of established mining economies, Uganda positioned itself around the opportunity to develop new mineral projects and build higher-value regional supply chains.

Following the opening, High Commissioner Hyuha hosted a working lunch attended by more than 150 investors, mining executives, industry leaders, policymakers, African Ambassadors and other stakeholders. The engagement provided a direct platform for Uganda to present investment opportunities and discuss practical partnerships across the mining value chain.

H.E. Hyuha highlighted the growing relationship between Uganda and Australia at federal and Western Australian levels, noting that diplomatic engagement could serve as a practical bridge to investment and technical cooperation. She also drew attention to the experience of Australian-linked companies that had already undertaken mining and exploration activities in Uganda, demonstrating that Australian expertise had an existing point of entry into the Ugandan market.

Representing Uganda’s private sector, Mr Humphrey Asiimwe of the Uganda Chamber of Mines and Petroleum emphasised that mineral potential alone was insufficient to attract serious international capital. He stressed the importance of credible geological information, predictable licensing arrangements, feasibility studies, sound project economics and clear routes to commercial production.

The parliamentary delegation reinforced the role of legislation and regulatory certainty in creating confidence for long-term investment while protecting Uganda’s national interests. Hon. Ofwono Opondo, Member of Parliament, further called for stronger regional coordination among African countries participating in international mining forums.

He argued that African countries could present complementary investment opportunities rather than operating entirely as separate markets. Where one country faced limitations in infrastructure, logistics, processing or market access, neighbouring countries such as Kenya or Tanzania could potentially provide complementary components of a regional value chain. This approach would allow investment propositions to extend beyond individual national projects towards integrated East African mineral value chains, potentially increasing the scale and commercial attractiveness of projects while strengthening regional value addition.

Uganda’s participation in Perth therefore focused on converting mineral potential into commercially structured opportunities. The High Commission and delegation continued engagements with Australian investors, mining companies, technology providers and strategic partners, with follow-up expected to connect interested investors to specific Ugandan opportunities and advance discussions towards due diligence, technical cooperation and investment.

The Perth engagement demonstrated the practical role of Economic and Commercial Diplomacy in Uganda’s mining sector: creating access, building investor relationships and connecting national mineral resources with capital, technology, expertise and markets. Uganda’s message in Perth was consequently centred on a clear investment proposition: from diplomatic engagement to commercial partnerships, from mineral potential to bankable projects, and from exploration to value-added production.

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