Tilda Uganda Limited

MIGA issued guarantees totaling $3.45 million in coverage for equity and loan investments by Tilda Holdings (Africa) Limited in an agribusiness project to grow and process rice in Uganda. The project enterprise, located in the Iganga District near the border with Kenya, will privatize anda state-owned rice production enterprise. It will also produce maize and soybeans. The MIGA guarantees will cover the investments against the risks of transfer restriction, expropriation, and war and civil disturbance. To date, MIGA has issued some $75 million in coverage in Uganda for projects in telecommunications, fisheries, cobalt mining, and coffee processing.

The project will have positive developmental benefits for Uganda. It is expected to help the country attain its goal of self-sufficiency in rice production and to become a significant exporter to East and Central Africa. It will eliminate rice imports and transfer new technologies in rice growing and processing. It will create an estimated 2,000 jobs for local Ugandans and will provide them with training in rice milling, engineering, product packaging, and marketing. Ancillary industries in the area, such as transportation, packing, and storage services, will also benefit from the project.

The IFC and other development finance institutions are also involved in the project.