Uganda seeks to process tea before export and establish a national auction
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Watchdog Uganda
A Ugandan bill seeks to make tea processing compulsory before export and establish a national auction. Introduced by MP Cohen Amanya on 28 October 2026, the bill aims to better protect producers and reduce dependence on the Mombasa market, where about 90% of Ugandan tea is sold, according to the MP.
Uganda’s Parliament has authorised MP Cohen Amanya to introduce a bill that would make tea processing compulsory before export and establish a national auction. He also wants to create a regulatory framework to protect producers and other players in the sector, the MP said during a plenary session on 28 October 2026, according to Watchdog Uganda.
About 90% of Ugandan tea is currently sold through the auction in Mombasa, Kenya, exposing the sector to dependence on a single foreign market, said Cohen Amanya, MP for Igara West County. Low- and medium-grade tea sells for less than one dollar per kilogram, while high fertiliser costs, pests and diseases also weigh on production.
The bill proposes that buyers and exporters add value to tea through packaging, blending, grading, flavouring, labelling or processing it into speciality products. Exporters would have to obtain a certificate from the Ministry of Agriculture attesting to their compliance before consignments are cleared through customs. Offenders could lose their licence, have their consignment seized and receive a fine equivalent to the value of the tea exported without processing.
The bill also proposes a national auction for tea processed in Uganda and intended for export. The initiative aims to strengthen the country’s position in international markets, according to Watchdog Uganda.
