Overview:
Stanbic and the French Embassy launch a two-year accelerator to boost 200 youth and women-owned green businesses in Uganda, focusing on sustainable development.
KAMPALA, Uganda — The Stanbic Business Incubator Limited (SBIL) has partnered with the French Embassy in Uganda to launch the “Stanbic GreenTech Accelerator” program, a two-year initiative dedicated to boosting green businesses run by youth and women entrepreneurs.
The program targets 200 micro-enterprises in sectors like sustainable agriculture, green mobility, renewable energy and waste management, focusing on the Kampala Metropolitan Area and the Albertine Region.
Catherine Poran, chief executive of the SBIL, announced the program’s official launch Friday at Protea Hotel in Kampala.
“It is an initiative being supported by the Embassy of France in Uganda, and not only marks another chapter of our partnership, but also Stanbic’s commitment to driving Uganda’s growth,” Poran said.
She stressed that blending green business models into Uganda’s economic growth is crucial for ensuring sustainable development, protecting the environment, fostering inclusive growth and job creation, and building resilience to climate change. Green business models prioritize sustainability in all aspects of the enterprise to reduce the environmental footprint while creating economic and social value.
The accelerator aims to promote the development of a green, resilient and highly innovative economy by strengthening capacities, facilitating access to finance and markets, and creating a conducive growth environment.
The program is estimated to cost €687,833. The French Embassy is providing a grant of €450,000 (about 1.8 billion Ugandan shillings), while Stanbic Bank is committed to co-financing the project with €237,833, or 34.5 percent of the total.
The program will benefit 120 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from the Kampala Metropolitan area and 80 from the Albertine Region.
- Prior Success: Poran noted that the SBIL, the enterprise development subsidiary of Stanbic Uganda Holdings Limited (SUHL), has steered the growth of over 5,700 SMEs. In 2024, Stanbic Bank availed 76 billion Ugandan shillings in loans and credits to SMEs.
French Ambassador Virginie Leroy said the project is a continuation of a previous partnership with SBIL that supported 110 Micro Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in agroecology and eco-tourism.
“The latest initiative is bigger, and more ambitious, but also with a target to support more young people in the green economy,” Leroy said. “We are very happy to join Uganda to contribute to the solution and… to grasp all the opportunities, not only talking about risk, but talking about opportunities for jobs creation and for the development of Uganda.”
James Karama, Stanbic Bank’s head of Client Coverage in Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), affirmed the bank’s commitment to the initiative.
“The same thing happens in Uganda. Uganda is our home, and we drive her growth,” Karama said. “We have chosen to focus on women, youth and farmers (the WYF Agenda), because they form the backbone of our economy. So through this program, we are investing in innovation in green enterprises and most importantly in people.”
Johnson Abitekaniza, the assistant commissioner for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise at Uganda’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives (MTIC), confirmed the government’s support for such initiatives.
“The government has come up with a green strategy,” Abitekaniza said. “We have also set up a desk at the Ministry of Finance for the Green Finance unit that is looking at those issues.”