President Museveni: CN Sugar Must Meet All Legal Requirements

President Yoweri Museveni has directed that the licensing of CN Sugar Limited in Namayingo District must follow the law, raising fresh questions over the process that had seen Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja push for the factory’s commissioning despite an unresolved regulatory process.

The development brings into sharper focus a dispute that has put industrial investment, sugar industry regulation and the authority of statutory institutions on a collision course. CN Sugar, which has invested in a sugar processing plant in Namayingo, has been waiting for a production licence after earlier government permissions were challenged in court.

The latest controversy follows Nabbanja’s efforts to expedite the company’s licensing process. In September, she directed the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives to move on the application, saying the company had waited for about three years to begin operations. The directive followed a meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office attended by Minister of State for Trade Sanjay Tanna and Minister of State for Industry David Bahati.

CN Sugar officials say the company was cleared by Government in 2022 and has since invested in machinery and established a nucleus estate. They argue that the prolonged wait for a production licence has delayed operations and caused financial losses.

“We came to Uganda in 2022 after being cleared by government. We have invested heavily and we have our own nucleus estate. We have been waiting for a licence for three years,” a company representative said, according to reports.

For Namayingo residents, the dispute has a more immediate dimension. District leaders have backed the factory, pointing to the jobs it could create and the market it could provide for sugarcane farmers in an area that has been waiting for the investment to become fully operational.

But the licensing question is not simply an administrative delay. Uganda’s Sugar Act requires a sugar mill to have a valid licence before it can be established or operated, while applications must be assessed against prescribed legal requirements.

The issue was further complicated by a High Court ruling delivered in January 2025 after the Uganda Sugar Manufacturers Association challenged permissions issued to CN Sugar and another company, Shakti Sugar. The court found that the previous licensing arrangements were unlawful and ordered the affected mills to halt operations until they were duly licensed by the authorised body.

The court dispute also centred on the location of sugar mills and the protection of existing cane supply. Earlier Government policy and presidential guidance had sought to prevent sugar factories from being established too close to one another, partly because competition for sugarcane can undermine farmers and existing millers.

That history explains why the current application has attracted close scrutiny. The Ministry of Trade says sugar mill licensing requires detailed information on land, factory capacity, sources of inputs, markets, financing and other aspects of the proposed investment, alongside inspection and verification of the site.

The Government’s position on the sector has also evolved. In May 2025, Museveni signed the Sugarcane Amendment Bill into law after consultations involving farmers, millers and lawmakers from sugar producing regions. He urged sugar industry players to cooperate, warning that instability between farmers and processors could ultimately damage the entire sector.

Against that background, the CN Sugar case has become more than a dispute over one factory. It is testing how Uganda balances its drive to attract industrial investment with the need for predictable regulation and respect for decisions made by statutory bodies and courts.

CN Sugar’s supporters argue that the factory represents investment, employment and a new market for farmers in Namayingo. Regulators and existing industry players, meanwhile, have raised questions about cane supply, zoning and compliance with the legal framework.

The immediate question is therefore not only when CN Sugar will begin production, but whether every requirement will be satisfied before it does. As the licensing process continues, the outcome will provide a significant test of how Uganda handles new investment in an industry where the interests of farmers, millers, regulators and Government frequently overlap.

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