By David Rupiny

The Ugandan government has introduced a tax holiday for investors in hotels and other lultra-luxury tourism facilities.

According to the Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Henry Musasizi, the incentive is aimed at attracting investments and accelerating growth in the tourism sector.

Musasizi, while presenting the National Budget 2026/26, said the incentive will target investors undertaking largescale tourism projects.

Under the measure, foreign investors will qualify for the tax holiday if they invest at leat 10 million dollars (UGX37 billion), while domestic investors will be required to invest a minimum of five million dollars (UGX18.5 billion).

Minister Musasizi said investors are increasingly showing interest in Uganda’s small and medium enterprises, adding that Kampala-based startups attracted about 30 million dollars in 2025, up from four million dollars the previous year.

The minister said Uganda’s tourism sector has made significant recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic, with tourism receipts rising to 1.86 billion dollars in 2025, compared to 1.4 billion dollars in 2024, and far higher than the pre-Covid-19 receipts.

Minister Musasizi said tourism remains one of Uganda’s leading export sectors, generating foreign exchange and creating jobs.

The government has also allocated 567.32 billion shillings for tourism development, one of the priority sectors – ATMS (Agro-industrialisation, Tourism Development, Mineral Development and Science Technology and Innovation) – that will drive the Tenfold Economic Growth Strategy that aims to increase the GDP to 500 billion dollars by 2040.

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