This fund is the cornerstone of the EDB's Strategic Plan for 2024-2028, which prioritizes sustainable development, innovation, and socio-economic transformation. By addressing issues such as stringent collateral requirements and an underdeveloped investment ecosystem, the EDB intends to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) expand their operations and become sustainable economic drivers.
The launch of the program followed a period of high financial performance by the Bank. For the fiscal year ended December 2025, EDB reported a 51% increase in pre-tax profit, reaching $16.93 million compared to $11.20 million a year earlier. In addition, loan repayments increased by 140 percent, and outstanding loans increased by 52%, indicating increased operational efficiency and institutional confidence.
Matiya Kasaya, Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development of Uganda and outgoing Chairman of the Board of Governors, said that these results demonstrate the Bank's increased capacity to mobilize resources. He stressed that the new foundation recognizes the vital role that women and youth play in entrepreneurship. Financing will be provided through the Bank's partner financial institutions, while most of the capital will be received from the Bank's own profits, as well as through efforts to mobilize additional resources from international development partners.
The Kampala meeting also served as a venue for a leadership change. Rwanda's Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Yusuf Murangwa, has been appointed as the new Chairman of the Board of Governors, replacing Matiya Kasaya. Meanwhile, Ramatan Ggubi, Permanent Secretary of the Ugandan Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, was appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors for a two-year term, replacing Nata Mwamba from Tanzania.
The meeting was attended by regional leaders, including Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and Economic Planning John Mbadi and Tanzanian Finance Minister Khamis Moussa Omar.
Established in 1967 and restored in accordance with a new charter in 1980, the EDB is jointly owned by the Governments of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, as well as various financial development institutions and commercial banks. The Bank continues to focus on industrialization, infrastructure, and regional integration, and this new fund reflects its strategic commitment to creating jobs and improving the economic sustainability of the region's most vulnerable business groups.
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