By Andrew Irumba Katusabe [Sankara]
Busia: In what is fast turning Busia into Uganda’s new mineral Eldorado, Chinese investors under Wagagai Gold Mining (U) Ltd have dug a staggering 3.5-kilometre underground tunnel to tap into the district’s vast gold deposits.
The multimillion-dollar tunnel, one of the longest mining shafts ever built in Uganda, is projected to sustain extraction for at least 21 years, according to technical estimates shared during the project commissioning.
Beyond the tunnel, the investors have injected a colossal Shs740 billion (approx. US$200 million) into a state-of-the-art refinery capable of processing five tonnes of gold ore per day. The facility can refine gold to 99.99% purity, making Uganda one of the few African countries with such advanced in-country capacity.
At the colourful commissioning ceremony presided over by President Yoweri Museveni, the Head of State hailed the development as a historic milestone that ends the era of exporting unprocessed mineral wealth. “For decades, Uganda lost billions exporting semi-processed copper and gold. Now we are closing that leakage,” Museveni asserted.
The President further emphasized that value addition will not only multiply Uganda’s revenue but also generate jobs and drive up electricity demand—two pillars of his long-touted industrialization policy.
The Wagagai project, backed by Chinese capital, is expected to position Busia as East Africa’s new gold refining hub. Chinese Ambassador to Uganda Zhang Lizhong described it as a symbol of “Uganda–China economic friendship.”
Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa revealed that the project will directly employ over 1,200 Ugandans and indirectly support more than 5,000 jobs across supply chains ranging from logistics, construction materials, to artisanal miners who will now sell their raw gold for refining locally.
With an estimated 320 metric tonnes of gold reserves in Uganda valued at over US$12.8 billion, Busia alone is anticipated to shoulder a lion’s share of future production. Experts say the 3.5km tunnel is just the first phase, with more shafts planned to deepen Uganda’s footprint in global mineral markets.
As the excavators roar underground, locals in Busia are already bracing for economic ripples—from mushrooming hospitality businesses to infrastructural upgrades.
Indeed, with the 21-year life span of the discovered reserves, Uganda may finally be on the cusp of turning its gold into lasting economic assets, rather than mere dust in foreign refineries.
