Launch remarks · 23 November 2025
Your Excellency, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda, Dr Narendra Raval (Guru Devki), Chairman of Devki Group of Companies Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my singular honour to preside over the launch of the Vertically Integrated Steel Industry project here in Tororo, Eastern Uganda.
We convene here not just to commission a factory, but to usher in a new, audacious chapter in Africa’s industrialisation ambitions.
This project is the outcome of visionary leadership, daring entrepreneurship, and enduring partnerships. It reflects a collective commitment to sustainable development, regional integration, and the pursuit of transformative impact for our present and future generations.
Your Excellency, I take this opportunity to congratulate you on this remarkable milestone and to commend your steadfast commitment to industrialisation and championing transformative investments.
I recall with profound appreciation the discussions we have held on this project since its inception and, most recently, during your Official Visit to Kenya in July this year. In the spirit of our enduring friendship and brotherhood, we reaffirmed our shared commitment to bringing it to fruition and to jointly presiding over its commissioning.
I equally commend my brother and friend, His Excellency Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda, whose enduring advocacy for regional integration within the East African Community (EAC) has provided the enabling environment for projects like this one to thrive.
As a region and as a community, we recognise that the sum of our collective strength far exceeds the power of our individual nations. It is this shared understanding that anchors our commitment to cooperation.
Kenya’s support for this project reflects its broader ambition to anchor regional industrial integration within the framework of the EAC. This commitment underpins Kenya’s vision of a connected and competitive region where value addition, shared infrastructure, and coordinated industrial policies drive sustainable growth.
By fostering cross-border collaboration in strategic sectors such as steel manufacturing, Kenya seeks to enhance regional selfsufficiency, promote intra-African trade, and strengthen the foundation for collective prosperity under the EAC Industrialisation Strategy.
This project will provide jobs for our young people, build new value chains for small and medium enterprises, and create opportunities that extend far beyond Uganda’s borders.
Already, the Tororo facility currently employs more than 400 workers, with plans to increase the workforce to 20,000 by 2027 across its East African operations.
Beyond direct job creation, it will open vast opportunities for companies within the EAC, particularly in the transport, energy, construction, and services sectors, through cross-border supply contracts and strategic joint ventures.
I take this opportunity to express Kenya’s pride in celebrating the vision and enterprise of Dr Narendra Raval, a distinguished Kenyan industrialist and investor whose commitment, focus, and determination have been instrumental in bringing this industry to life.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, the steel sector in Africa has become increasingly pivotal in fuelling economic progress throughout the continent. With a strong emphasis on bolstering infrastructure, advancing industrialisation, and enhancing valueadded manufacturing, the industry is instrumental in shaping Africa’s economic trajectory.
Africa’s steel market reached a volume of 39.5 million tonnes in 2024, and is expected to hit a projected volume of 52 million tonnes by 2034, driven by bolstering infrastructure and advancing industrialisation.
Our countries are uniquely positioned to make a considerable leap in the regional and international steel market. The journey toward harnessing our steel production capacity not only highlights our abundant mineral resources, especially in iron ore, but also reflects a shifting policy environment and investment landscape aimed at unlocking these resources.
With an estimated 20 to 25 billion tonnes of proven and probable iron ore reserves, Sub-Saharan Africa possesses the natural resources needed not only to meet its rapidly growing domestic demand, but also to position itself as a major global exporter.
The establishment of the Tororo Steel Industry sends a powerful message that our countries possess both the capacity and the courage to build globally competitive industries that drive Africa’s transformation.
It embodies the spirit of self-reliance and innovation envisioned in the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and advances the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area by fostering regional value addition, industrial growth, and sustainable economic integration.
I reiterate Kenya’s readiness to continue working hand in hand with Uganda, Rwanda, and all our EAC partners to transform today’s milestone into tomorrow’s prosperity. I thank you.