Absa Bank Uganda has launched a campaign centered on financial literacy to help individuals and small businesses improve their borrowing habits and achieve sustainable growth.
The initiative aims to address a common gap in the Ugandan lending market, where many consumers access credit without fully understanding financing options or how to structure debt for long-term goals.
Moses Rutahigwa, the retail and business banking director at Absa Bank Uganda, said the bank is committing to practical conversations for the remainder of the year to help customers view borrowing as a catalyst for growth rather than a source of stress.
The campaign will offer guidance on financial discipline, business planning and loan structuring through digital platforms and branch engagement.
During a launch event featuring personal finance coach Newton Buteraba and business leader Robert Kabushenga, participants discussed the challenges of managing debt and balancing business ambition with financial reality.
The campaign comes as industry data shows a slight improvement in credit quality. According to the Bank of Uganda, the nonperforming loan ratio fell to 3.66% in September 2025 from 3.74% in the previous quarter. Despite the improvement, Rutahigwa noted that bad loans remain a concern, often resulting from poor planning or the diversion of funds.
The bank’s effort aligns with national strategies from the Bank of Uganda and the Uganda Bankers Association to increase financial inclusion and consumer protection through public education on savings and budgeting.
As part of the campaign, Absa highlighted several financing products, including personal loans of up to 400 million Ugandan shillings with 96-month repayment periods and home loans reaching 2 billion shillings. The bank also offers instant mobile loans up to 5 million shillings and unsecured business loans up to 200 million shillings.
Absa Bank Uganda, a subsidiary of the Johannesburg-listed Absa Group Ltd., operates 39 branches and more than 90 ATMs across the country.
According to a Bank of Uganda (BoU) 2020 Financial Capability Survey, the overall financial literacy score for Ugandan adults was 50.4 percent. The survey indicated a gender gap, with males scoring 52.6% compared to 48.3% for females. While 81% of adults were financially included by 2023,, high levels of financial literacy remain a challenge, with many relying on informal financial methods
Moses Rutahigwa, the retail and business banking director at Absa Bank Uganda stressed that Banks in Uganda invest in financial literacy to foster financial inclusion, improve customer, household, and business financial health, and build trust in the banking sector
.”By educating consumers on budgeting, saving, and responsible borrowing, banks aim to reduce loan defaults, increase the uptake of formal financial products (such as digital banking), and promote long-term economic growth,”he stated.
Business leader Robert Kabushenga, emphasized that educating Ugandans on financial litetrcy helps bridge the gap between, for instance, mobile money users (nearly 20 million) and the lower number of formal bank account holders (around 5 million), encouraging the transition to formal banking.