Uganda government has invested heavily into preparations tfor the country to Co-host Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in partnership with Tanzania and Kenya in 2027,Ministry of Education officials have confirmed..
“There is overwhelming government commitment to the realization of a ready environment in Uganda for the successful co-hosting of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 tournament,”Dr. Dennis K. Mugimba Chairperosn Communication Committee
According to Mugimba the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is a complex operation that neither a single Sector nor entity (government or private) can execute and implement alone or in isolation.
“As the L.O.C., we see immense opportunities that come with Uganda co-hosting such a sports tournament. For example, if each visitor spends at least USD 1,000 during their stay in Uganda, that could potentially be USD500 million at a minimum spent in the local economy during the tournament,”Mugimba stated.
Core Areas where government has invested Money ahead AFCON
In 2024, the Cabinet approved an allocation of Ugx. 1.35 trillion for the infrastructural, logistical, and operational costs of preparations for the co-hosting CHAN-2024 in August 2025 and AFCON-2027. This figure included payment of USD13 million and USD30 million to CAF as individual co-host obligatory commitment fees for CHAN-2024 and AFCON-2027 respectively.
Gen. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni championing the approval of an additional UGX . 905 billion towards meeting critical Inter-Sectoral funding and administrative requirements for AFCON-2027 summarized as follows:
The Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development shall allocate and ring-fence funds to MDAs with qualified AFCON-2027 interventions, some of which require funds to commence implementation between March and June 2026; that is, before the new financial year starts in July 2026.
UGX . 101.1 billion is being set aside by the government for the upgrading of select Hotels in Hoima and Masindi and construction of a hotel to serve Kabalega international airport. This shall be accessed through a special credit facility for the private sector under the Uganda Development Bank (UDB).
UGX . 213.76 billion shall be allocated for upgrading at least 47.53 kilometres of select roads around Hoima City Stadium (29.5 km) and Namboole Stadium (14.83 km), Kinawataka Road (3.2 km) as well as 8.8 km of pedestrian walkways and streetlighting in select roads for the sake of safety and security of fans.
UGX 184.9 billion is being set aside to establish a passenger terminal at Kabalega Airport and operationalize the facility as an international airport.
UGX 17.7 billion shall be allocated to the Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA) for the upgrade of FUFA Kadiba Stadium as a Training Facility for AFCON-2027 as well as UShs. 12.55 billion for implementation of various interventions aimed at preparing the Uganda Cranes team for AFCON2027.
UGX 109.9 billion shall be allocated to the AFCON-2027 Local Organizing Committee to implement various tournament specific preparations across its thirteen sub-committees responsible for tournament and guest safety and security, host city/country branding, guest hospitality, football team services, spectator services, medical and anti-doping readiness, workforce and volunteers, communication and in-stadia media operations, marketing, plus preparations for hosting either the opening or closing ceremony for the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027.
UGX 56.2 billion shall be allocated to Namboole Stadium in FY2026/2027 remodeling and upgrade – this brings the total allocation for Namboole PhaseII development to UShs. 248.6 billion. The rest of the funds are all available in the current financial year.
UGX 6.44 billion is to be allocated for the deployment and improvement of ICT infrastructure to support AFCON-2027 facilities, namely airports, hotels, stadia, training facilities, and hospitals.
9. UShs. 91.05 billion is being committed to the upgrade of Hoima Regional Referral Hospital, Masindi General Hospital, and Buseruka Health Centre-III to a capacity where they can handle ICU, accident and emergency care among others as per requirements of CAF.
UGX 13.75 billion is being allocated to Hoima City (UShs. 6.55 billion), Masindi Municipality (UShs. 5.1 billion), and Kira Municipality (UShs. 2.1 billion) towards improvement of sanitation and environmental hygiene services during the tournament.
UGX 3.39 billion is being set aside for the upgrade of aeronautic meteorological services support to Kabalega and Entebbe International
Airports.
UGX 6.25 billion shall be allocated for the upgrade of the water grid capacity in Hoima City to serve the upcoming AFCON-2027 facilities.
UGX 23.33 billion is being allocated for the upgrade and maintenance of the railway, central Terminal, Kampala-Mukono line, Namanve Station, and Namboole Halt.
UGX . 4.69 billion will be allocated for the establishment of dedicated electricity lines to facilities that support AFCON-2027; namely Kabalega international airport, Hoima City Stadium, Hoima Boma Training Facility, Masindi Municipal Training Facility, and Sir Tito Winyi S. S. S. Training Facility.
UGX 37.85 billion is being committed to market and promote Destination Uganda as a leverage of the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 tournament brand.
The government has committed to waive the requirement for visa fees for ALL and ANY visitors to Uganda for a period of at least three months starting with one month prior to kick-off of AFCON-2027 up to one month after the final match.
key Interventions Completed
On 28th November 2024, the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports inaugurated an Inter-Sectoral Steering Forum as collaborative forum to support the Local Organizing Committee (L.O.C.) in our co-hosting of CHAN-2024 and AFCON-2027 tournaments. This Forum brings together more than twenty (20) over-arching entities including representation of the private Sector and FUFA.
“Following the constitution of the L.O.C. for Uganda in full conformity with the Statutes and approval of CAF, the L.O.C. was published in the Uganda Gazette on 14th March 2025. The L.O.C. Secretariat also serves the Inter-Sectoral Steering Forum whose Technical arm is led by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Sports,”he stated.
Agreements
1That TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 tournament shall be jointly hosted by the three countries of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
That the tournament shall run for one month from 19th June 2027 to 18th July 2027.
That Uganda shall have two primary competition stadia: namely Mandela National Stadium (Namboole) in Kira Municipality, Wakiso District and Hoima City Stadium in Hoima City.
