For nearly a decade, Siddy Latabu ran a fish trading business in Kitgum, supplying silver fish, popularly known as “mukene” and smoked fish to customers across northern Uganda.
Like many small business owners, she had built a loyal customer base but struggled with a familiar challenge: limited capital constrained her ability to meet demand and grow.
Then, through the GROW Project, she accessed financing that enabled her to increase her stock from seven bags of fish to 25, significantly expanding her business and improving her revenue.
Siddy’s story is not unique. Across Uganda, thousands of women entrepreneurs are running businesses with the potential to grow, employ others and contribute more meaningfully to the economy. The challenge is that too many remain trapped at a scale that allows them to survive but not necessarily thrive.
This is why Uganda’s conversation about women entrepreneurship needs to evolve. The question is no longer simply whether women can access finance. It is whether that finance is helping them build stronger businesses, invest in productive assets, improve productivity and create jobs.
That reality was brought into sharp focus during a recent GROW Women Borrowers Engagement that brought together women entrepreneurs from across Uganda who have accessed financing under the programme.
Listening to their experiences, one thing became clear: most were not asking how to start a business. They were asking for guidance related to the growth stage of their businesses.
They wanted to expand production, increase stock, acquire equipment, enter new markets and employ more people. They were thinking beyond survival and focusing on growth.
The GROW Project was designed to make that transition possible. Generating Growth Opportunities and Productivity for Women Enterprises (GROW) is a Government of Uganda initiative funded by the World Bank and implemented by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and the Private Sector Foundation Uganda.
The programme seeks to help women-owned enterprises move from micro to small businesses and from small to medium-sized enterprises by combining access to financing with business development services, mentorship, training and market linkages.
As one of the partner financial institutions implementing the GROW Financing Facility, dfcu Bank provides affordable financing to women entrepreneurs across the country while also connecting them to broader business support. Through participating financial institutions, the programme has already disbursed more than UGX 160 billion to over 10,000 women entrepreneurs. Nearly 500 women-owned enterprises have accessed more than UGX 24.2 billion through dfcu Bank with beneficiaries investing in agriculture, manufacturing, trade, education and business services.
For dfcu Bank, participation in GROW builds on a much longer commitment to women entrepreneurship. Through the Women in Business programme, established in 2007, the Bank has spent nearly two decades supporting women entrepreneurs with financing, mentorship, business training, networking opportunities and market access. More than 80,000 women have benefited from the programme, reflecting a longstanding belief that women-owned businesses are critical to Uganda’s economic growth.
That experience has shown that women entrepreneurs rarely lack ambition. More often, they lack access to the combination of capital, knowledge, networks and support needed to unlock the next stage of growth.
The women who attended the recent GROW engagement were ambitious, determined and clear about where they wanted to take their businesses. What many were looking for was the opportunity and support needed to get there.
During the engagement, I encouraged participants to view themselves not only as business owners, but also as employers and contributors to Uganda’s economic transformation. That distinction matters because the impact of a growing enterprise extends well beyond the entrepreneur. When a business expands, new jobs are created, suppliers gain customers, families become more financially secure and communities benefit from increased economic activity.
Uganda’s future job creation will depend significantly on businesses that can successfully make the leap from small operations to larger, more productive enterprises. Government alone cannot absorb the growing number of people entering the labour market. Sustainable employment must come from businesses that are investing, expanding and creating value. Women-owned enterprises have an important role to play in that transformation.
Many of the conversations during the engagement reinforced another important point.
As businesses grow, the challenges they face also change. Entrepreneurs must pay closer attention to financial management, record keeping, cash flow planning and profitability.
Managing a growing business requires stronger systems, capable teams and a willingness to think beyond day-to-day survival.
This is why programmes such as GROW combine finance with business development services. Entrepreneurs need access to capital, but they also need the skills and confidence to use that capital effectively. Financial discipline, sound decision-making and a long-term view are often what determine whether a business remains small or evolves into a sustainable enterprise.
The true success of the GROW Project will not be measured by the amount of money disbursed. It will be measured by the businesses that expand, the jobs that are created and the economic opportunities that emerge as women entrepreneurs realise their full potential.
Siddy Latabu’s journey began with the need for capital to meet growing demand. Today, her story stands as a reminder of what can happen when women entrepreneurs are given the opportunity to scale. Across Uganda, there are thousands more women with the same determination and potential. The task ahead is to ensure they have the financing, skills and support needed to build the enterprises that will create jobs, strengthen communities and contribute to Uganda’s economic growth.
