The Minister of State for Trade Gen. Wilson Mbasu Mbadi is set to meet his counterpart in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to resolve the outstanding barriers that are hindering the smooth flow of goods and persons between the two countries.
Gen. Mbadi made this pronouncement during his one week working tour of seven border posts in Rwenzori region and West Nile to assess trade facilitation at the border posts, revenue performance, and operational challenges along Uganda’s frontiers with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan. In Rwenzori region, Gen. Mbadi visited Mpondwe in Kasese district and Ntoroko border crossings, while in West Nile he visited Goli in Nebbi district, Padea in Zombo district, Vurra and Lia in Arua district, which serve as trade border crossings between Uganda and the DRC. He also reached Oraba border post in Koboko district which borders with South Sudan.
In 2022, with support from UKaid through TradeMark Africa, the Government of Uganda upgraded Mpondwe, Ntoroko and Goli border posts into One-Stop Border Posts (OSBPs) facilitate trade by expediting cargo clearance, reducing delays and costs associated with customs and other border procedures, and improving border marine services for Ntoroko which is located on the shores of Lake Albert.
However, during his visit, Gen. Mbadi discovered that the three OSBPs are not yet fully operational with traders still facing some challenges in conducting business with Uganda’s neighbors in DRC.
At Ntoroko, the URA Incharge Customs Hamid Juma Aime told the minister that though Ntoroko was upgraded to an OSPB, it’s not yet fully operational with some critical agencies like Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS), Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) and others not present at the border. Aime noted that none of the DRC border agencies is represented at the Ntoroko OSPB and their officers never participate in their meetings.
“Several times we have invited our colleagues from DRC for joint border committee meetings to address the grievances of the traders and streamline our operations, however, we have always received no response and they never show up”, exclaimed Aime
The lack of collaboration by DRC officials was also reported at Vurra, Padea and Lea border posts with no diplomatic representation of DRC at all the borders.
Ugandan traders at the six border posts with DRC decried the mistreatment of Ugandan traders in DRC where they are not allowed to access the markets but work through agents and middlemen whom they give their goods and sometimes never pay them. “We request our government to construct for us a border market or border export zone at Ntoroko like in Mpondwe where we can operate from so that we stop going to DRC where we face a lot of challenges”, said Betty Tembo, chairperson of the Ntoroko Cross Border Traders Association.
The Uganda traders also find challenges in the exchange rates where they first exchange the Ugandan shillings into the Congolese Franc and then to US dollars, and in the process, they end up making losses. Ayo Robinah, the chairperson of Goli women multi-purpose cross border traders’ cooperative said EAC Partner States should expedite the implementation of the single regional currency so that traders do not suffer the losses through the multiple currency exchanges with DRC.
Most Ugandan traders also experience difficulty in communication due to lack of a shared language with DRC. Women traders highlighted the lack of gender-sensitive facilities.
At Ntoroko, the OSPB is still challenged with power supply with no grid power at the border. They rely on a generator which costs the border agencies UGX 10 million to operate per month. Due to lack of grid power, URA cannot use scanners in the clearance process and therefore officers rely on the human eye.
At all the six border points with DRC, traders reported difficulties arising from visa requirements imposed by Congolese authorities. They said Uganda scrapped the visa fees for DRC nationals entering the country in implementation of the EAC Common Market Protocol which promotes visa-free entry for citizens of EAC Partner States, however, DRC has not reciprocated despite becoming a full member of the EAC in 2022.
“Our people still pay the $50 as visa fees to enter DRC which increases the cost of doing business, yet for us we scrapped those visa fees”, noted Mabel Nankya, the Immigration Officer at Mpondwe border.
The traders at Mpondwe border highlighted the challenge of high taxes charged by URA especially on the fish, which is a lucrative business at this border. “We are paying high taxes on fish imports, between UGX 8 to 9 million per truck in Uganda, yet when the market was still in DRC, we were paying only UGX 5 million. South Sudanese too chase us whenever we go to trade fish, saying we should leave the business to local monopoly,” said Okedi Eric, a fish trader.
Stanley Bwambale Pandas, the chairman of the Vendors Export Zone at Mpondwe–Lhubiriha Market, requested cold storage facilities at the border to preserve fish in transit, as well as reduced taxes to support businesses. “The fish market is a bloodline for many people, but without storage facilities and favorable conditions, it is becoming difficult to sustain livelihoods,” Pandas explained.
The security threats by armed militias from DRC were also pointed out as a big barrier to the smooth operations at the border points. At Mpondwe, the border agencies reported that they close at 7:00 pm while in Ntoroko they close at 10:00 pm instead of working 24 hours like other border points due to the security threats. At Oraba border post with South Sudan, Sam Kalema, the URA Customs Manager reported that insecurity across the border has sharply reduced truck traffic and revenue collections.
The challenge of bad roads and limited parking space for cargo trucks was raised at all the six border posts with DRC. Deogratius Kaleebi, the URA Supervisor West Nile region reported that the steady growth of trade at the borders of Goli, Vurra, Padea and Lea has created a challenge of inadequate parking space which has resulted into delays with long queues of cargo trucks seen at the borders during Gen. Mbadi’s visit. The same problem was reported in Ntoroko and Mpondwe. At Vurra, the queues of cargo trucks waiting to be cleared stretched up to two kilometres due to lack of a truck yard.
Most of the roads reaching these border posts are in bad shape with some trucks spending more time in transit which raises the cost of business and constrains efficiency. The bad and slippery road from Karugutu to the Ntoroko border creates delays for cargo trucks.
Addressing the traders and border agencies at six border posts with DRC, Gen. Mbadi said government will hold talks with the DRC to resolve the issues of visa requirements among other challenges as there should be free movement of people, products and services within the region according to EAC Common Market Protocols.
“Ver soon, we are going to hold a ministerial meeting with my DRC counterpart to iron out all these barriers just like we recently did with Kenya”, said Mbadi
Mbadi reaffirmed government’s commitment to ensuring conditions that support cross-border trade with the DRC. He promised to engage the other government agencies like Ministry of Works, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Defence and others to address the challenges in infrastructure especially the roads, electricity, security and others to enable 24-hour operations, and deeper integration with DRC customs systems.
In his engagements at all the stations, Hon. Mbadi emphasized that border posts play a vital role in facilitating trade, reducing turnaround time, lowering costs of doing business, and boosting revenue. He reaffirmed government’s commitment to infrastructure development, improved facilities, and regional cooperation to ensure smoother, more secure, and more efficient cross-border trade.
Since the upgrading of infrastructure at the six border posts, Uganda’s trade with DRC has grown from approximately USD 500 million in 2020 to over USD 1 billion in 2025. Revenue collection at both borders has also gradually increased. “Last Financial Year 2024/2025, we collected revenue amounting to UGX 8.7 billion at Mpondwe border alone, with collections surpassing our target of UGX 8.6 billion”, explained Gordon Mutungi, the URA Enforcement Officer.
At Ntoroko, URA collected revenue amounting to UGX 1.06 billion in 2024/2025 compared to a collection of UGX 196 million in 2022/2023. At Lia, revenue grew from UGX 2.6 billion to UGX 3.8 billion, with daily traffic increasing to 30 trucks into DRC. In Padea, customs surpassed its target by 172%, collecting UGX 1.6 billion against UGX 930 million.
Community leaders requested improved health services, better infrastructure, and greater awareness campaigns to enhance tax compliance.
DRC remains Uganda’s number one export destination in EAC and COMESA with exports ranging from cement, wheat flour, sugar, soft drinks, mineral water, plastics, mattresses, agricultural products among others.
To further streamline Uganda’s cross border trade with DRC, Gen. Mbadi is also set to visit the borders of Goli-Mahagi in Nebbi district, Pabea in Zombo district and Vurra border in Arua district.