In a country where agriculture anchors the national economy yet remains chronically underfinanced, Pearl Bank is building a track record that the Bank of Uganda has now formally recognised and the numbers behind that recognition tell a compelling story of what committed sector-specific lending can achieve.
The Bank of Uganda acknowledged Pearl Bank’s performance under both the Agricultural Credit Facility and the Small Business Fund at a workshop held at Hotel Africana on 22 April 2026. The ACF, jointly implemented by the central bank and participating financial institutions, is designed to expand access to medium and long-term financing for agriculture at affordable rates, a mandate that Pearl Bank has pursued with measurable results. The bank’s agricultural loan portfolio has grown by approximately 180% since 2020, driven by seasonal working capital loans, risk-sharing facilities and partnerships under government programmes.
Pearl Bank’s Supervisor for Agriculture and Partnerships, Julius Akais, who also received an individual award for his role in the ACF programme said the bank’s commitment to the sector is both strategic and values-driven. “The bank is committed to creating an enabling environment for Ugandans to gain access to affordable financing solutions to bridge the financing gap in Uganda’s agriculture sector, which remains a cornerstone of the national economy,” said Akais.
Products have been tailored along specific value chains including coffee, dairy, grains, poultry and horticulture, supporting investment in equipment, irrigation, storage and value addition, the kind of integrated, value-chain-aware financing that transforms subsistence activity into commercial enterprise. Pearl Bank’s recognition under the ACF and Small Business Recovery Fund is not new as the bank has received similar acknowledgements previously, as well as recognition at the Annual Bankers Awards in agriculture and agro-processing. What the latest awards signal is that the performance is sustained, not episodic.
