Agriculture being the backbone and cornerstone of Uganda’s economy which has provided livelihoods for millions of Ugandans, playing an important role in food security and export earnings, made up of 24.2%, industry 25.5% and services 50.3% sectors.
However, the pearl of Africa also holds its topmost richest businessmen who have over the years from scratch managed to top chats and through their entrepreneurial skills, own, manage and direct companies hence being referred to as tycoons.
1. Sudhir Ruparelia
Sudhir is a Ugandan business investor, born on 17th January 1956. A founder, chairman and majority shareholder in the Ruparelia Group Companies. Most of this Ugandan business magnet’s investments are in insurance, real estate, broadcasting, hotels, floriculture, hotels and more so education and the banking sectors.
Topping the list, Sudhir is believed to have risen his fortune from $25,000 which he saved from when he was working in the United Kingdom before officially settling in Uganda in the 1980s as a beverages merchant, later on as a foreign currency dealer. He is however over the years ranked as the city’s most wealthy businessman.
2. Hamis Kigundu
Born, in 1984, Hamis Kigundu also famously known as Ham is a one Ugandan businessman, author and lawyer, the CEO of the Ham Group of companies who is as of 2024 among the top Ugandan richest individuals by net-worth of 1.02billion.
At the age of 40years, Ham is the founder of Ham Enterprises ltd which includes the famed Ham tower and Ham shopping grounds in the heart of Kampala city. He is not only Uganda’s leading philanthropist but also deals in vast real estate holdings, hospitality, logistics and agro-processing , international trade to mention but a few.
Ham has also through charities made some society returns under the Ham Foundation. From most of his dealings and investments, he has managed to build commercial buildings, luxury houses which sum up the $49million re-development project whose works were recently concluded and officially re-opened alongside the President of Uganda H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni through a celebration that left on lookers with no choice but dropped jaws at the stadium itself (Nakivubo Stadium).
Located on the shores of lake victoria, Ham owns a 5 multimillion dollar mansion which is believed to be one of the most biggest luxurious homes on the country. However, the tycoon is focused and working on his Ham Agro Bank in addition to his agro processing industry headquarters located at his Akright Entebbe road based industrial complex. Ham Kigundu is however, also developing the ‘Ham Palm Villas’ which is a luxury residential estate comprised of 500 fully serviced modern houses on 200 acres of land which makes it the largest most luxurious residential society in Uganda.
3.Karim Hirji
Regarded as the second wealthiest individual in Uganda, Karim Hijri is a Ugandan businessman, entrepreneur and owner of the imperial hotels in the city. He is of an estimated net worth of $800million.
Karim is also the main architect of Dembe group of companies which has morphed into a major conglomerate in Uganda.
4. John Bosco Muwonge
Referred to as an allusive billionaire who is rarely spotted in public, John Bosco is one of the wealthiest businessmen in Kampala. It is however believed that unlike the other billionaires like Sudhir Ruparelia,who make and spend their monies in charities and cooperate responsibility activities, Muwonge collects all his money from his commercial buildings and takes it all.
John Bosco owns Namanda cooper complex, Namayiba bus terminal, New Arua park complex, a street in Nabugabo and owns over 40 construction sites in Kampala to mention but, a few. His net-worth is therefore over $1.8billion.
5.Sikander Lalani
Well known as the managing director at Roofings Group, Sikander Lalani is a histopathologist who was born on 4th November 1944 at Nsambya Hospital in Uganda. As a prominent businessman, he is an industrialist well known for investment dealings in steel manufacturing who due to the Rwanda genocide in 1994 abandoned his business and fled to Tanzania and later relocated to Uganda due to the bureaucracy in Tanzania.
Sikander Lalani has therefore with the assistance of the World bank and a few loans has managed to build a steel manufacturing conglomerate in Uganda which has over the years generated US$60-70million per year in exports with more than 1,500 employees. Among his companies include Roofings limited (1994),Rolling mills(2009) and the Roofings Polypipes(2010) which produce a wide range of steel products in the East and Central African region. However, his networth estimate is around $300million dollars.
All these business moguls at-least own a percentage of most of the famed businesses and buildings in the heart of Kampala city according to our closest sources.
