Uganda has signed a cooperation agreement with Denmark to strengthen the country’s statistical systems and improve the production and use of official data for planning, policymaking and the green transition.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) represented by Dr Vincent Fred Ssenono, the Deputy Executive Director, Statistics Denmark and the Embassy of Denmark in Uganda during the second day of the Uganda-European Union Business Forum hosted at Kampala Serena Hotel by the European Union, Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) and Government.
The signing was witnessed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and State Minister for Trade, Gen Wilson Mbasu Mbadi, according to the Danish Embassy in Uganda.
The agreement establishes a framework for cooperation in official statistics and data, with the aim of strengthening UBOS’s capacity to produce reliable information that government institutions, businesses and other stakeholders can use in decision-making.
Under the agreement, the parties will work to modernise Uganda’s National Statistical System, improve coordination in the production of national statistics, and enhance the dissemination and communication of statistical information to users locally and internationally.
The cooperation will also focus on statistics and data needed to support Uganda’s green transition, including the production, management, analysis and dissemination of relevant information.
The MoU provides for knowledge-sharing, technical assistance, staff exchanges and joint activities involving relevant government ministries, departments and agencies, development partners, private sector institutions and civil society organisations.
It also provides for technical cooperation with the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development to improve the availability, accessibility and use of official statistics for macroeconomic modelling and analysis.
The work is expected to support Uganda’s participation and co-chair role in the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action, an international initiative that brings together finance ministries to integrate climate considerations into economic and fiscal policies.
The agreement is linked to Denmark’s Strategic Framework for Uganda 2023–2028, Uganda Vision 2040, the Fourth National Development Plan covering financial years 2025/26 to 2029/30, and the Fourth Plan for National Statistical Development.
It also references Uganda’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution and the National Climate Change Act, 2021.
The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs is financing the cooperation through the Strategic Sector Cooperation Programme with Statistics Denmark.
Under the implementation arrangements, the Embassy of Denmark will support coordination, communication and engagement with relevant institutions in Uganda, while Statistics Denmark will provide expertise for agreed activities. UBOS will take institutional ownership of the work and designate a focal point or project manager to coordinate implementation.
The parties will agree on specific programmes, projects and activities under the framework and periodically assess the effectiveness of their cooperation. They intend to review priorities over medium-term periods of three to five years.
The MoU provides a general framework for cooperation, with any financial arrangements subject to the respective laws, regulations and policies of the parties.
The agreement marks a new step in Uganda-Denmark cooperation, with official statistics positioned as a tool for improving development planning, economic analysis and evidence-based policymaking.