UDB backs Rwenzori Marathon as Event Attracts 8K Runners

August 11, 2026 in Companies by Editor

UDB has committed UGX20 million to the 2026 Tusker Lite Rwenzori Marathon, highlighting the growing investment potential of tourism in the Rwenzori sub-region while organisers point to persistent gaps in accommodation and tourism infrastructure.

 

Uganda Development Bank (UDB) has committed UGXs20 million to the 2026 Tusker Lite Rwenzori Marathon, as attention turns to the investment opportunities and infrastructure constraints exposed by the fast-growing tourism event.

The marathon, scheduled for August 22 in Kasese District, is expected to attract about 8,000 runners from 27 countries, according to organisers, creating demand for accommodation, transport and other tourism services in the Rwenzori sub-region.

UDB Managing Director Dr Patricia Ojangole handed over the sponsorship cheque to marathon Team Lead Amos Wekesa at the bank’s Kampala headquarters on Tuesday.

The bank will also field a team of staff in this year’s race, its second sponsorship of the event and the third year its employees have participated as runners.

Joshua Allan Mwesiga, UDB’s Director of Strategy and Corporate Affairs, said the bank’s interest in the marathon is linked to tourism’s potential to generate foreign exchange and support wider economic activity.

“We are supporting the marathon because we believe tourism is a key foreign exchange earner for the country and by supporting the sector, we are supporting Uganda’s growth,” Mwesiga said.

He said UDB was interested in helping diversify Uganda’s tourism offering beyond conventional attractions by supporting experiential tourism, including cultural, heritage and culinary tourism.

But the growing popularity of the Rwenzori Marathon is also highlighting some of the physical investment gaps that continue to constrain tourism in destinations outside Uganda’s main tourism corridors.

Mwesiga identified accommodation, enabling infrastructure, specialised tourism vehicles and skills development among areas requiring further investment.

Wekesa said the accommodation shortage is already evident in Kasese, where hotels are routinely overbooked ahead of the marathon.

“For those looking to invest in the tourism sector, Uganda Development Bank is an essential partner to engage given the Bank’s low interest rates,” he said.

The investment case is being strengthened by the marathon’s growing international profile. This year’s event has received World Athletics Label Road Race status, making it the first marathon in Uganda and only the third in East Africa to receive the international designation.

The status could further increase the event’s attractiveness to international runners while giving Ugandan athletes an avenue to compete in a race recognised within the global athletics system.

For the Rwenzori region, however, the larger economic opportunity may lie beyond the race itself.

Wekesa said the marathon had become an opportunity to draw investment into the sub-region, noting that Kasese leaders had held several discussions on how to develop the district, with UDB participating in those engagements.