UTA is the umbrella body of tea companies and individuals who are in the business of growing, processing and trading in tea in Uganda. It was established in 1948 as a voluntary association to discuss common problems affecting the tea industry and find solutions. UTA went into hibernation when most of the owners of the estates left the country in 1972 and in 1973 the Government put in place the Uganda Tea Authority. The Tea Authority was charged with both the duties of producing and marketing Uganda`s tea. With the change in Government policies and the return of the tea estates to their original owners the need arose to revive the Association.
Hence in the 1990’s members came together and created a secretariat which was manned by officials from the then Uganda Tea Authority, they later realized that there was a need to separate the two organizations and this culminated into the appointment of a full time Executive Secretary following the re-registration of the association as a private company limited by guarantee in July, 1999. For all the years till 1999 the voluntary association had not been registered. UTA is now a Non-Profit Organization registered as Company Limited by guarantee. It is a Membership organization comprising key stakeholders along the Tea value chain. UTA plays a crucial role in strengthening the country`s tea sector, collaborating and coordinating, advocating and addressing critical challenges and for the interests of its members. UTA collects, collates and circulates production and trade statistics and information on tea.
Tea growing in Uganda was introduced by the British Government from India in 1900 and
commercial cultivation began in the late 1920s, which developed on private sector large scale
plantation scale.
In 1950s, government setup state-owned tea plantations with processing factories managed by a
government agency; Uganda Development Corporation (UDC).
In 1966, government established a corporation to support smallholder tea growing. Uganda Tea
Growers Corporation (UTGC) was established with an act of parliament to promote smallholder
tea growing and construction of tea processing factories to serve these farmers.
Following political upheavals between 1966 and 1986, there was a drastic degradation of
investments in the tea sub-sector. A number of tea plantations converted to tropical rainforests
with many tea processing factories and associated infrastructure ending dilapidated.
When the current NRM government took over power in 1986, initial tea industry recovery efforts
were invested into rehabilitation of abandoned tea plantations and tea factories. Subsequent
industry development embarked on increasing the industry size with promotion of more tea
acreage from 21,000 hectares in 2001 to the current 44,000 hectares of tea. This was largely
achieved through a strategy of free tea seedlings distribution to smallholder tea farmers.
- To promote the development of the tea industry.
- To promote and encourage joint consultation amongst members on issues of common interest.
- To represent and advocate for the common interest and views of the members.
- To monitor all developments taking place in the country with a bearing on the tea sector , for example government policies and in case they are not conducive for the development of the tea industry, speak out or lobby against them; and on the other hand, support those which are favorable.
- To be a source of credible and accurate statistics and information on the tea sector.
- To foster fair terms and conditions of employment in the tea industry.
- To promote health and safety of the workers, good industrial relations and gender equality and non-discrimination.
