Ugandan Revenue Authority seizes 10 tons of smuggled wheat flour from Kenya

The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has impounded a Fuso truck carrying 10 tons of smuggled wheat flour from Kenya, according to officials, who say this is part of a growing wave of illicit trade across the eastern border.

Monitor has learned from URA sources that more than 100 tons of smuggled wheat flour have been intercepted in the last quarter alone as smugglers exploit the region's vast and porous borderlines.

The eastern Uganda-Kenya border stretches over 800 kilometres, with long, unmanned and informal crossing points that make surveillance difficult.

URA officials say smugglers have taken full advantage of these weaknesses, often using remote routes to sneak goods into the country.

Mr Moses Wanjala Owino, the URA Manager for Enforcement and Border Control in the eastern region, confirmed that the truck, registration number UAV 196P, was impounded on Friday in Kapchorwa.

“It was smuggling wheat flour from the Kapchorwa side, and it had over 10 tons of wheat flour. When you look at our statistics, in the last quarter alone, we have intercepted wheat flour in excess of 100 tons that was trying to come in illegally through different borders,” Mr Wanjala said.

He added that the vast, unprotected border terrain continues to frustrate enforcement efforts.

“Our border is porous from Lake Victoria to Karamoja. All those areas lack a natural barrier, such as a river cutting through, and this poses a significant challenge. There is also hostility from some border communities that disrupts our teams in trying to enforce the law. They don’t use gazetted border points; most times they pass via ungazetted routes that are not manned,” he said.

Mr Wanjala noted that wheat flour is not the only commodity being smuggled into Uganda.

“Besides wheat, the other items smuggled in large quantities include rice, garments, and, of late, mobile phones,” he said.

Despite the challenges, he insisted that URA will continue to fight smuggling aggressively, describing it as a serious threat to Uganda’s economy.

“Smuggling brings unfair competition, where people who have smuggled goods compete with someone who is paying taxes. It distorts the market and affects the operation of local industries that cannot produce at full capacity,” he said.

Local business owners say the impact has already been devastating.

Mr James Opolot, who runs a hardware retail shop in Malaba, warned that traders may be forced out of business altogether if authorities do not curb the influx of illegal goods.

“Currently, cement from Kenya is being ferried directly to construction sites, leaving us without customers, especially in the porous points in Buteba Sub-county in Busia District,” he said.

He added that his daily sales have dropped drastically.

“Initially, on good days, I would make sales of at worst 200 bags, but currently I hardly sell even 10 bags in a day,” he said.

In Namisindwa District, businessman Mr Amos Mafabi said smugglers use a wide range of transport methods—including bicycles, motorcycles, and vans—to move goods such as wheat flour, rice, and cement.

“For example, a bicycle boda boda can carry three 50kg bags of cement, a motorcycle can carry five, and vans can load as many as they can. This has to stop,” he said.