On October 18, Okere City flagged off a 40-foot container carrying 23 metric tonnes of premium Nilotica shea butter destined for the United States of America.

The shipment, produced by Okere Shea Cooperative Society Limited, will be supplied to Forested and Bansk Beauty, two international partners supporting the growing market for Uganda’s unique Nilotica shea butter.

This milestone marks Okere City’s second major export to the United States, following its inaugural shipment of just 9 metric tonnes in 2025.

Within one year, the cooperative has more than doubled its export volume, demonstrating the enormous potential of Northern Uganda’s shea industry to compete in international markets.

Behind this historic achievement are the hardworking hands of 1,000 rural women from Agago and Otuke districts.

These women collected and supplied approximately 50 metric tonnes of shea nuts, which were transformed into 23 metric tonnes of premium-quality Nilotica shea butter through the cooperative’s processing facility at Okere City in Otuke district.

For these women, shea is more than a tree or a seasonal source of income. It represents an opportunity to educate their children, provide food for their families, improve household livelihoods, and participate meaningfully in an increasingly valuable international industry.

Okere says the achievement has not come easily. When Okere City began its journey in 2019, the ambition was to demonstrate that rural communities could become centres of innovation, production, and economic prosperity, rather than remaining dependent on charity and external assistance.

Through years of hard work, investment in processing equipment, farmer mobilisation, capacity building, quality assurance, and the development of international market relationships, that vision is gradually becoming a reality.

The journey has involved enormous challenges, including inadequate infrastructure, limited access to affordable financing, high production and transportation costs, unreliable electricity, and the demanding quality standards of international markets.

Yet the cooperative has continued to move forward, driven by a firm conviction that rural women, when organised and supported, can produce world-class products capable of competing anywhere in the world.

Speaking about the milestone, Okere City founder and Chief Executive Officer, Ojok Okello, reflected on the significance of the achievement: “This is not simply a container of shea butter leaving Northern Uganda for America. It is a container carrying the hard work, sacrifices, hopes, and determination of 1,000 rural women.

“Every kilogram represents a woman who woke up early to collect shea nuts, a family working towards a better future, and a community refusing to be defined by poverty. We are demonstrating that world-class products can come from rural Northern Uganda,” Ojok added.

Transforming northern Uganda’s dhea economy

Northern Uganda is home to the prized Nilotica shea tree, whose butter is increasingly valued in international cosmetics and skincare markets for its distinctive properties.

However, for generations, much of the economic potential of this natural resource has remained underdeveloped, with rural women often earning relatively little from the collection and sale of raw shea nuts.

Okere Shea Cooperative is working to change this reality by connecting rural women directly to organised markets while investing in local processing and value addition.

Instead of exporting unprocessed shea nuts, the cooperative produces premium shea butter locally, creating employment, retaining more economic value within Northern Uganda, and strengthening the region’s participation in global value chains.

The cooperative’s growing export business also demonstrates how environmental conservation can go hand in hand with economic development.

By creating commercial value for shea products, Okere City is providing communities with stronger economic incentives to protect existing shea trees, plant new seedlings, and sustainably manage Northern Uganda’s precious shea landscape.

From a small rural village to international markets

What makes this achievement particularly significant is that the shea butter has been produced in Okere, a rural community in Otuke district, far from Uganda’s major industrial centres.

Okere City was established on the belief that rural communities possess the knowledge, resources, creativity, and determination necessary to shape their own development.

Through its integrated approach to education, agriculture, healthcare, renewable energy, environmental conservation, and enterprise development, Okere City is building a model of community-led rural transformation.

Revenue generated through shea butter production and other enterprises contributes to this broader vision of building a thriving and self-reliant rural economy.

For Okere City, therefore, the export is not only a commercial achievement: it is evidence that investment in rural communities can unlock opportunities previously considered beyond their reach.

A call to farmers, government and development partners

As the cooperative celebrates this milestone, Okere City is calling upon farmers across the Lango and Acholi sub-regions to recognise the growing economic value of the Nilotica shea tree.

Farmers are encouraged to conserve mature shea trees, plant more seedlings, embrace sustainable harvesting practices, and organise themselves into producer groups capable of accessing better markets.

The cooperative is also calling for greater investment in rural agro-processing, affordable financing, renewable energy, transport infrastructure, and value-chain development to enable more Ugandan products to reach international markets.

Also read: Okere City recognised ‘best cultural tourism destination in the country’

“Our message to the young people and women of Northern Uganda is simple: do not underestimate what can emerge from our villages. We may face enormous challenges, but with determination, organisation, hard work, and the right partnerships, we can build enterprises that serve the world.

“Our rural communities are not places without a future. They are places where the future can be created,” Okello emphasised.

A new chapter of hope

With export volumes rising from 9 metric tonnes in 2025 to 23 metric tonnes in 2026, Okere Shea Cooperative has demonstrated that its ambitions are being translated into tangible results.

The latest shipment represents a 156% increase in export volume, a major step towards establishing Northern Uganda as a reliable source of premium Nilotica shea butter for international markets.

But beyond the impressive figures, the greatest achievement lies in the opportunities being created for rural women, the jobs supported through local processing, and the growing confidence that Northern Uganda can build a competitive, inclusive, and sustainable shea economy.

From the shea parklands of Agago and Otuke, to the beauty and skincare markets of the United States, Okere City’s story is one of perseverance, possibility, and the extraordinary power of ordinary rural people working together.

The export demonstrates Okere’s transformative power of rural enterprise.