ENTEBBE, Uganda — 11 November 2026. Lesotho has expressed interest in purchasing 20 buses from Uganda’s Kiira Motors Corporation, while President Yoweri Museveni has pledged five additional vehicles, following talks at State House Entebbe on 10 November.
The State House account of the meeting describes a proposal to be facilitated through Uganda’s foreign affairs ministry and Kiira. It does not disclose a contract value, payment arrangement or delivery date.
Has Lesotho completed a purchase of Kiira buses? Uganda has announced Lesotho’s interest in purchasing 20 buses and Museveni’s pledge of five more. The announcement establishes a proposed transaction and a donation commitment; it does not provide a signed procurement contract, agreed price, delivery timetable or evidence that vehicles have been supplied.
Twenty proposed purchases, five pledged vehicles
Lesotho’s Foreign Affairs and International Relations Minister, Limpho Justice Tau, carried a message from Prime Minister Ntsokoane Samuel Matekane to Museveni. The message conveyed the government’s interest in buying Uganda-made buses to address transport needs.
Museveni directed Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Haruna Kyeyune Kasolo to work with Kiira to facilitate the purchase. Uganda Broadcasting Corporation’s report confirms the distinction between the 20 proposed purchases and the separate five-bus pledge.
Together, those quantities would amount to 25 vehicles if the purchase and donation proceed. They should not yet be counted as delivered buses, export revenue or additional passenger services in Lesotho.
The announcement also leaves the donation’s funding arrangement unspecified. A pledged gift does not establish whether its cost will be met by Uganda’s government, the manufacturer or another financing arrangement. That question matters when assessing the transaction’s commercial return and public cost.
Kiira has a manufacturing base and several bus models
The proposal connects Lesotho’s transport requirements with an existing manufacturing operation in Uganda. Kiira’s vehicle plant is at Jinja Industrial and Business Park.
TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS
Lesotho’s Kiira Bus Proposal: Purchase, Pledge and Next Steps
Nov 11, 2026
Nov 11, 2026
5 min read
Published
Updated:
ENTEBBE, Uganda — 11 November 2026. Lesotho has expressed interest in purchasing 20 buses from Uganda’s Kiira Motors Corporation, while President Yoweri Museveni has pledged five additional vehicles, following talks at State House Entebbe on 10 November.
The State House account of the meeting describes a proposal to be facilitated through Uganda’s foreign affairs ministry and Kiira. It does not disclose a contract value, payment arrangement or delivery date.
Has Lesotho completed a purchase of Kiira buses? Uganda has announced Lesotho’s interest in purchasing 20 buses and Museveni’s pledge of five more. The announcement establishes a proposed transaction and a donation commitment; it does not provide a signed procurement contract, agreed price, delivery timetable or evidence that vehicles have been supplied.
Twenty proposed purchases, five pledged vehicles
Lesotho’s Foreign Affairs and International Relations Minister, Limpho Justice Tau, carried a message from Prime Minister Ntsokoane Samuel Matekane to Museveni. The message conveyed the government’s interest in buying Uganda-made buses to address transport needs.
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Museveni directed Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Haruna Kyeyune Kasolo to work with Kiira to facilitate the purchase. Uganda Broadcasting Corporation’s report confirms the distinction between the 20 proposed purchases and the separate five-bus pledge.
Together, those quantities would amount to 25 vehicles if the purchase and donation proceed. They should not yet be counted as delivered buses, export revenue or additional passenger services in Lesotho.
The announcement also leaves the donation’s funding arrangement unspecified. A pledged gift does not establish whether its cost will be met by Uganda’s government, the manufacturer or another financing arrangement. That question matters when assessing the transaction’s commercial return and public cost.
Kiira has a manufacturing base and several bus models
The proposal connects Lesotho’s transport requirements with an existing manufacturing operation in Uganda. Kiira’s vehicle plant is at Jinja Industrial and Business Park.
In its account of an August ministerial visit, Kiira describes installed production capacity of 2,500 vehicles a year and a portfolio including electric city buses, electric coaches and diesel coaches. Its description covers body production, welding, painting, chassis assembly, finishing and testing.
Installed capacity is a measure of the plant’s stated capability, not the number of buses produced, sold or exported in a particular year. The Lesotho announcement provides no new production total or audited export figure.
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Nor does the existence of electric models establish which vehicles Lesotho will buy. Specifications need to be settled for the intended service: an urban bus, an intercity coach and an institutional vehicle can have different passenger layouts, operating requirements and costs.
Operating support will matter as much as the sale
For Lesotho, the value of a bus purchase would depend on vehicles remaining available for service. Procurement terms would need to address warranties, maintenance, spare parts, technical support and driver preparation, alongside the initial price.
If electric buses are selected, charging equipment, electricity supply and daily route requirements would become part of the operating plan. Kiira’s own August account identifies charging infrastructure, affordable power, route development and fleet maintenance as requirements for expanding electric transport. It does not announce a Lesotho charging programme.
The public proposal also does not identify the eventual operator, routes, fare structure or service-opening date. Consequently, it offers no basis for calculating how many commuters will benefit, how much fares might change or when additional capacity will become available.
These are practical delivery questions rather than reasons to dismiss the proposal. A bus that can be maintained locally and deployed reliably can provide more useful transport than a vehicle whose purchase is announced without a funded operating plan.
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An export opportunity still needs commercial terms
For Uganda, a completed sale could turn manufacturing investment into demand from another African market. That would give Kiira an opportunity to demonstrate its products and support arrangements beyond its domestic customer base.
Pulse Uganda’s coverage also notes that the cost and delivery timing have not been disclosed. Until those terms are published, the proposal cannot support a reliable contract-value estimate or a claim about its profitability.
No job total has been attached to this proposed transaction. Additional employment would depend on production scheduling, existing workforce capacity, component sourcing and the scale of any continuing orders. The five pledged vehicles should likewise remain separate from paid sales when evaluating the arrangement.
The next decisive milestone is a documented purchase arrangement specifying the models, price, financing and delivery obligations. Vehicle acceptance and the start of passenger operations would be subsequent milestones, each providing a clearer measure of what the proposal has delivered for both countries.
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