Assessing Uganda’s Trade with the European Union: Trade Intensity, Export Structure, and Comparative Advantages
Ľubica ZUBAĽOVÁ – Natália KABÁTOVÁ
https://doi.org/10.18267/pr.2026.vol.2587.38
Abstract: The European Union is Uganda’s second-largest export market and an important destination for an LDC economy that remains weakly integrated into global trade and heavily dependent on agricultural exports. This paper assesses the evolution of Uganda–EU trade relations in 2013–2024 by examining trade intensity, the bilateral revealed comparative advantage of Ugandan exports to the EU, the structure of traded goods, and selected trade obstacles. The analysis is based on quantitative foreign-trade data processed through the Trade Intensity Index (TII) and the Bilateral Revealed Comparative Advantage Index (BRCA), complemented by qualitative evidence on trade barriers. The results show that although Uganda–EU trade has grown, especially since 2020, bilateral trade intensity remains weak. Uganda’s export structure is still dominated by low-value-added agricultural commodities, and the main comparative advantages are concentrated in primary products. The findings suggest that preferential access under the Everything but Arms scheme has not, by itself, led to structural export upgrading, which underscores the importance of domestic value addition, trade facilitation, and preparedness for EUDR-related compliance.
Keywords: Uganda–EU trade, trade intensity, bilateral revealed comparative advantage, Everything but Arms, EUDR
JEL Classification codes: F13, F14, O24
Fulltext: PDF
Published by: Prague University of Economics and Business, Oeconomica Publishing House
Year of publication: 2026
Online publication date: 20 May 2026
Copyright: Authors of the papers
ISBN 978-80-245-2587-7
ISSN 2453-6113
Pages 451-465