JRS Uganda Opens Market Platform for Refugee Entrepreneurs

On September 25 and 26, Kampala will host an unusual kind of marketplace. The Jesuit Refugee Service Uganda is opening its doors at the Nsambya offices for what it calls Open Days—a two-day exhibition designed to let refugee entrepreneurs and people completing vocational training show what they've built. The event is free and open to anyone who walks through.

The setup is straightforward but deliberate. Former trainees who have turned skills learned through JRS programmes into actual businesses will display their work and explain how they got there. Current students will demonstrate what they're learning in real time. The products span fashion and design, arts and crafts, catering, and other ventures. There will be African cuisine, music, and cultural performances woven through the day.

But the exhibition is not just a market stall. JRS has invited prospective customers, banks, private companies, and development organisations to attend. The goal is connection—the kind that might outlast the weekend. Ami-Adolphe Mudekereza, the communications officer for JRS across Eastern and Southern Africa, framed it plainly: the Open Days are meant to help people understand who JRS is, what it does, and what difference its programmes actually make. "It will also showcase the skills, talents, resilience and initiatives of refugees and host communities, while strengthening partnerships and connections," he said.

The timing matters. Uganda hosts one of the world's largest refugee populations, and economic integration remains one of the hardest problems to solve. JRS has been working on it since 1993, running education and livelihood programmes in Kampala and Adjumani, alongside mental health support, basic assistance, and peacebuilding work. The organisation itself was founded in 1980 by the Society of Jesus to accompany and advocate for displaced people. Its current country director, Fr Paul Kalenzi, carries the weight of that mission personally—his own family was displaced during Idi Amin's rule and spent time as refugees in Nairobi.

The Open Days are positioned as a platform for a larger conversation. Beyond the two days, JRS sees an opportunity to expand what's possible for displaced people: better access to customers, stronger business networks, and pathways to financial support. Other entrepreneurs, companies, and community organisations have been invited to register as exhibitors too, broadening the network effect. The hours are 9am to 5pm on the 25th and 11am to 5pm on the 26th.

What makes this initiative worth watching is that it treats refugee entrepreneurs not as charity cases but as business people with products and skills worth buying. The visibility matters—many refugee-led enterprises operate in the margins, unknown to potential customers or investors who might otherwise support them. A two-day exhibition won't solve the structural barriers to capital and market access that displaced people face. But it creates a moment where those barriers become visible, and where the people who might help bridge them can actually meet the people doing the work.