Sarrai Group

Sarrai Group, formally referred to as the Sarrai Group of Companies, is a privately owned conglomerate headquartered in Kampala, Uganda. The group operates through a portfolio of subsidiary companies and has business interests extending beyond Uganda into Kenya and Malawi, within a broader East and Southern African footprint. Its activities have included industrial manufacturing, agribusiness and sugar-related operations, and more recently proposed or contracted investments in cement and mining. The group is led by executive group chairman Sarbjit Singh Rai. The business’s background is connected to an Indian-origin family that established commercial interests in Kenya. Sarbjit Singh Rai subsequently moved to Uganda and built the Sarrai Group there, while his cousin Jaswant Rai continued to operate separate sugar businesses in Kenya. The two branches are described as related by family history but operate independently. As of November 2023, the group was described as comprising 11 subsidiary companies. The available reference material does not provide a complete current list of those subsidiaries or a consolidated breakdown of revenue, employees, assets, or market shares. Accordingly, Sarrai Group is best understood as a diversified private holding and operating group rather than as a single consumer-facing product brand. The group has pursued expansion through major industrial transactions. In November 2023, it signed binding documentation to acquire Holcim’s 70 percent interest in Hima Cement Limited, with the reported transaction involving several entities including Bamburi Cement of Kenya. The proposed purchase required regulatory clearances in Switzerland, Kenya, Uganda, and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa. In March 2025, the Ugandan government entered into a public-private partnership with Sarrai Group and its Ugandan subsidiary Nile Fiberboard Limited to redevelop Kilembe Mines. The project is intended to restore copper and cobalt extraction and is expected to create more than 1,000 jobs, although the reference material does not establish the project’s eventual operating status. Sarrai Group’s expansion has also attracted legal and public scrutiny. Its 2021 proposed lease of Kenya’s Mumias Sugar Company was challenged by competing bidders, creditors, farmers, and other parties. Kenyan courts suspended the lease and ultimately canceled the award in April 2022, citing concerns including the treatment of creditors, lack of consultation with the Competition Authority of Kenya, insufficient explanation of debt repayment, and the absence of a feasibility study. The group has also been associated in the reference material with controversy over alleged evictions connected to a Ugandan subsidiary; those allegations prompted a Commission of Inquiry, but the available material does not provide a final determination. The group has been invited to participate in industrial or agricultural partnerships outside its established markets. In December 2023, Burundi’s head of state announced an intended partnership between Sarrai Group and Société Sucrière du Moso, or SOSUMO, under which Burundi would provide sugar-cane plantations and Sarrai would contribute other capital. In April 2024, however, SOSUMO’s managing director said that the partnership remained at the asset-assessment and negotiation stage and disputed an announced start date. The episode illustrates the group’s regional expansion ambitions while also showing that some announced projects remained subject to negotiation and implementation conditions.

Sarrai Group developed from the commercial activities of an Indian-origin family that established businesses in Kenya. The father of Sarbjit Singh Rai, who later became the group’s executive chairman, migrated from India and built businesses in Kenya. His brother, Tarlochan Singh Rai, also established a separate chain of businesses there. After the two brothers died, their sons expanded and diversified their respective enterprises, but the two family branches continued to operate independently. Sarbjit Singh Rai moved to Uganda and established Sarrai Group there. The group grew as a privately controlled business with a diversified portfolio and a regional orientation. Its operations have included businesses associated with agribusiness, sugar, industrial manufacturing, and other sectors. By November 2023, the group was described as having 11 subsidiary companies, although the available reference does not provide a complete subsidiary-by-subsidiary profile. The group’s regional ambitions became particularly visible through its attempt to enter Kenya’s distressed sugar industry. In December 2021, Sarrai Group was selected for a proposed lease of Mumias Sugar Company, which was under receivership. The award was immediately contested in the Kenyan courts by another bidder. The litigation raised questions about the tender process, the relative bids, the interests of creditors, regulatory approval, and the treatment of former employees and residents of company housing. Additional suits followed in early 2022, including claims by farmers, competing sugar companies, creditors, and other affected parties. The Kenyan High Court suspended the lease process and later canceled the award on 14 April 2022. The court cited the failure to adequately consider creditors, consult the Competition Authority of Kenya, explain how Mumias would repay its obligations, and conduct a feasibility study. It directed that the lease process begin again under a new administrator and in consultation with secured and unsecured creditors. The episode became the group’s most prominent public controversy in the available reference material. In November 2023, Sarrai Group pursued a major move into cement by signing binding documentation to acquire Holcim’s 70 percent interest in Hima Cement Limited. The transaction was structured through several subsidiaries, including Bamburi Cement of Kenya, and required regulatory approvals in Switzerland, Kenya, Uganda, and COMESA. The reference material does not confirm the transaction’s final completion. The group also explored regional agricultural and industrial cooperation with Burundi. On 29 December 2023, Burundi’s head of state announced an intended partnership with Société Sucrière du Moso, known as SOSUMO. The proposed arrangement would have Burundi provide sugar-cane plantations while Sarrai Group supplied other capital. In April 2024, SOSUMO’s managing director stated that the parties were still assessing SOSUMO’s assets and negotiating the terms, indicating that the announced partnership had not yet reached an operational start at that point. In March 2025, Uganda entered into a public-private partnership with Sarrai Group and its Ugandan subsidiary Nile Fiberboard Limited to redevelop Kilembe Mines. The intended project involves reopening the mine and extracting copper and cobalt, with profits to be shared with two Ugandan government ministries. The project was expected to employ more than 1,000 Ugandans. The available material does not establish whether commercial production had begun or whether all project conditions had been fulfilled.

• 2025

  Kilembe Mines redevelopment agreement signed

  [1]Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Uganda signed a public-private partnership with Sarrai Group and Nile Fiberboard Limited to redevelop Kilembe Mines for copper and cobalt extraction.

• 2023

  Group described as having 11 subsidiaries

  [1]Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org

  As of November 2023, reference material described Sarrai Group as comprising 11 subsidiary companies.

• 2023

  Hima Cement acquisition documentation signed

  [1]Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sarrai Group signed binding documentation to acquire Holcim’s 70 percent interest in Hima Cement, subject to regulatory approvals.

• 2022

  Mumias Sugar lease award canceled

  [1]Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The Kenyan High Court canceled the lease award and ordered that the leasing process be restarted under a new administrator.

• 2021

  Sarrai Group selected for proposed Mumias Sugar lease

  [1]Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The group was selected for a proposed lease of Kenya’s Mumias Sugar Company, an award that was promptly challenged in court.

• Sarbjit Singh Rai establishes the Ugandan group

  [1]Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sarbjit Singh Rai moved from the family’s Kenyan commercial background to Uganda, where he established Sarrai Group as a separate privately controlled business.

A diversified, privately controlled East and Southern African industrial conglomerate focused on operating businesses, regional expansion, and investments in agribusiness, manufacturing, construction materials, and mining.

• Agribusiness and food processing

  Sugar and sugar-related operations

  Sugar-related activities are among the group’s publicly documented areas of interest. The group attempted to lease Mumias Sugar Company in Kenya and has also been discussed in connection with a proposed partnership with Burundi’s Société Sucrière du Moso. The available material does not specify a complete list of sugar brands or packaged consumer products sold by Sarrai Group.

• Construction materials · 2023

  Cement

  Sarrai Group entered the cement sector through its proposed acquisition of Holcim’s 70 percent interest in Hima Cement Limited. The transaction was documented in 2023 and required multiple regulatory approvals. The reference material does not confirm whether the acquisition was completed.

• Industrial manufacturing

  Fiberboard

  Nile Fiberboard Limited is identified as a Ugandan subsidiary of Sarrai Group and a participant in the Kilembe Mines redevelopment agreement. The available reference does not provide detailed information about its fiberboard products, production capacity, or markets.

• Mining · 2025

  Copper and cobalt

  Through the 2025 public-private partnership concerning Kilembe Mines, Sarrai Group is expected to participate in reopening the mine and extracting copper and cobalt. The project is also expected to create more than 1,000 jobs, but the available source does not confirm commercial production.

• 2021

  Mumias Sugar lease controversy

  Sarrai Group’s selection for a proposed lease of Mumias Sugar Company was challenged by competing bidders and other parties in Kenya. The litigation alleged problems in the tender process and raised issues involving creditors, regulatory approval, farmers, and former employees. The Kenyan High Court suspended the lease and canceled the award in April 2022.

  Source

• Alleged evictions linked to a Ugandan subsidiary

  The reference material associates a Sarrai Group subsidiary with alleged eviction of approximately 5,000 people from ancestral land in Uganda. The allegations prompted a Commission of Inquiry. The available material does not provide the inquiry’s final findings or a definitive legal disposition.

  Source

Read more

• 2023Proposed SOSUMO partnership

  Burundi · Uganda

  Burundi announced an intended partnership between Sarrai Group and Société Sucrière du Moso to expand sugar production. Burundi was expected to provide cane plantations while Sarrai Group supplied other capital.

  Outcome. The partnership had not begun by April 2024 according to SOSUMO’s managing director, who said that asset assessment and negotiations were still in progress.

  Source

• 2025

  Participate in Kilembe Mines redevelopmentStrategy

  Background

  Uganda sought private-sector investment to reopen Kilembe Mines and restore copper and cobalt extraction.

  Action taken

  Uganda signed a public-private partnership with Sarrai Group and Nile Fiberboard Limited for redevelopment of the mine.

  Aftermath

  The project was expected to employ more than 1,000 Ugandans and share profits with two Ugandan government ministries. The source does not confirm production or project completion.

  Source

• 2023

  Pursue acquisition of Hima CementM&A

  Background

  Sarrai Group sought to expand into cement and construction materials by acquiring Holcim’s 70 percent interest in Hima Cement Limited.

  Action taken

  The group signed binding documentation for the purchase through several subsidiaries, including Bamburi Cement of Kenya.

  Aftermath

  The transaction required regulatory approvals in Switzerland, Kenya, Uganda, and COMESA. Completion is not confirmed in the available reference.

  Source

• 2023

  Explore Burundi sugar-sector partnershipStrategy

  Background

  Burundi sought external capital and technical or operational support for its sugar industry and proposed cooperation with Sarrai Group.

  Action taken

  The announced arrangement contemplated Burundi supplying sugar-cane plantations while Sarrai Group provided other capital for cooperation with SOSUMO.

  Aftermath

  As of April 2024, SOSUMO said the parties were still assessing assets and negotiating terms, so an operational launch was not established.

  Source

1. 1Sarrai Groupen.wikipedia.org