Ubombo Sugar retains top global ABF award

UBOMBO Sugar Limited has been named ABF Sugar Business of the Year for 2025/26, winning the division’s top award for the second year in a row.

The award was presented by ABF Sugar Chief Executive Officer Paul Kenward during the division’s annual Leadership Conference, which began on Tuesday and concluded yesterday. It was attended by 120 senior managers and executives from the group’s operations in Africa and Europe.

Ubombo Sugar also won the award at the 2025 conference held in the Drakensberg, South Africa.

The company’s latest achievement places it ahead of other ABF Sugar businesses operating in Eswatini, South Africa, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, the United Kingdom and Spain.

The annual awards recognise performance in areas such as financial results, farming, factory operations, leadership, staff development, safety, stakeholder relations and environmental, social and governance matters.

Ubombo Sugar also performed well in several other categories. It was runner-up in the Engagement and Advocacy Excellence Award and the Safety Excellence Award. It also secured third place in the Factory Performance, Agricultural Performance and People and Performance awards.

Ubombo Sugar Managing Director (MD) Muzi Siyaya said winning the award for a second consecutive year was a great honour, especially as the company faced difficult operating and market conditions.

He said: “This achievement is particularly significant because we have had to navigate exceptionally challenging operating and market conditions while simultaneously executing a major SZL 2.8 billion capital investment programme.” Siyaya said the investment programme involved expanding the sugar factory and developing a 40-megawatt electricity generation plant.

He added that managing these projects while continuing to run the business had made the achievement more meaningful.

The investment programme consists of two major projects. The first is a E1.3 billion factory expansion aimed at increasing sugar milling capacity. It will also allow the company to process more sugarcane produced by smallholder farmers under the Lower Usuthu Smallholder Irrigation Project Phase II (LUSIP II).

The second project is a E1.5 billion electricity generation plant with a capacity of 40 Megawatts. The plant is scheduled to be commissioned in June, 2028.

Siyaya said the award was a reflection of the hard work, discipline and commitment of the company’s employees. He also highlighted the importance of winning against established businesses within the international group.

“I am immensely proud of Team Ubombo. This recognition belongs to every employee whose dedication continues to make our success possible,” he said.

The recognition comes at a time when the sugar industry continues to navigate significant challenges, including depressed international sugar prices, rising input costs and increasing pressure on margins. Against this backdrop, Ubombo Sugar has maintained its focus on operational excellence, cost management discipline, people development and the execution of its long-term strategic priorities. The company, which employs approximately 3 500 people at peak, is one of the country’s major agro-industrial businesses and plays a significant role in the country’s agricultural economy, manufacturing sector and renewable energy industry. Its latest recognition further underlines the ability of Eswatini-based businesses and their people to compete successfully and excel within major multinational corporations.