Henry Mukasa and David Muwanga
4 October 2008
Kampala — GOVERNMENT regulation is the solution to the international economic crisis that has hit the world markets, President Yoweri Museveni said on Friday night.
"In the US, they have a problem. They are in a big financial crisis. Why? Because regulation was relaxed."
The President, who was addressing traders assembled at Imperial Royale Hotel for the 9th President's Export Award, said financial groups giving out loans without security and firms paying exorbitant salaries partly contributed to the crisis.
"Even here, the regulation must be looked at," Museveni said. He gave an example of over-fishing which has affected Uganda's fish stocks.
On his recent trip to Iceland, a country dependent on fish exports, he said he learned that there were strict regulations on fishing.
"Every boat is registered and monitored. Every fish you catch is monitored. You cannot have investments without regulations. The telecom sector was regulated and is doing well. The same thing should happen in other sectors."
Picfare Group of Companies won the Platinum Exporter of the Year Award while British American Tobacco (BAT) won the Diamond Award.
Picfare was chosen for its value addition, its social responsibility programme, its innovation and because it tops exports to the East African region.
BAT was rewarded for being the number one foreign exchange earner from exports, amounting to $60.5m a year.
"I congratulate BAT but I don't spoil myself with smoking. However, I can't plot a Jihad against BAT," a jovial Museveni said.
The President asked the investors already in Uganda to be patient while the Government is removing the bottlenecks for doing business in Uganda.
He singled out the current power shortage, poor road infrastructure and a poor railway link to the sea as some of the factors making businesses less competitive. Bureaucrats, politicians and donors, he said, were to blame for some of the delays in sorting out the problems.
The Government was exploring various sources of energy and would soon be making diesel and kerosene from its oil resources in Hoima, he explained.
He also reminded the audience that $700m had been earmarked for roads this year, a faster broad-band Internet connection was in the making and the realway line to Mombasa was going to be worked on jointly with Kenya.
"Once we do that successfully, these business people don't need lectures. They know how to smell money," Museveni said.
"The bureaucrats and the political class don't know. They are the ones who need lectures."
He promised new investors that they would be supported through the Uganda Investment Authority Research Institute.
He also asked them to take advantage of the 22 industrial parks the Government was constructing throughout the country.
Executive Director of the Uganda Export Promotion Board, Florence Kato, said that Uganda's exports experienced remarkable growth in 2007, with export in merchandise growing by 39%.
She, however, noted that the country was still experiencing a $2.1b deficit between its exports and imports.
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