President Museveni has said the Ugandan government is determined to build a number of upcountry airfields that will help not only tourists but travelers in general as one of the ways to boost tourism.
While addressing investors and trade representatives at the annual Trade Representative Forum (TRF) at State House Entebbe organized by the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID), Museveni described Uganda's climate as the best and favorable for tourists around the world .
"We used to have problems of lack of peace in the past but that stopped long ago. The only issue is now promotion," Museveni said.
"I have already told the government that we need to build more airfields near the national parks. This is because some of the rich people don't have time to come and land at Entebbe and drive 500 miles to Kidepo national park. It's only small people who can manage to do that but the rich people want to come in their private jets, land in the national park and then fly out. So, we shall have to build more hard surface airports in Kidepo, Kasese, Kihiihi, Gulu etc."
According to the chairman of Uganda Tourism Board, Daudi Migereko, prior to the Covid pandemic, tourism was Uganda's number one foreign exchange earner fetching the country 1.6 million dollars and that it had been predicted that Uganda would be among the 10 fastest growing fastest destinations for leisure, travel and spending between the year 2020 and 2026.
"We need to appreciate the fact that we have already lost time with everything and we must pursue everything with urgency. We are fortunate that ever since the president launched our country's destination brand in January 2022, our tourism has been getting very good ratings to unprecedented levels. We have received awards and endorsements from international media houses," Migereko.
Museveni tipped the gathering about the many ways of making money in Uganda especially if one is focused on adding value to the existing raw materials like coffee, milk, cotton, tea, tobacco, fruits, beef, oil seeds, cocoa, bananas, leather, cassava, sugar, etc,.
On minerals, the president said government has already identified investors who are setting up an integrated steel industry for the inland parts of Africa instead of importing steel from other places.
"I think we now have about 4 or 5 factories coming up to produce steel from our good iron ore, phosphates for fertilizers, cement, oil and gas, lithium (we need to produce electric batteries here for electric cars), copper, gold, tin, potassium etc."
He praised PACEID for identifying the gaps in export promotion and involving the young people.
"The other day I was in Gulu district and I saw an exhibition by the young people who are engaged in processing all our precious products for the world market and were ready to support them. I would really like to advise anybody who wants to work in government to understand this. If you do not understand that Uganda must be business oriented, then resign from the government."
The president said that Africa has for long missed out on the global money market with people until recently producing only for home consumption and not for the market. He said the now growing population of Uganda which will be 100 million people in the next 30 years down from the current 43 million is an opportunity for growth.
"Now with the bigger population, competition for economic space increases. You can no longer afford to be laid back because more people now need access to resources. Nobody can compete with us once the people wake up."
The head of state gave an example of milk which until recently was not among the exports.
"My family has been keeping cows for the last 7000 years but my father who was born 1916 and died some years ago, was not involved in the money economy for milk until he was about 80 years old when we commercialized milk in 1989 for the first time. The milk sector has now been commercialized and the production has gone up to 5.3 billion liters per year."
According to the chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID) Odrek Rwabwogo, the meeting focused on strengthening coordination in order to move faster.
"If we're not coordinated in our institutions to deliver these targets, we'll run around, our trade reps will get us orders that we won't be able to fulfill. So, coordination is a lesson we have learnt and that's why we have brought these trade representatives," Rwabwogo said.
The Minister of State for Trade Harriet Ntabazi who presented on trade infrastructure for export growth, said the interaction between government and the private sector will make Uganda a private sector led country, hailing PACEID for driving Uganda's exports.
"We have hit very many markets which are ready to receive our products because of the guidance that we've received from PACEID," Ntabazi said, adding that Uganda's trade trajectory has increased over the years with exports increasing from 2,917 million US dollars in 2013 to now 3,589.4 million in 2021.
The Minister for Agriculture Frank Tumwebaze said his ministry is developing a new approach to production, informed by the market requirements.
"As you open the market for us, just know that we'll not only give you volumes, but we'll also give you quality volumes. We are working out a regulatory system on foods and medicines under one framework so that regulation and fighting of fakes is made easier and when you do that, you contain disease to ensure more rewards to the farmer and eventually exports," Tumwebaze emphasized.
Gen Edward Katumba Wamala the Minister for Works and Transport presented on how key transport infrastructure can drive Uganda's export competitiveness.
He said government is addressing the few pockets of poor road networks which are making goods expensive on the market.
"We have harmonized our laws within the country and the region to support regional trade and to ease movement of goods and services. We are also implementing key infrastructural development like the one stop border posts to facilitate easy movement of goods and services and people between countries," Gen Katumba said.
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He added that as Uganda dreams of exporting 12 million bags of coffee, the government is developing the railway system to move goods across East Africa.
The event organized on the theme: "coordination to drive Uganda's export targets through better trade representation" targeted about 150 participants including exporters, exporter associations, service providers and development partners among others.
It witnessed presentations from among others; Uganda Investment Authority (UIA), Uganda Revenue Authority, Private Sector Foundation Uganda and the Ministry of Finance.
Prof. Jin-sang Lee from the department of technology and society at the University of New York in South Korea presented on the transformation and development of the Korean economy and the lessons and implications for Uganda.
The Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID), was established by President Museveni in 2022 with a key objective to increase Uganda's exports by USD 6 billion in the next five years.
It seeks to improve the approach to selling Ugandan products and services in various markets of the world and identifies key contacts in the markets providing relevant market information on industry, investment, trade, and tourism opportunities.
