Convention 2014 – Uganda-UK Convention

01/09/2020

Flash Back: New Vision interview: We have convinced our people to invest back home – UK convention boss

As the Ugandan community in the United Kingdom (UK) prepares to get together for the annual Uganda Convention-UK in September this year, Sebidde Kiryowa speaks to Willy Mutenza, the chairman and founder of the Convention about the expectations, benefits for Uganda, challenges and way forward for the convention that is now in its fourth year.

What is the Uganda-UK Convention?

The primary objective of the Convention was to create a platform for the Ugandans in the Diaspora, the government, various kingdoms, and the private sector to open doors on opportunities, and also to meet, network and build mutually beneficial business relations with each other.

The secondary objective is to harness the tremendous skills and expertise, as well as the financial, socio-political and cultural capital of the Ugandan Diaspora with a view to promote economic and infrastructural development back in Uganda.

The Uganda UK Convention provides the ideal avenue to exchange views and network amongst Ugandans in the Diaspora on matters of common interest and concern to them.

The Convention also helps the Government of Uganda to better understand and appreciate the expectations of the Ugandan Diaspora community and more importantly, acknowledge the key role they play in Uganda’s efforts to acquire its rightful place in the community of nations. It also promotes Uganda and East Africa as a favoured investment destination in Africa.

How and when did the convention come about?

The idea to organise a convention was initiated in 2005 after a few of us in the UK expressed our concerns on the animosity, unpatriotic views and disenchantment that was too often expressed in the Ugandan community in the UK by people who mostly convened to discuss non-development politics.

We thought that something needed to be done to help Ugandans in the Diaspora to be more inclusive in the development of the country rather than being passive politicians.

Following these thoughts, the convention has now become a platform to offer participants – private individuals and business leaders, the opportunity to access vast investment and business opportunities presented on the day by experts from Uganda and abroad.

Where is the current convention going to take place and what is the theme? Who is organizing it?

The fourth Uganda Convention will take place on the 13th Sept 2014 at the Troxy.

Source: http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/656909-we-have-convinced-our-people-to-invest-back-home-uk-convention-boss.html

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09/05/2020

2014 Flash Back: Concept on harnessing economic power from financial remittances and human resource potential of Ugandans abroad

by Hon. Amongin Aporu Christine Hellen Minister Of State For Teso Affairs

DISCUSSION WITH SELECTED DIASPORA GROUP AT UGANDA HIGH COMMISSION, LONDON – FRIDAY OCTOBER 10, 2014 AT 10.00 AM

Ugandans in Diaspora Financial Remittances to Uganda
Introduction
Present Situation
Benefits from Remittances from Diaspora
Challenges
Way forward

Streamline and formalize remittances from Ugandan in Diaspora
Application of the remittances – Investment vis-à-vis consumption expenditure

INTRODUCTION

Since the 1990s, Uganda has enjoyed strong and impressive gross domestic product (GDP) growth supported by prudent macroeconomic management. However, although Uganda registered 7.1% growth in GDP in fiscal year 2008/09, this was below the projected growth of 8.9%. Furthermore, analysis at sectoral level reveals differences in performance, notably the poor performance of the coffee sub-sector, resulting in an overall poor performance by the cash crop sector. The drastic deceleration of the construction sub-sector had impacts for the overall performance of the industry sector. The agriculture sector grew, although from a low base. Studies have shown that Uganda seems to have emerged from its vulnerability to the second-round effects of the mid 2007-2009 global financial crisis without serious damage to its financial sector relative to Kenya with the main pillar being through the balance of payments. Specifically, the main transmission channels which cushioned Uganda against the crisis have included trade, private capital flows, private transfers and aid.

Remittances

Aid

International remittances have become a major source of external development finance, and have been found to be relatively more stable and more dependable than other forms of foreign-exchange inflows such as Portfolio Equity (PE), Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Overseas Development Assistance (ODA), and may even counter a financial crisis in the economy in times of economic recession.

The flow of remittances to developing countries including Uganda has attracted increasing attention because of the volume and impact on the receiving countries. According to a 2011 Report of the African Development Bank, between 2000 and 2010, individuals living outside their countries grew from 175 to 215 million people worldwide, representing 3.2% of the world’s population. According to the Bank, in 2010, official recorded remittances received amounted to US$ 293 billion, exceeding total official development aid (US$90 billion), and amounted to roughly sixty-three per cent of foreign direct investment inflows (US$463 billion) received by developing countries in that year. Very often however, the remittances’ transfers are backed by self-interest motives.

Uganda, like many countries the world over, face a lot of unprecedented economic turbulences as a result of fall in commodity prices (such as oil and other petroleum products, coffee, steel, gold and wheat), civil conflict and wars, crop and livestock loss as natural disasters. These countries must cope with such shocks as they affect the national wealth, the government’s future financial plans and the growth of the economy. They do this by relying on external financial flows in times when they experience these transitory income shocks.

As part of a private welfare system, remittances transfer purchasing power and help to reduce poverty, smooth consumption, affect labour supply, provide working capital and can have multiplier effects through increased spending.

The questions are: 1) Are remittances a buffer and stable for the Ugandan economy? 2) Do remittances have a stabilizing impact for the Ugandan economy? and 3) Can remittances propel the economy in the direction of its overall development goal?

From the macroeconomic perspective, international remittances constitute a major source of foreign exchange, influence the national balance of payments, and represent a substantial share of the gross domestic product in many countries hence Uganda too.

The remittances help Uganda to narrow the gap of economic standing and disparities between its economy and that of other countries. According to the African Development Bank, remittances have been known to exceed official aid transfers in some regions and act as a buffer from economic shocks.

However, international remittances, in general, can render the citizens vulnerable to changes in global economic shocks if spent on unproductive investment and short-term consumption gains.

There are three broad sectoral areas of potential investment are 1) agriculture, forestry and fisheries 2) industry; and 3) services

Under stable world prices, remittances will serve as a macroeconomic stabilizer to smooth out large fluctuations in the national income observed over different phases of the business cycles. The stability of these inflows also opens up an opportunity for developing countries to lower borrowing costs in international capital markets by securitizing future flows of remittances.

For the majority of the larger economies examined by the African Development Bank, the investment motive of remittances is stronger than the altruistic motive. By this motive, a more stable economic environment is created.

Civil conflicts, high levels of unemployment, poor governance, weak regulatory frameworks and institutions are some of the factors together among others that have resulted in high levels of poverty and general economic deprivation leading to regular and consistent migration of both skilled and unskilled labour to other regions of the world in search of better working and living conditions.

Uganda is one of those countries in Sub-Saharan Africa graded as 60-90% of their labour force is employed in agriculture, with most of its activities still at the subsistence level and thus vulnerable to climate change and global warming.

Bank of Uganda is currently reviewing and assessing the informal remittances and the figures are expected to be higher than the known amount. According to the Word Bank, informal remittances to sub-Saharan Africa are relatively high, at 45-65 per cent of the amount of formal remittances. Relative to GDP, remittances were approximately 34% of GDP in Lesotho, approximately 5% in Uganda, the Gambia, Togo, Senegal, Cape Verde, Kenya, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria and Mali.

The conclusion here is that even though remittances may be generally small as a share of GDP, in majority cases it may amount to a large share of the income of recipient households and may therefore have a substantial impact on the stability of these households’ income and play a role in insuring the families against transitory shocks to income in the economy and the households.

Aid

While official development assistance (ODA) to developing countries is expected to be adversely affected by any reversals in economic fortunes, there is little evidence to suggest that this has been the case in Uganda. According to the World Bank report, there was a declining trend in ODA to Uganda since 2006/07, and in particular the report revealed that ODA declined from $426.60 million in 2007/08 to $401.96 million in 2008/09 (5.8%), and ODA reached its lowest level in 2008/09. Whether this can be attributed to the global financial crisis during the global financial crisis has not been established.

The World Bank reported that inflows to NGOs declined from $547.23 million in 2007/08 to $453.64 million in 2008/09, representing a year-on-year reduction of 17.1%. However, calls to and commitments by Western countries to increase aid to developing countries have continued.

In the Report of the African Development Bank (2008), Uganda has a longstanding migratory tradition associated with its political history and geography. Yet little is known of how large the size of the emigrant population or diaspora is or about the extent of the economic activities migrants have with Uganda. Using available Albeit Limited survey data, expert interviews and data collected from the Central Bank, commercial banks, microfinance institutions and foreign exchange bureaus, there may be as many as 3 million Ugandans living abroad, much larger than what official records show. More importantly, just over 800,000 Ugandan migrants may be remitting a total of US$700 million, a figure similar to earlier Uganda Central Bank statistics. The top destinations for Ugandan emigrants are the United Kingdom, Tanzania, the United States, Canada, Rwanda, Sweden, and Kenya, among others. The UK in particular is home to a large Ugandan diaspora community, due in part, to colonial ties between the countries and the fact that prior to 1990, Ugandans did not need a visa to travel to the UK.

According to a household survey on migration and remittances in Uganda, conducted by Bendixen and Associates, 42% of Ugandans have a relative abroad, amounting to 2.9 million Ugandans, 30% of which are living in the United Kingdom. This 2.9 million figure may be more suggestive than other figures of the population abroad, given the three generational migration groups recognized by the literature on political history and migration from Uganda.

The mobility of labor abroad has been accompanied by a series of economic relationships that migrants establish with their home country. These relationships include exchanges such as phone calls, importation of home country goods, remittance transfers to their families, or investment in real estate or small businesses. In the case of Uganda, data, statistical records, or evidence of these types of relationships is unknown.

Although the validity of the statistics is still under consideration the inbound remittances to Uganda tripled from 2005 to 2007 to nearly US$900 million, representing 10% of the country’s GDP and approximately 800,000 person to person transfers. As a result the 2007 Bank of Uganda estimate yielded US$476 million. Using data from money transfer companies, the average remitted is US$350 at a frequency of 9 times a year (for a total of US$3150 per year), a situation that may yield a lower number of person to person transfers.

The money transfer business to facilitate easy transfer of remittances from abroad was addressed by liberalization of the foreign exchange transactions in the later years of 1980s. Diaspora Ugandans may wish to participate and establish this business in our country.

Marketplace dynamics for remittance transfers in Uganda

Uganda’s licensed marketplace for money transfers is predominantly dominated by the two largest money transfer operators (MTOs), Western Union and MoneyGram, and distributed by banks as agents in collaboration with microfinance institutions as subagents, as well as foreign exchange bureaus (both as agents and subagents). On the remittance origination side, the remittance landscape is not competitive, and in the payout destination, there are more players participating but there is room for more competition.

Money Transfer Regulatory Framework:

The regulatory environment governing money transfers in Uganda is led by foreign exchange laws. The Exchange Control Act of 1964, which established controls on foreign exchange inflows and outflows, has been progressively amended. It allowed foreign exchange bureaus to operate and, after 1997, allowed liberalized funds transfers. Currently, the Foreign Exchange regulation of 2006 established who is allowed to obtain a money transfer license. The regulation establishes various classes of licensed institutions and requirements. In section 15 (3) the law stipulates the classes:

(a) Class A—International Money Transfer Agency Licence; (b) Class B—Forex Bureau and Money Remittance Licence; (c) Class C—Direct Entrants Licence; or (d) Class D—Sub‐Agency Licence.

To obtain a license, a company must exhibit:

(i)a clear license to operate in the base country; (ii) a good track record of conducting money remittance business; (iii) a recommendation from the regulatory authority in the base country; (iv) a minimum paid ‐up share capital of two thousand and five hundred currency points; (v) the ability to comply with all applicable anti‐money laundering and combating of financing of terrorism standards and measures; (vi) acceptable Agency Agreements.

To date, in addition to the main banks there are 35 licensed companies paying remittances. The large majority of businesses are paying for Western Union and MoneyGram. There are also other MTOs operating in the country such as Coinstar, Salabed International, and DahabShill.

According to a 2010 Bendixen’s survey, remittances through MTOs and banks are 70% of the total market. Diasporas need to know the following facts to build confidence and realize the strength of the financial remittances and transactions in the Ugandan economy:

Twelve percent of Ugandan households receive remittances in amounts of over US$200 per transfer;
At least US$700 million per year, or a little over 800,000 transfers per month, are going into the country;
Money transfers from the main MTOs may be originating some 200,000 person to person transfers from the United States and the United Kingdom each month;
Banks and foreign exchange bureaus are the main licensed payers of remittances, followed by a network of microfinance institutions together conducting around 80% of the payments;
Financial intermediation is an important factor considered among banks while performing money transfers, yet practical knowledge or metrics of how many remittance recipients are being benefited are missing;
More than 50% of remittance recipients are saving, but they are more likely to be doing so outside of financial institutions.
Sensitization is ongoing by tehUganda Communications Commission for communities to learn about outbound transfers with focus on rural areas and cross‐border flows.

Way Forward:

Government formed a Diaspora office in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that is to coordinate activities of the Ministry with those of the Ministries of Trade, and Finance.

Diaspora Bond: Bank of Uganda (BOU) finalized a feasibility study for the Diaspora bond and it could be auctioned later this year. This is a method to ensure secure investment by purchase of Bank of Uganda Bonds or Treasury Bills. The investment compendium and the Diaspora bond will be important for the Diaspora to start investing locally. This arrangement will address most of the constraints that Ugandans abroad face when investing home

Ugandans abroad should use the compendium to earmark areas of investment back home. Foreign missions will supplement downloadable copies on the Ministries of Trade, Foreign Affairs and the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA)

Ugandans abroad remit close to $767m (sh1.99 trillion) back home each year. Top sources are Kenya at $326m, the UK at $176m, and the US with $87.4m accounting for over 70% of all remittances.

SUMMARY – REMITTANCES FROM ABROAD

Diaspora remittances are critical to the livelihoods of recipient families back home because they help in meeting basic needs. The reduction in remittances, therefore, means that a sizeable portion of Ugandans could be driven into financial difficulty.
In addition, as the report notes, remittances into the country have been key to seeing the shilling rebound against the dollar – although the decline in imports can contribute immensely to this trend.
Until last year, remittances from abroad had been increasing. It had been projected that Ugandans living abroad could transfer as much as $1billion in 2014. The World Bank, indeed, forecasts that as the European economies rebound, we are likely to see an increase in the remittances.
The bank wishes to see financial institutions help the beneficiaries to use the money wisely. The primary impact of remittances is on the living standards of the direct remittance beneficiaries.
With a saving culture promoted by financial institutions and adopted by beneficiary families for small loans for microenterprises, it is likely that the portion of remittances saved and invested would grow from current levels.
BoU has strengthened its monitoring surveillance of the risks that could affect the banking system although there are no major risks to the banking system at the moment as a result of the “strong financial conditions of the banks.
Arising from the assurances of a stable financial system in Uganda bigger, stronger and long-term investments should be focused by the Uganda Diaspora in the near future.

Other Issues

The Brain Drain Phenomenon
Human Resources as critical capital to development
Diaspora Human Resource strength
Diaspora Investment in the Human Resource Development in Uganda
Way Forward

Government strategy to attract high skilled citizens in Diaspora to come to strengthen the home workforce:
Dual Citizenship
Motivation
Tourism – Marketing & participation in promotion of Uganda as No. 1 tourist destination

TOURISM

Tourism has for the first time became Uganda’s biggest export earner after it fetched $1.4bn in financial year 2013/2014, up from $1.1bn the year before, according to the Central Bank’s monetary policy statement for August 2014.
Diaspora workers’ remittances, long the dominant sector when it came to calculating export receipts, registered the second position, with coffee in third. Remittances from Ugandans living abroad was roughly $800m during FY 2013/2014, although the African Development Bank expects this figure to reach $1bn this financial year
Uganda is regarded Africa’s best destination for birders. The country boasts of more than 1,058 bird species, accounting for 11 per cent of the globe’s total, and half of Africa’s.
There are many cultures in Uganda that could be developed to become tourism attractions. Key attractions include the celebrations to mark Martyrs day every third day of June that continue to attract thousands of people. There are plans by the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) to market it as a tourism attraction. Cultural activities such as dances, for example, akoogo and ajos dances in Teso; the circumcision ceremony (imbalu) in Mbale and others attract thousands of people.
Tourism is not only about wildlife and nature. Uganda has 56 tribes and all have different cultures and heritages and all are unique. In Kenya, the Maasai are used as a tourist attraction.

Challenges

UTB has insufficient funds to effectively promote the industry. Diaspora can play a significant role in promoting Uganda as a tourist destination of choice.

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29/03/2020

H.E. Nimisha Madhvani’s speech for the 4th Ugandan, UK and Europe Convention 13th September, London

Speech for the 4th Ugandan, UK and Europe Convention 13th September, London by H.H. Nimisha Madhvani, ambassador of Uganda to France, Spain, Portugal And UNESCO, Organisation For Economic Co-Operation And Development (OECD) and bureau of international expositions (BIE)

His Excellency the Vice President of the Republic of Uganda, Hon. Edward Ssekandi, Chairman of the Uganda UK Convention, Mr. Willy Mutenza, and the Uganda UK Convention Organizers, Congratulations on these excellent arrangements.
Her Excellency Professor Joyce Kikafunda, Uganda’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom,His Excellency Zaake Wanume Kibedi, Uganda’s Ambassador to Denmark and the Nordic Countries.
Lord Dollar Popat, Minister of the Crown and Government Whip, House of Lords, but from Uganda and now our Diaspora Lord!
Honourable Ministers and State Minister for Lands, Hon. Aidah Nantaba,
Honourable Members of Parliament,Honourable Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Wafula Oguttu, Chairperson of the Ugandan Community in France, Mrs. Sarah Kiwanuka (Please could she stand up for recognition), Distinguished Leaders of Uganda’s Parastatals, represented by Dr. Frank Ssebowa, Executive Director, Uganda Investment Authority.
Sponsors of the Convention, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is indeed an honour for me as a 3rd Generation Ugandan woman of Asian origin to have been invited to this gathering to share with fellow Diasporas trade, investment and tourism opportunities. However it is an honour and privilege that I have been trusted to represent Uganda in France, Spain, Portugal, UNESCO, OECD and BIE. I thank H.E. the President and the people of Uganda for this trust.
With the diaspora our theme could now change and be “Uganda on the move by Global Ugandans- Fostering Inclusive Growth”.

Global Ugandans needs to enrich the talent pool in business, science and technology and implement those resources and skills in Uganda.

Global Ugandans should leverage the multi-generational workforce and ;

Harmonize values in a global context

Uganda needs to leap frog to her highest capacities in the globe with all this knowledge, experience and culture. “Next Generation” so to speak.

Uganda must continue taking the lead to pursue the emancipation of women- juggling a career and family life and be remunerated equally to the men in Government as well as incorporate Uganda.

Ugandans in the diaspora and this includes Ugandans, Asians in the UK have more opportunities – I am tempted to say have an imperative to unleash Ugandan’s economic dynamism in Africa and thereby create a win-win for all. Creating the opportunity not only for everyone to make money, but also to erase poverty and enhance development. We need to take advantage of Europe’s economic decline to enhance ours. Uganda can be the bread basket of Africa.

The late Ron Brown – a former US Commerce Secretary, 20 years ago whilst in Uganda said “Africa is the Last Frontier”. President Obama recently quoted the young Ugandan woman he met in August who told him she wanted to start a business in Uganda. She said to President “Time for the Youth of Africa is now”.

However, African opportunities are now and have been for over the past 100 years. I speak from experience as I am a beneficiary and my family who is in Uganda and East Africa over the past 100 years and many of you also share that experience.

Therefore if we look at our people- brothers and sisters of Ugandans in the diaspora- our skills and expertise are now a natural for investing and developing our international relations to Uganda and make money. Many Ugandans are a bit like Gujerati’s. We just know that there is an opportunity and we engage to secure the business proposition and make money. Our advantage is that we know the language and the laws of the land.

UK and Europe is home to about a quarter million Ugandans who are very important to the economies of those countries. Africa’s total population is almost 1 billion. If you compare what China has achieved with 1 billion, surely Africa can with Uganda at the lead.

The areas of opportunities to strengthen the cooperation with African leaders -especially Uganda where President Museveni has the highest regard for the Diaspora – are in agro processing, oil, infrastructure, IT, science and technology and tourism, as well as respecting and restoring our cultural values.

Ugandans in the diaspora must take charge and be instrumental game changers of investment in the Uganda. We won’t need to depend constantly on lenders like World Bank etc. e.g Mo Ibrahim & Celtel, when Mo Ibrahim brought mobile phones to Uganda, nobody thought the mobile phones business would succeed. In 1993 the first mobile was $1000 and now with the boom and mobile money a farmer has a phone at $ 25. This enables farmers to compare the value of their products with urban centres for pricing.

Let me say a word about agriculture and pharmaceuticals and the potential for investment that it presents:

The global demand for coffee is 149.1 million bags at the dollar value of $13.6 billion unprocessed, and $32 billion processed.

The value of tea is $11.4 billion with a total demand of 4 million tons;

The value of milk and milk products is $32.8 billion with the total quantities of 730 million tones.

These are the values of unfinished products. They are examples of the potential and vibrancy of the Ugandan economy even amidst economic challenges and reforms on the local, regional and international scene.

If I may, let me give you one more example: Glaxo-Smith-Kline intends to spend £130 million ($216.4 dollars) to expand research in Sub-Saharan African. This presents a perfect opportunity for Ugandans in the medical and pharmaceuticals to expand with Glaxo-Smith-Kline into Africa.
Therefore, the time is also now for high-level visits to Uganda and East Africa and the world with accompanying senior corporates, delegations of small, medium and large-scale business from both Europe and the UK. In France we must convince the French to look at East Africa as areas of opportunity in business. The EU economy is not growing. But the room for their skills in Uganda and the region is enormous. Even the giant oil company TOTAL think they can dictate to Uganda’s oil Ministry but they had had to compromise. But these big companies have huge technical capacities to work with us. But Uganda must be flexivle for implementation of investments for mutual benefit.
Businesses may take advantage of East Africa’s open capital and current accounts and liberal economies. Uganda is more liberal than many other countries but at the same time Uganda must not allow bureaucratic blockage towards rapid development.
The continent of Africa is only 10% developed. Development agencies should expedite loan processing to countries for development in line with IMF terms of borrowing and be competitive to China at 1.5% for 30 years with a 5 year moratorium for LDC.
But before I close Your Excellency, Hon. Edward Ssekandi, I would like to appeal on behalf of my colleague Excellency Ambassadors to the Cabinet and Parliament to seriously look at effectively funding the Foreign Missions of Uganda as we are the first face of the country wherever it is that you are going.

Missions have been neglected yet it is our Missions that assist in putting together such Conventions to promote Uganda and bring in funds to the economy.

The Ugandans in the diaspora have pleaded to all visiting officials in various Missions abroad but has fallen on deaf ears.

There is no better time than now for the diaspora with the leadership of the Chairman of the Ugandans in the Diaspora in USA, UK, Europe to fast track the relationship between USA, UK, Europe and Uganda. This would further strengthen North-South cooperation, along with South-South Co-operation which has gathered enormous momentum in investment terms. Money has no geographical barriers. We have had a long day congratulations to every one thank you and let’s do the next convention in Paris.

Thank You.

Mweebale nyo.

For God and My Country

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15/03/2020

Flash Baxk 2014: Post Uganda-UK Convention’s discussion on the role of Diaspora and its transformation of rural areas

DATE: 10TH OCT 2014
At: Uganda House, 58-59 Trafalgar Square, London, WC2N 5DX
Organised by: Willy Mutenza: Chairman, of the Ugandan Convention UK

Participants

Kataike Sarah, Minister of state for Luweero Triangle
Nekesa Barbara Oundo, Minister of state for Karamoja Affairs
Ernest Kiiza, Minister of state for Bunyoro Affairs
Christine Amongin Aporu, Minister of state for Teso Affairs
Willy Mutenza, Chairman Uganda-UK Convention
Elizabeth Nyeko, Director, Beconcolly
Geoffrey Lutaaya
David Wangusi Masinde
Daisy Byaruhanga Amooti
Julius Mbaluto
Joshua Bwire
Pastor Michael Kagyo
William Lume
Rashida Tidyebwa
Jean-Gideon K Bugonzi
Siraj Swaleh Twine
Daniel Kajumba
Frances Ddungu
Dorothy Elangot
Charles Okwalinga
Steven Kasamba

Introduction

Mr. Mutenza thanked participants and emphasized the fact that members were in attendance as a follow-up discussion from issues identified from the UK Trade& Investment Convention (2014) among other which included;

How can Ugandans in the UK be part of transformation and development of their rural areas?
“Beyond wealth, the skills and knowledge that would need to be mobilized, there is a keen sense of commitment within the Diaspora to be part of Uganda’s development. It is therefore important to look strategically at the Diaspora’s role in Uganda’s development. It is imperative to emphasize the important nexus of the power that the Diaspora community possesses through their expertise and the capital that they amass, both of which are of critical importance to Uganda’s economic development.
Dual citizenship and legal implications of Diaspora owning Mailo-land etc.
Reverse brain drain. How can the government attract its high skilled citizens?

Geoffrey Lutaaya

In his opening remarks, Geoffrey Lutaaya summarised the main points raised during the UK/ Uganda convention diaspora debate with Ugandan Members of Parliament.

He started by expressing satisfaction that the national diaspora policy document is before cabinet. And that Cabinet had not yet signed it off – this, he said, offered an opportunity to diaspora communities to engage in effective policy formulation. Further, he noted that as a member of the Diaspora, he does not remember being consulted on the contents of the draft policy. He suggested that it would have been prudent to consult the diaspora communities, as stakeholders, during the diaspora policy formulation – this, he suggested, is the hallmark of evidence-based policy making.

Regarding skills and appropriate knowledge transfer, Geoffrey suggested that the skills, knowledge, contacts and expertise of diaspora communities should be harnessed. This could contribute to filling knowledge gaps that exists in Uganda. He suggested that programme that can promote exchange of knowledge transfer can be worked out in order to promote brain-gain.

Geoffrey affirmed that the Ugandan diaspora are investors and partners in development. Their areas of investment include financial, intellectual and social capital. This ought to be harnessed in order to spur rural development. He noted that due to their inherent and emotional attachment to Uganda, there investments are more likely to be sustainable and geared toward long-term development of Uganda, unlike foreign investors, who most often leave once their profits are not realisable.

On the issue of dual citizenship, he pointed out anomalies such as where a parent can be a Ugandan, yet children/ next of kins who are under eighteen years of age cannot take up Ugandan citizenship. This, he noted demotivates diaspora communities, who most often want to invest for the future benefit of their children. He recommended that the dual citizenship law should be streamlined and simplified to interest diaspora communities to want to invest in Uganda. Noting that in a global economy, diaspora communities have options / choice as to where to invest. Therefore, all efforts to make Uganda their first choice of investment destination, ought to be encouraged. Lest, other countries benefit at the expense of Uganda.

Geoffrey commended government for setting up a Diaspora Desk in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and /in Parliament of Uganda. He recommended that the Diaspora desk is empowered or availed appropriate resources to ensure that when Diasporas visit home – in process of making their investment – they can have a one-stop service as time is of the essence – diaspora communities cannot afford over bureaucratic processes.

He concluded by recommending that something beyond a desk needs to be created in the ministry of foreign affairs through which we can go and get our issues sorted out. Countries like Mexico, India and Ghana have gone beyond having a desk to creating mechanism through which resources – money, skills, contacts etc. can be channeled to deliver identified investable projects for their Diaspora communities.

Further, Geoffrey highlighted the benefits of twining. Twining, he noted, had been used successfully to share knowledge and expertise – build capacity at various levels. This would be especially useful for Ugandan local government administrations, as it requires minimal budgetary support.

He cited Venerable Danny Kajumba (Arch Deacon of Reigate) as being well networked in the UK; can help to promote twinning between local governments in UK and Uganda.

The above point was reinforced by Ven. Kajumba, noting that with a properly thought out – comprehensive – plan, a lot of resources can be tapped into in the UK through churches, local administrations and other institutions.

Wangusi Masinde supplemented on the point of putting in place a system that Ugandans in the diaspora can feel more comfortable with so as to invest in Uganda . Adding that many have saved enough money to be able to start micro projects.

In response, Hon. Ernest Kiiza supported Geoffrey Lutaaya’s proposal on twinning institutions in UK with their counterparts in Uganda. He urged members of the Diasporas to identify, and share such opportunities with members of parliament and other stakeholders. Hon Kiiza noted the importance of being proactive so as to tap into opportunities in a timely manner.

Following Hon. Kataike’s overview of the agricultural development in Luwero / Rwenzori. And particularly, her comment that there was an over – supply of maize in Luwero – that could go to waste, Geoffrey expressed disappointment, at the apparent failure to plan ahead. He noted that with effective project planning, the entire process from planting to post harvest handling, including value addition and risk management, ought to be mapped out in advance. “How can farmers be encouraged to grow maize without a full understanding of markets that can absorb the surplus?”

Geoffrey suggested that farmers’ confidence can be restored if markets are secured; a post-harvest programme put in place including purchasing surplus maize from farmers etc. In United Kingdom, farmers’ house-hold incomes are assured through training etc. on forward planning, marketing etc. In addition, such an approach helps to maintain constant supply and acceptable return on farmers’ investments.

In his closing remarks, Geoffrey noted that whereas, the Ugandan government indicates that it values the contribution of the diaspora to Uganda’s development, it (government) ought to enhance this value by extending voting rights to the diaspora. The current $800 million remittance, he suggested, could even increase further, if avenues for diaspora participation in the voting process in Uganda were created.

William Lume

Started by saying that Uganda is not desperate for Diaspora skills besides their remittance as there is an oversupply of skilled personal. He sighted that the generation that used to send money is growing old and most of them are not comfortable to get old in the UK. Most of the money this aging generation sends home if for general welfare consumption and for immediate problems like funerals, schools fees and the like.

He wondered if the government of Uganda had a clear idea or plan on how to use Diaspora money for development and at the same time address problems of Diasporas who are aging and want to return home but may not have adequately prepared themselves. The drawback is their children do not intend to send money once the parents have returned to Uganda – the way the parents have been remitting.

Therefore, a mechanism needs to be put in place to interest our children. Enabling them to send money not only as welfare money but more for investment for themselves. Thus, a policy or mechanism needs to be put in place to facilitate Ugandans who are aging and needs support to be able to come home.

William thanked the government for including UPDF into agriculture and he suggested that it should be expanded into other sectors like natural resources and other investment areas because it is the most disciplined institution in the country. He further suggested that it can be linked with Diasporas because they do also have disciplined money which is not available in Uganda.

He gave an example of China which targeted Diaspora money in order to spur its economic growth and development they do enjoy today. The government can create investment funds where Diasporas can invest in and that funds can be invested in infrastructure projects in rural areas. Diaspora can comfortably invest their pensions not only that but also their children would be interested to invest in that. An institution like a Uganda development bank so that Diaspora can send their pension and other savings to that bank and also the government of Uganda can promise to add an addition monetary incentive on top of Diaspora money invested in that scheme/bank. (eg. .10pence on top of every £1 invested) And the UK can also be lobbied to do likewise.

William said that Ugandans in the Diaspora are putting a number of obstacles to Uganda, he wondered how he managed to travel to Uganda and register for the recent national ID programme without any problem because he went to his home village.

William urged that there is a low understanding of the Diaspora from the cabinet level and above, cited an example from China where a special focus was done from the highest level of the government on the potential and contributions of the diaspora and how can be directly enhanced into development. Suggested that Mutenza or someone in his influential position to start actively engaging the government at the highest level to deal with Diaspora matters. An independent commission can be appointed to represent Diaspora matters at the highest level of government of Uganda beyond a desk or an officer in a ministry or parliament committee.

Hon Ernest supported the idea of a development bank in order to channel development and he said that it is being discussed in the parliament and will be rejuvenated.

Frances Ddungu

Frances cited a comment made by Willy Mutenza on a video he posted on his Facebook as a reaction of actress Raven-Symone rejecting to be labelled ‘African-American’ as so many Ugandans doing the same thing disowning being Ugandans and prefer to be called British because they feel more proud of it or just because they were born in the UK. Frances associated the-disconnect of our children in the Diaspora to not being involved in policy making or anything that pertains to them as Diasporas or feel part of the country.

She pointed out that the law on dual citizenship does not accept our children born in the Diaspora to become citizen until they are 18 years old. Thus, for Diasporas who have already complied with the dual-citizenship and are doing their will, will not be able to pass on their investment in a will to their children because they are not allowed according to Ugandans laws especially on Mailo-land. Thus, this puts off Diasporas because they are not sure of their investment can be claimed by their children and these are the people Uganda government needs to target in order to keep flowing of remittance in the country in the future. This also brings in confusion in families where parents are Ugandan but their children cannot automatically inherit their citizenship.

Frances suggested an amendment in the bill to consider Diaspora children be accepted as citizens as long as their parents are.

The president recently on a tour in Texas announced that “the problem of losing Ugandan citizenship was resolved when he pushed for the amendment of the Constitution to allow for dual citizenship, including for children born to Ugandan women living abroad”. And we hope this can be implemented. In the same meeting the president pledged to strengthen it by appointing an officer that reports directly to him to highlight issues raised by Ugandans living abroad. “My other amendment was also for our girls. Tradition only follows the boys, but now the girls’ offsprings have a right to dual citizenship. If Muhoozi comes and gets a child here, genetically and technically, that child is a Musiita. What I added is that if my Natasha also comes here and gets a child, that child has the same right,” “The President said he would work to stop the payment of visa fees for Ugandans with dual citizenship and urged Ugandan scientists living and working abroad to return home and work for their country since their remuneration has been improved to make it attractive”.
HE Museveni said. (ref: http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/660062-expect-shake-up-in-uia-museveni.html)

There was a general suggestion for there to be a follow up for us to know or get the feedback from the ministers after they have presents our discussed points to cabinet.

Frances Ddungu also suggested there to be a mirror of the present forum in Uganda which can be approachable to assisting people with information and other practical advise when they get to Uganda to ensure that our matters are followed up and to reduce the frustration of feeling alone and lost when diaspora members go to Uganda.

On the issue of dual nationality, Frances Ddungu pointed out that patents can consent to their children becoming Uganda citizen just in the same way they can consent for example for them to have a major operation. The law can have a provision whereby the children who obtained dual nationality via the consent of parents can be required to take an oath when they reach 18 years, if necessary.

On the issue of the diaspora policy, Frances Ddungu suggested for the draft policy to be emailed to all of us as an attachment so that we can make an input before it’s presented to parliament.

There was also a consensus suggestion that us in the diaspora we need to be represented by something bigger – such as a commissioner other than mere diaspora information desk as it stands because our contribution to the country’s economy is that big.

There was also a consensus that smaller focus group meetings were more effective.

Members were also informed about Fred’s appointment as a department leader for the Uganda diaspora.

Jean-Gideon K Bugonzi

He suggested that the government should encourage Ugandans in the Diaspora to register for the on-going National Identity Cards. His issue was also supported by the president’s recent remark in the USA as per above reference.

He also recommended for the easiness of the investment license qualifier fee to be reduced to an affordable amount for most Ugandan investors in the Diaspora.

Hon. Ernest said that those who are able to travel to Uganda from the Diaspora are free to register and no one will stop anyone.

Gideon also suggested that the Uganda UK Convention should be extended to two days in order to give opportunities for others to be able to interact with some of the government VIP guests.

Mutenza, the organiser responded that by extending the convention to two days has a cost implication which we do not have the capacity unless if the government comes in and facilitates it.

Amongin Aporu Christine Hellen (MP), Minister of State for Teso Affairs

Hon Amongin presented her concept paper which highlighted a lot of contentious issues.

She said that since the 1990s, Uganda has enjoyed strong and impressive gross domestic product (GDP) growth supported by prudent macroeconomic management. However, although Uganda registered 7.1% growth in GDP in fiscal year 2008/09, this was below the projected growth of 8.9%. Furthermore, analysis at sectoral level reveals differences in performance, notably the poor performance of the coffee sub-sector, resulting in an overall poor performance by the cash crop sector. The drastic deceleration of the construction sub-sector had impacts for the overall performance of the industry sector. The agriculture sector grew, although from a low base. Studies have shown that Uganda seems to have emerged from its vulnerability to the second-round effects of the mid 2007-2009 global financial crisis without serious damage to its financial sector relative to Kenya with the main pillar being through the balance of payments. Specifically, the main transmission channels which cushioned Uganda against the crisis have included trade, private capital flows, private transfers and aid.

Remittances

Aid

However, international remittances, in general, can render the citizens vulnerable to changes in global economic shocks if spent on unproductive investment and short-term consumption gains.

There are three broad sectoral areas of potential investment are 1) agriculture, forestry and fisheries 2) industry; and 3) services

Aid

While official development assistance (ODA) to developing countries is expected to be adversely affected by any reversals in economic fortunes, there is little evidence to suggest that this has been the case in Uganda. According to the World Bank report, there was a declining trend in ODA to Uganda since 2006/07, and in particular the report revealed that ODA declined from $426.60 million in 2007/08 to $401.96 million in 2008/09 (5.8%), and ODA reached its lowest level in 2008/09. Whether this can be attributed to the global financial crisis during the global financial crisis has not been established.

Marketplace dynamics for remittance transfers in Uganda

Money Transfer Regulatory Framework:

(a) Class A—International Money Transfer Agency Licence; (b) Class B—Forex Bureau and Money Remittance Licence; (c) Class C—Direct Entrants Licence; or (d) Class D—Sub‐Agency Licence.

To obtain a license, a company must exhibit:

Twelve percent of Ugandan households receive remittances in amounts of over US$200 per transfer;
At least US$700 million per year, or a little over 800,000 transfers per month, are going into the country;
Money transfers from the main MTOs may be originating some 200,000 person to person transfers from the United States and the United Kingdom each month;
Banks and foreign exchange bureaus are the main licensed payers of remittances, followed by a network of microfinance institutions together conducting around 80% of the payments;
Financial intermediation is an important factor considered among banks while performing money transfers, yet practical knowledge or metrics of how many remittance recipients are being benefited are missing;
More than 50% of remittance recipients are saving, but they are more likely to be doing so outside of financial institutions.
Sensitization is ongoing by the Uganda Communications Commission for communities to learn about outbound transfers with focus on rural areas and cross‐border flows.

Way Forward:

Government formed a Diaspora office in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that is to coordinate activities of the Ministry with those of the Ministries of Trade, and Finance.

Ugandans abroad remit close to $767m (sh1.99 trillion) back home each year. Top sources are Kenya at $326m, the UK at $176m, and the US with $87.4m accounting for over 70% of all remittances.

SUMMARY – REMITTANCES FROM ABROAD

Diaspora remittances are critical to the livelihoods of recipient families back home because they help in meeting basic needs. The reduction in remittances, therefore, means that a sizeable portion of Ugandans could be driven into financial difficulty.
In addition, as the report notes, remittances into the country have been key to seeing the shilling rebound against the dollar – although the decline in imports can contribute immensely to this trend.
Until last year, remittances from abroad had been increasing. It had been projected that Ugandans living abroad could transfer as much as $1billion in 2014. The World Bank, indeed, forecasts that as the European economies rebound, we are likely to see an increase in the remittances.
The bank wishes to see financial institutions help the beneficiaries to use the money wisely. The primary impact of remittances is on the living standards of the direct remittance beneficiaries.
With a saving culture promoted by financial institutions and adopted by beneficiary families for small loans for microenterprises, it is likely that the portion of remittances saved and invested would grow from current levels.
BoU has strengthened its monitoring surveillance of the risks that could affect the banking system although there are no major risks to the banking system at the moment as a result of the “strong financial conditions of the banks.
Arising from the assurances of a stable financial system in Uganda bigger, stronger and long-term investments should be focused by the Uganda Diaspora in the near future.

Other Issues

The Brain Drain Phenomenon
Human Resources as critical capital to development
Diaspora Human Resource strength
Diaspora Investment in the Human Resource Development in Uganda
Way Forward

Government strategy to attract high skilled citizens in Diaspora to come to strengthen the home workforce:
Dual Citizenship
Motivation
Tourism – Marketing & participation in promotion of Uganda as No. 1 tourist destination

TOURISM

Tourism has for the first time became Uganda’s biggest export earner after it fetched $1.4bn in financial year 2013/2014, up from $1.1bn the year before, according to the Central Bank’s monetary policy statement for August 2014.
Diaspora workers’ remittances, long the dominant sector when it came to calculating export receipts, registered the second position, with coffee in third. Remittances from Ugandans living abroad was roughly $800m during FY 2013/2014, although the African Development Bank expects this figure to reach $1bn this financial year
Uganda is regarded Africa’s best destination for birders. The country boasts of more than 1,058 bird species, accounting for 11 per cent of the globe’s total, and half of Africa’s.
There are many cultures in Uganda that could be developed to become tourism attractions. Key attractions include the celebrations to mark Martyrs day every third day of June that continue to attract thousands of people. There are plans by the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) to market it as a tourism attraction. Cultural activities such as dances, for example, akoogo and ajos dances in Teso; the circumcision ceremony (imbalu) in Mbale and others attract thousands of people.
Tourism is not only about wildlife and nature. Uganda has 56 tribes and all have different cultures and heritages and all are unique. In Kenya, the Maasai are used as a tourist attraction.

Challenges

UTB has insufficient funds to effectively promote the industry. Diaspora can play a significant role in promoting Uganda as a tourist destination of choice.

The minister said that Teso has a lot of partnerships especially in the agriculture sector. Agro-processing, irrigation and value addition is the missing investment to spur growth in the region. Also the education sector in the region still lacks partners and skilled people to fill some gaps. She also encouraged Diasporas to start donating skills to their community and they cannot utilise it in their own areas. And she pointed that UIA has not been very welcoming to Diasporas but the President is making it clear for every Ugandan to come home and invest with no hurdles.

Hon. Ernest Kiiza supported the argument that people in the Diaspora should be taken as investors and partners in development. And he assured that the government will take it up.

The minister appreciated the effort by Willy Mutenza and also assumed that foreign affairs has been facilitating the convention and she will ensure that they discuss facilitating the UK Convention like the USA convention. She agreed the fact that most of the discussion at the UK convention and in various UK engagement there is no politics discussed and she appreciate UK Diasporas.

Hon. Kataike Sarah Ndoboli, Minister of State for Luwero Triangle

Hon. Kataike commended the Diaspora group that we cannot keep on looking at the past and she is happy the group is much focused looking for future solutions.

She commended the support from UPDF officers assigned to strengthen and support the special programme to increase food production especially cash crops.

She appealed to Ugandans in the Diaspora to come and be partners and take advantage of investment opportunities. She had recently mobilised Luwero region to grow a lot of maize and now they do have a surplus which pose opportunities like food processing and the supply and production chain has various opportunities.

The minister cited most of the challenges emanates from un-mechanised agriculture where farmers are still using manual hoe farming. Diasporas should come in and improve on modern farming skills coupled with mechanised farming.

Also cooperatives can be established to mobilise collective funding in order to invest in mobilised schemes.

She also said that farmers are capable to produce and even increase production as long as market availability is assured.

Uganda has a free agriculture zone where land has been allocated and more investors are needed to come and take advantage of this provision of opportunity.

Post-harvest handling is also lacking due to lacking of proper infrastructure and this is also another opportunity for investment.

The minister assured Diasporas that some of the critical issue like dual citizenship will be take into the parliament for debate.

The minister appreciated the fact that Mutenza has managed to engage the government on various issues concerning Diasporas and assured that even the government is committed to be partners.

The Minister said that Luwero Rwenzori Development Programme’s primary objective is to redress the socio-economic effects of previous conflict in the region.

In furtherance of this objective, the Luwero Rwenzori Development Programme was established and is currently being implemented. The stated objectives of the programme are:

To improve the economic well-being of 105 households per parish in 523 parishes by enabling them to earn at least shs 20 million a year by 2015;
To repair and improve the condition of 2,300 km district roads; 29,000 km community access roads and 30 km urban roads to a motorable state by 2015;
To increase the safe water coverage of 11 districts which are below the national level coverage to 65% by 2015;
To protect and sustainably manage the environment;
To increase access to renewable energy to service delivery points and rural growth centres by 2015;
To ensure that there is a Government aided primary school and secondary school in all parishes;
To improve the health service delivery;
To increase access and use of Information and Communication Technology in the regions;
To promote peace, reconciliation and strengthen community based conflict mitigation and management within communities.

The LRDP targets 40 districts from Central and Western Uganda; they are: Buliisa, Bundibugyo, Ntoroko, Hoima, Ibanda, Isingiro, Kabarole, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamwenge, Kasese, Kayunga, Kibaale, Kiboga, Kyankwanzi, Kirihura, Kyenjojo, Kyegegwa, Luwero, Lyantonde, Masaka, Bukomansimbi, Kalungu, Lwengo, Masindi, Kiryandongo, others include: Mbarara, Mityana, Mpigi, Gombe, Mubende, Mukono, Buikwe, Buvuma, Nakaseke, Nakasongola, Wakiso, Rakai, Sembabule and Gomba.

Hon Kataike assured Diaspora investors that the government has a clear effort to improve on procedures and has the will to streamline systems on how they deal with Diasporas.

Hon Kataike responded to Geoffrey Lutaaya’s disappointment on maize surplus. She said that mobilising farmers was an immediate measure to curb food security but it ended up being a successful programme with a lot of surplus and they are working on the mechanism to absorb food surplus and post-harvest production.

Charles Okwalinga

Charles raised a point that an institution in the Diaspora needs to be establish an organisation that coordinates and facilitate issues of the Diaspora. He expressed disappointment that meetings like this do not serve a purpose with a central organisation that can discuss issues consistently both online and offline. He pointed out a point of harnessing Diaspora resources beyond remittance. He promised that he is embarking on a project to establish an organisation that will be coordinating policies and issues of Diasporas.

Charles said that he is disappointed because he thought the room would be full of Ugandans. Rev Danny Kajumba made a point of information in responding to Charles that it was the intention of the meeting to have a limited number of people in order to be able to discuss on issues comprehensively.

Frances Ddungu also supported the idea of a forum that can support Diaspora investors as the bureaucracy and government institutions are very frustrating in Uganda.

Dorothy Elangot

Dorothy, said she would like and she is in the process of starting up a HR Consultancy. She plans to use it to help not only those well qualified Ugandans who would like to go back home (Uganda) and get jobs but more so to help with the youth unemployment back home. She said, she would like to help the well-educated youth develop those important skills which add value, hence help them compete on an international level.

Dorothy said, with her back ground of working in UK Job Centre, dealing with unemployed, plus the connections she has from her former university Middlesex University, London and the fact she’s a HR professional she would like to introduce and improve on ‘soft skills’, which include; customer service, communication etc. which are a big problem back home.

Dorothy said although she has started the process, she expressed difficulties and requested for help and collaboration from the government in terms of joint organization, planning/working with her.

Dorothy also expressed the difficulty she is having in transporting the free sports kit she gets to take for the youth back to Uganda.

Hon Ernest Kiiza promised to give support to Dorothy on her issues of establishing a HR consultancy. Both Hon Kiiza and Hon. Christine Amongin Aporu promised to discuss the sports kit issue with the minister of Education & sports and finance regarding the charity sports kits being charged taxes.

Siraj Swaleh Twine

Siraj thanked the effort and love exhibited by the ministers to come and meet us and also the effort by Willy Mutenza for the effort and patriotism he always exhibits. He urged Ugandans never to give up in investing and loving their country.

He made a critical issue that some of institutions here in UK dispose of their computers every two years and some of these computers are better in terms of quality some of computers imported in Uganda. He made this point in reference to the law passed in June 2009 where the Ugandan Government passed the Financial Bill which prohibited the import of “used refrigerators, freezers, computers and television sets” from October 2009. The background to the legislation was a concern that Uganda was not dealing properly with the issue of e-waste.

He requested the ministers to re-table the law and either classify computers either by operating system or processor power otherwise we are missing out and it has slowed down the roll out of IT in many schools and slowed down a lot of work for businesses.

According to United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) about 15 percent of all computer imports, are used computers while the majority are clones. As the ban goes on, over 1,500 schools and tertiary institutions could not offer computer lessons as they relied entirely on donations of used computers.

“The ban has also widened the digital divide between the rural and urban, the poor and the rich, as very few people could afford to buy new computers. For three years, it has hurt Ugandan consumers by depriving them of low-cost, used computers” quoted Fred Kiapi, the executive director of Commonwealth People’s Association of Uganda (CPAUG).

Joshua Bwire

Joshua proposed a Diaspora Desk Website where they can share ideas and access information regarding issues that affect us and our country. For example; consulting us on the Diaspora bill would be easier if the draft bill is posted on the website and we are asked to submit our views online. And all services by the Diaspora desk would be on this website portal.

He further proposed websites for MP. MP Websites not only provide a cheap platform where MP can engage and interact with their constituents but also, they enable constituents’ access their MPs, voice their concerns and be able to hold them accountable.

Websites give MP the ability to share information and attract both local and foreign investment to their communities with much ease and at no extra cost. For example, the Hon. Ministers would not have laboured detailing the investments opportunities present in their respective communities if much of that information was already on their websites, and not only would that information be accessed by the local communities they represent as Hon. Sarah Kataike commented but by both the Diaspora and foreign investors they are trying to attract.

Stephen Kasamba

Kasamba thanked the ministers for sparing the time for engaging Diasporas. As someone who runs a cultural and drama group, he sees himself as an ambassador for Uganda’s culture but expressed concern that in most of the schools that he teaches drama, Kenya seems to be known more than any other country in the region. He thinks that support is needed from the government to in promoting Uganda’s culture more in the UK. He says that culture is neglected in Uganda yet it is very diverse and rich.

Hon Aporu said that one of the reasons why they visited USA recently and the government is aware of the issue.

Daisy Byaruhanga Amooti

Daisy said that the government needs to have clear polices to demystify misconception and mistrust within people minds. What is the social responsibility? Have the environment and climate effects been considered, thus clear guidance or policies need to be addressed.

She said that during the convention Hon Nantaba promised that land issues are being streamlined and everything will be online to clarify some pending issues.

She requested the government to sensitize local Banyoro on the disadvantage of selling of their land for peanuts and most of them end up becoming homeless due to the fact that money acquired from land selling is not enough for starting a business.

Another issue she expressed is the frustration of registering an NGO in Uganda and she failed to have one registered though she had a potential investor who was promising a £250K. Ease of registering NGO’s needs to be streamlined.

Transfer of skills to Uganda needs also to have a system that can facilitate and guide those who are willing to transfer their skills.

Herbal medicine needs to harness more than it is as it is a big industry that just needs government intervention.

Hon Aporu added that Uganda should not only rely on western medicine. She was recently in China to see how they utilise herbal medicine and she supports research into herbal medicine and this meeting should make a resolve of some discussed points which includes dual citizenship, remittance and research into herbal medicine.

Zaharah Kayongo

Zaharah made an observation from a neutral perspective; she expressed some disappointment from some of the points which were raised highlighting only personal perspectives. She argued that it is hard to change or influence development if a vision is self-centered. She proposed to Ugandans in the Diaspora to initiate programmes or projects in order to have a case study before even inviting the government to come in for support.

Summary

Hon Ernest Kiiza closed the meeting by:

Ensuring Ugandans that most of the raises issues would be discussed and handled accordingly.
He confirmed that UIA is being made as a one stop centre to allow ease of registering a business within one or two days.
Taxation on agriculture equipment’s and products was an outcry for everybody, he said and he promised that the cabinet is currently discussing it.
The matter of government to buy surplus maize from farmers would be discussed in parliament as it is a good proposal by Geoffrey Lutaaya.
Kiiza said that the government has the will to fight the vice of corruption but in order to win the battle we should fight together.
He also pledged to raise the topic to the appropriate ministries (ICT and finance) regarding: the classification and ban on used computers
On responding to the issue raised by Daisy on sharing resources from oil, Hon Kiiza confirmed that a public finance bill is being discussed in parliament and the issue of how to share oil revenues is well catered for in the bill. Regional districts will be getting 7%.
The minister agreed with Zaharah that people needs to push a bigger development plan rather than a personal agenda.
“Voting rights for Diaspora is a critical issue and needs to be considered to extend voting rights either online or through the Embassies” He said.
He affirmed that the issue of creating a commission the highest level needs to be established and will be fast tracked and will be discussed with the head of state and cabinet

Prepared by WILLY MUTENZA

Chairman – UGANDAN UK CONVENTION

Tel: 07790 647089 | 0207 237 7317

FB: facebook.com/ugandan.conventionuk | Ytube: ugandansinuk

www.ugandanconventionuk.org

2015 Convention: DATE: Saturday, 12 September 2015 | TIME: 09.30 – 19.00

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10/03/2020

Flashback: Interview: Why would anyone invest in Uganda? Eng. Dr. Frank Sebbowa

In the past few years, Uganda has been continuously improving. Experts believe that the country’s economy has great potential as it has several major advantages and virgin opportunities. It is one of the fastest growing economy in the East African region.

Q: Why would anyone invest in Uganda?

A: Investors look for stable environment, stable economy with good economic policies as well as a stable society, within which to do business and Uganda has been stable for more than twenty something years. They need reasonable infrastructure and we are lucky that government has worked and is continuing to work on roads and railway lines.

Uganda is land locked and has potential customers on all its boarders.We are 149 million consumers in East Africa, plus the 340 million COMESA members where we have trade arrangements.

Additionally, we have an educated population which is fairly young, most of them almost ready to be employed. With just minimal skills training, you can definitely get a good and cheap workforce.

Uganda is also committed to exports within the country and outside.

Q: Which opportunities are available for investments?

A: Nearly all areas are available for investment, but currently we would strongly encourage four strategic sectors because of their importance to the economy:

1. Agriculture and processing agricultural products to add value; inputs such as fertilizers, tractors, irrigation systems and commercial farming.

2. ICT would attract and benefit the young workforce I mentioned earlier who are well educated. We also recognize the fact that no country can move forward without the ICT base in its economy.

3. Tourism, especially eco-tourism which is based on culture or environment should be highly focused on.

4. Minerals. We have close to 50 different minerals which need to be explored and mined and mineral beneficiations, a term they use when minerals get polished and made marketable.

Q: Are you able to give us some statistics on the inflow of investments in recent years?

A: We carried out a joint survey with Bank of Uganda and Uganda National Bureau of Statistics looking at which investments have come in for the period 1991-2012. FDI has grown tremendously to about $ 2 billion by 2008, with over 3500 projects licensed. Power stations have been developed with some support from government and other donors but mainly by FDI; we are doing quite a number of roads etc. In the agriculture sector, we have made a lot of difference. You are aware of the Kaweri Coffee, Mukwano Sunflower and huge ranches among others.

Q: Any government guarantees?

A: Uganda is the only country I know in the world where you can come in with your money and go away with your money without anybody asking you about it, as long as it’s legal money. Between you and your bank, subject to legal taxation, you take away all your money without any restrictions.

Q: Is it a good thing to the economy?

A: I think so because anyone who thinks it’s a bad thing, they need to try other countries where to change even $100, you fill two pages of form. And to take it back is also another hassle. If you have a solid sound investment environment, there will be more money flowing in than flowing out.

Like I said earlier, our survey report shows that more has come in over the years. FDI has been growing steadily, not reducing. It creates jobs for us, brings in new technology with new equipment which we didn’t have before; it brings in new skills, and pays taxes that government can use to do other things.

Q: There has been a lot of concern over the quality of investments UIA approves and yet many of these so called investors get tax holiday. What is your comment?

A: I don’t think it’s correct to say they get tax holiday because tax holiday has been tightened in only specific sectors and they are being closely monitored by Uganda Revenue Authority (URA). And because their job is to collect taxes, by the time they give you a waiver you have really qualified for it. And there are provisions under which they are guided to give waivers.

My business is to license investors. These investors come with the sort of money and technology we don’t have and they usually come with skilled manpower we don’t have. But they are compelled on the personnel side to train our locals and after five years or so, they must demonstrate to the immigration department why they would still need expatriates and what they have done about training local people.

Q: What are some of the requirements for investing here?

A: Foreigners we license must bring in $100,000 and for locals, it’s a half of that amount.

Q: Downtown in the central business district, you find Chinese operating businesses with far less capital than the stipulated minimum amount of $100,000. Who is responsible for this?

A: These people get an annual trading license from the local town council, from Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) or from somebody.

Additionally, those people have saved some money from abroad. May be they didn’t come with a lot of money but their money is here. And even if they employ one or two drivers, those are jobs created which were not there before.

The truth of the matter is, the people you are referring to are not really the way we describe our investors because those are traders and UIA does not license traders. The people we license are genuine investors who bring in money, equipment and invest in manufacturing systems.

So there is as a lot of difference but I am emphasizing the fact that whether they are traders as we are referring to them or investors, to the economy they are all good – we need them.

The people who are complaining are inefficient traders, and don’t want the competition. I think that there should be open competition so that somebody, whether Chinese or anyone with a good genuine business, are helping the consumers to lower costs. People think we should create a ring fence around them so that they continue working inefficiently and charge our population highly. I don’t agree. I think that people should compete openly, transparently and fairly so that the real consumers get value for their money.

Q: What would you advise to anyone intending to invest here?

A: They need to know their target market and we advise anyone to project in an environmentally friendly way.They should know how many people they are planning to employ because it’s key to us.

Q: What are the requirements for investing here?

A: These are really simple requirements we need to know:

1) you are a genuine entity, meaning you are recognized by the law

2) you have the money

3) you have a project

4) whether you need land from government or you have your own

Q: Is land available from government?

A: Yes, land is available from government if you have a good project.

Q: Is this a good time to invest in Uganda?

A: I think it’s a good time because of several reasons. We are now close to our oil boom which I seehappening in 2-3 years from now. You need to get in the market now rather later so that by the time the benefits of oil start flowing in you are already there. You can’t wait for the oil to take off; you need be on the ground in good time.

The economy is ready to set off in many ways. It has been growing and our population is expanding. People are going to need food, so if you have a passion for agriculture I would encourage anyone to get in and start investing now rather than later. The traditional food we used to enjoy is now hard to find, why? Because the market and the consumers have increased. Before we could not take goods to Southern Sudan, now things like eggs, chicken, cabbages etc are going there every day. Fish used to be plenty, now with new markets in Europe, we may need to grow fish, and we can no longer rely on the lake, the natural fishing.

The needs of the oil industry are incredible. They will need people to give them cabbages, Irish potatoes, eggs etc, cleaning services, simple mechanics and so on. So I will advise anyone to go into training people with hands on experience so that by time the oil market demands many of these people, they are already there and still many young people will come to you for training.

Uganda for a long time was not connected on the Marine Cable for ICT. Now we are connected to the three rights from the East African coast. So why not start businesses in say, call centres? In fact, some people might want to process routine accounts. So almost in all fields I see opportunities , so just make your package now. It is the time to do so.

Q: What is UIA doing to attract new investments?

A: Well, we have our road shows. We have developed a catalogue of projects that people can invest in and we are sending these to all our 30 embassies.

We are launching these catalogues ourselves, in Nairobi after we launched it in Uganda. Soon we will go to USA, UK, Denmark, Middle East so that people get to know the projects are available.

We are also using foreigners who have invested here as our goodwill ambassadors. When they hear it from their colleagues, they think it’s more believable.

We have TV talk shows here and even when we go abroad, we give as many interviews as we can.

Even government is taking the right steps to ensure that our macro and economic policies are correct and ensuring peace and stability in the country.

Q: How about the local investors, how are you attracting them?

A: We have developed a small to medium enterprise division within UIA which looks after those numerous investments. We started training them since last year into business and entrepreneur skills, improving productivity in their businesses, improving quality and standards.

For the larger ones, we are trying to cut down bottlenecks so we work for the whole spectrum.

Q: One of the contentions is the elaborate procedures for licensing an investment. Is anything being done about it?

A: We have restructured our front office into a physical one-stop centre. We will house all offices we think are key to an investor, for example, UIA, Registrar of Companies, Immigration, NEMA. So all these desk officers will be will be connected by computers to their parent organizations. This, we think will quicken the processes. And as I speak now, if you come with the requirements, you will walk away with your license in two days.

by Milly Kalyabe – Editor, Uganda Economy

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24/02/2020

Investing in Forestry in Uganda? Who said Money cannot grow on Trees?

By D. E. Wasake

Wondering where your coffee table and furnitures timber came from?

How about while driving through Mabira forest, wondered what the cost of investing in a natural wood forest is?

For a typical Ugandan of course this might not be the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of forestry. You will most likely think of two things:

900m shillings of suspected stolen funds being hidden in a house by the National Forestry Authority (NFA) director; and
Former Vice President Gilbert “Mahogany” Bukenya being “cut down” by a certain “pit sawyer” in the Chainsaw Masaka (sic). Apologies for all the puns.

In considering whether to invest in forestry, it is worth noting that:

In the U.S, over the past two decades, returns in US timber land have only been negative twice and returned an average 12.7% annually between 1990 and 2008.

This is significantly better than the return of 7.32 % over the same period that would have been achieved investing in the S & P’s 500 index. The S&P 500 index is basically a measure of the performance of 500 largest and most actively traded stocks of large companies in the U.S What this means is that generally it is more profitable to invest in forests than the 500 “best” companies in the U.S.

In the UK in 2006/2007, forestry was the best asset performing class with returns of 26% compared to 17% for shares.

In Uganda, on the basis of information from NFA and the Sawlog Production Grant Scheme(SPGS) a European Union(EU) funded program to promote commercial forestry in Uganda the returns are also in the range of 9-16%.

With that in mind, how do you then proceed to invest in forests considering not many investors are

by nature “forest people”.

There are 3 options to consider in Uganda.

Option 1: Direct investments in private forest. This involves the investor inncurring the costs directly including purchase/lease of land, planting, weeding, forest management et al.
Option 2: Lease from National Forestry Authority (NFA). In this case, the land leased is one of the various Government owned forest reserves. The investor is given a lease/permit to harvest the trees and in return pays a rent to NFA. I am personally not a fan of this option owing to the politics and back hand deals that can often come with this option, for example having to pay bribes to get the concession/licence. There is also the bureaucracy of the process. I will therefore not analyse this option further.
Option 3: Forest fund. A forest fund is basically one where the investor contributes a fixed amount say £10,000 to a pool together with other investors. The forest fund will basically be a company or other legal structure that invests in different tree types and in different geographical locations from a basket of options.

You can read the rest of the article which contains start up capital estimates, profitability analysis as well as PROS and CONS of investing in this sector at the website:

http://investinginuganda.yolasite.com/the-sector-analysis.php

About me:

I am a Chartered Accountant(ACCA) currently working for a Top 10 accountancy practice in the U.K. I have over 8 years experience in providing audit, accounts, tax and advisory to clients in Uganda, The Bahamas and The U.K.

The Investing in Uganda series is part of my relentless focus to changing the entrepreneur mindset in Uganda by providing FREE information and support to help the investor realise their dream.

http://investinginuganda.yolasite.com/

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24/02/2020

Mr. Fabian Kasi MD Centenary Bank, transforming the bank into a Ushs1trillion institution

Taddewo Senyonyi

Much has been said about the failure by Ugandans to rise to the helm of serious organisations. In fact many reasons have been advanced to explain this occurrence ranging from the reasonable to the ultimate unreasonable. But as the debate rages on regarding why Ugandan business leaders are not rising to the occasion, there are some Ugandan leaders that have stood out as symbols of our capability to grab the opportunity and ride with it.

Fabian Kasi, the Managing Director of Centenary Bank, is one of those leaders. Intelligent, simple and professional are some of the best words to describe the 46 year old Kasi. Unlike many CEOs, getting an appointment with Kasi especially when you have (a) genuine reason isn’t a tall order but you must be prepared to arrive for the meeting on time, because he is strict with his time. “Every one of us has 24 hours each day”.

“How well you manage your time determines how much you can complete in a single day and ultimately how successful you will be in whatever you are trying to put your hands on,” he says. Dressed in a dark blue suit, the soft spoken Kasi wears a simple genuine smile as he welcomes me into his office at Mapeera House, the headquarters of Centenary Bank.

His office is spacious but not opulently decorated. A fine finish of brown wood, whose mahogany brown colour is sufficiently illuminated by ceiling lights, gives his office an aura of authority and class.

The not too wide crystal blue windows at the back of his desk give you a vantage view of the hustle and bustle on Kampala Road and the Constitutional square something that Kasi says gives him a chance to quickly appreciate the wide variety of customers that Centenary Bank was built to serve.

His early life

Born in Matugga, Wakiso district, 46 years ago, Kasi, attended Matugga Primary School, St. Mary’s College Kisubi for O and A levels, before proceeding to Makerere University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce (first class degree), majoring in accounting in 1991.

He also holds a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Newcastle, Australia and is a fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA) of United Kingdom and a full member of the Association of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda. He has also trained in several banking and accounting courses both within Uganda and abroad. At 46 years only, Kasi wields vast working experience in banking and accounting spanning over 20 years.

Since 1990, he has worked for several organisations including Centenary bank where he is currently managing director, FINCA Uganda, Commercial Bank of Rwanda, British American Tobacco (Uganda), Bank of Uganda, Makerere University, the University of Newcastle, PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Shell Uganda Ltd. At 46 years of age, Kasi is definitely one of the youngest CEOs in the country’s mainstream corporate entities and is probably the only under 50 CEOs to head a trillion shilling company.

Kasi’s meteoric rise to senior leadership positions didn’t come on a silver platter. He says, the time, resources and energies he invested to develop his character and career is the key to the magic. “The ability to inspire confidence in the team, hard work and being result oriented and being able to show results have been key in my life. Where I have worked, I have left a good track record of performance,” he says, adding: “the ability to demonstrate good skills learning all the time and improving your skills is very important in shaping any career.”

Track Record

For example, having joined Centenary bank in August 2010 from FINCA Uganda, where he was country Director from 2002 to 2010, Kasi took the bank to another level, it is now the 4th and 5th in terms of profitability and asset base respectively as of December 2012. During his leadership at Centenary Bank, customer deposits have grown from Ushs500bn in 2010 to Ushs820bn by end of 2012.

Net profits have grown from Ushs22bn per year to Ushs56bn in the same period while branch network has grown from 37 branches to 57 branches. Credit extended to public has grown from Ushs320bn to Ushs575bn by end of 2012, while client numbers have grown from 900,000 to 1,300,000. At FINCA where he was the Country Manager before joining Centenary Bank, he grew its loan book from Ushs 4.5bn to Ushs21bn, with portfolio at risk of only 2%.

Loan client numbers grew from 35,000 to 46,000 while savers stood at 80,000. He however is quick to chip in that his successes have been largely associated with the teams he works with. “As a manager, identifying good talent in the team and sufficiently motivating and developing them to deliver is a challenge that every leader must take on,” he says, adding: “Empowering people, giving them the confidence to make decisions is critical.”

A day in the life of Kasi

He wakes up at 5:30am and by 6:30am he is out of home, to drop his children to school and by 7:00am, he is already in office. While in office, the first thing he does is to review work of the day, then reads newspapers and prepares for meetings. “In the afternoon, I visit clients and some branches and sometimes I am in meetings,” he says. He calls it (the day) quits at 6:30pm. And since work without play makes Jack a dull boy, Kasi goes to the gym at Kampala Club and Serena hotel.

While there, he also chats and interacts with friends. “You may over lean on work, forgetting that there’s life beyond work but I manage to balance the two for my acquaintances are important both personally and professionally.” He says he spends quality time with his family over the weekends and remembers to go with family to church especially on Sundays.

He likes playing soccer, reading magazines and watching drama. Apart from being the managing director of Centenary bank, Kasi is not only obsessed with banking but also farming; he is into commercial tree farming.

Advice to aspiring leaders & budding entrepreneurs

“They should make a roadmap; work hard, continuously learn new skills and improve them. In other words, they should build character and confidence,” he advises, adding: “In banking, integrity is very key.”

He advises the youth to work hard and motivate employers but they must also look at jobs creation.“Getting rich very quickly is not a good thing you need to invest in time, resources, energies in developing your character and competencies,” he counsels. To Kasi, entrepreneurs should be resilient if they are to succeed.

“They should set the vision what they want to achieve and work at it. This means investing in time, knowledge and resources aiming at creating trust within themselves and the communities in which they work,” he said, adding: “Our (Centenary bank) philosophy is not to make a lot of money but be useful to the community and the public this has won us trust and the clients have become loyal to us, they see us as their bank.”

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16/01/2020

Why should I invest in Government bills and bonds?

The Government of Uganda recognises the Ugandan Diaspora as a powerful resource in the development of the economy, as viewed from the significant size of the remittances from abroad, among others. Owing to this, deliberate efforts have been made by the Government, with support from the UNDP, to increase awareness on investing in Government of Uganda securities, with a medium-long term aim of issuing bonds specifically targeted to the Diaspora.

Why should I invest in Government bills and bonds?

These are risk free, liquid and provide a reasonable and consistent return to the investors
Bond coupon payments are made every six months and you have an opportunity to re-invest the coupon
Bonds can be used as collateral for loans
The investment horizon ranges from 91-days, 182-days, 364-days, 2 years, 3 years, 5 years, 10 years and 15 years
A bond can be sold on the secondary market for a capital gain
Investment opportunities avail themselves at least three times a month; twice for Treasury bills, once for Treasury bonds
Initial investment of UGX 100,000 only
Investing in Government bonds is one way in which you can make a contribution to the development of the economy.

Real life examples of how to benefit from bond investments

The infant/school boy/girl; can use this as a savings opportunity since rates are usually competitive, compared to savings accounts, etc. The minimum investment size of UGX 100,000 would suit this group

The Business man/woman; Cash in a bond can be used as collateral for a loan;

The Business man/woman; Cash in a bond can be used as collateral for a loan;

The Retired worker; A constant cash-flow is available if one invests his retirement package gradually in a bond, while preserving Capital
A Diaspora worker sending funds to his/her family for fees; they could invest in a bond, and the coupon could pay the fees
A Diaspora worker interested in working for a target period; the infrastructure developed from the proceeds of the bond will enable them find a better environment at home when they return (e.g., the Israelis after the holocaust)

How do I start investing?

Open a Central Securities Depository system (CSD) account with a Primary Dealer bank (Barclays, Baroda, Stanbic, Standard Chartered, DFCU and Centenary)

An SSL (Standard Secure Language) Certificate will be sent to your email address; follow the instructions in the email and download it onto your PC

You will receive the bond prospectus two-weeks ahead of the auction

You could consult the BOU website to view the prevailing market yields from the yield curve; which will guide you as you price your bid.
You then submit your bids online; this way, a message will go to your commercial bank, which will in-turn update your CSD profile
Bond results will be sent to your emails (or you can log onto your account and monitor your profile)
Bond coupons and interest will be paid directly into your local account

Arnold Bagubwagye
Assistant Director, FMDS
Financial Markets Department
Bank of Uganda

http://www.ugandandiasporanews.com/2014/01/06/diaspora-bonds-government-bonds-an-investment-opportunity-for-the-ugandan-diaspora-community/

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17/09/2018

Thank you for supporting the 8th Ugandan Convention-15th Sept2018!

The Uganda UK Convention wishes to express its deepest thanks to Hon Betty Amongi Ongom, Minister of Lands Housing and Urban Development, Uganda and Lord Dolar Popat, UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Uganda and Rwanda.

The important messages they shared on the day have contributed to the tremendous success of the day, and have been instrumental in meeting the goals and objectives of the Convention.

Thanks also goes to all Commissioners and Ambassadors from Europe, business delegates, community and enterprise leaders, professionals from Europe and Uganda and representatives of the voluntary sector and all other sponsors and exhibitors who have paved the way forward for an enhanced and enriched communication between members of the Ugandan Diaspora and Uganda itself, and have also, undoubtedly brought Ugandans in the UK closer together and as well as promoting Uganda as a no.1 investment destination in East Africa.

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Thanks also goes to all visitors, who through their attendance have acknowledged the crucial role that the Diaspora has to play in the development of Uganda, and with whom, a definite way forward can now be etched to fully participate in Ugandan affairs in a most fruitful and successful way.

Thanks goes to all volunteers who helped on the day and whose support and contribution are highly appreciated. And thanks to all those, too many to mention, who, in one way or another, have given their encouragement and shared ideas to make the 8th Uganda UK Convention a truly outstanding success. We have had outstanding speakers from the Ugandan Government and the business community encouraging us all to invest in our motherland.

In addition, we were privileged to hear some very inspiring personal stories of Rose Twine a Ugandan Diaspora who relocated back to Uganda and successful started a multi $ Million business in eco-stove.

May we all gain much insight and inspiration from these contributions and now make firm commitments to proceed with our individual projects to transform our own lives and the lives of others in our own communities in the UK and in Uganda at large.

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The theme of the day was “Driving Trade, Unleashing Investment and Enhancing Economic Development: The Gateway to Ugandan Markets” and it fits well with some of our core objectives which are:

Promoting and facilitating bilateral trade between the United Kingdom, Europe, the Diaspora and Uganda
Facilitating foreign direct investment in Uganda
Providing a platform for businesses to expand into new markets
Promoting British businesses exporting to Uganda
And encouraging and exposing business and investment opportunities to Ugandans living in the UK.

A lot has been happening in Uganda on the political scene and a special session debated and interfaced with members of Uganda Diasporas attending on the day.

The Chairman asked members of the Government to take our message back home that Ugandans in the Diaspora are appalled and concerned by the recent human right abuse perpetrated against members of the parliament and Ugandans at large.

The Chairman also pointed out that that despite the situation in Uganda, the onus is on us as Ugandans to control the narrative and promote Uganda as the Land of opportunity. It is also everyone’s responsibility to expand the role of the Ugandan Diaspora from family remitters to financial and social investors by exposing them to opportunities by our various partners.

Delegates listened to speakers who discussed among others opportunities in infrastructure and real estate. Speakers from Colas UK, a subsidiary of a French civil engineering firm, Colas Group. Lars Peter Jensen, Area Manager of Uganda Colas Limited shared an investor’s perspective and best practices in investing in Uganda.

An expert panel moderated by Edwin Musiime, a TV property show host on NTV Uganda discussed real estate sector focusing on financing where there are opportunities, understanding market demand, and addressing the disconnection between the price of formal, developer-built housing and what the general population can afford.

Over five affordable housing developers exhibited and also shared on the disruption of affordable housing market; what the current sources of funding are; what the plans/initiatives to make housing credit more affordable are; and what alternative financing solutions are available.

An expert overview of free trade agreements (FTAs) and boosting intra-regional trade in East Africa was presented by Nicholas Tate, Managing Director, Tate Freight Forms Ltd.

Lord Dolar Popat, UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Uganda and Rwanda gave an update on the UK’s export growth strategy.

Untapped opportunities in Manufacturing, Agri-Business, Media, ICT, Health and Manufacturing healthcare, and Service industry were discussed by an expert panel which also debated on Uganda’s Export Opportunities and Challenges to European and North American markets.

Dr. Samuel Mugasi the Executive Director of NAADS presented an overview in the agri-food supply chain.
I would like again to thank Uganda Government and the private sector for their continual support of the Uganda UK Convention.

I would like to take this same opportunity to re-affirm that the UK Convention has never received any monetary support from the Uganda Government. The Convention is solely funded by myself and all of you who attend and contribute money in form of ticket fees and exhibition fees.

Finally, he acknowledged the sponsors without whom the event could not be what it was. Namely; Comfort Homes, Roofings Ltd, Fakhruddin, KPG Property managers, Housing Finance Bank, WORLD REMIT, Jakarna Heights, Alvan Blanch, VJ Immigration, Southgate Properties, Buganda Land Board, Universal Enterprises, SMW Marketing, Colas Ltd | SBC (Uganda) Ltd, Property Show, Going Global, Promota Africa and Institute Corporate Governance, the media partners and the organising committee.

He welcomed the exhibitors, and everyone who attended, and made the Convention the great experience that it had become.

“It is all about you, for you and by you, and it would not be what it is without you”, said Willy Mutenza

He wished the guests successful and fruitful deliberations.

“For God and My country – Uganda”, he said

I invite you again at the 9^th Uganda Convention in London on the 14^th Sept at Troxy.

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23/05/2018

Volunteers Wanted for the Ugandan UK Convention

Do you want to make a difference?

We are looking for enthusiastic and pro-active community spirited people to take on various responsibilities before and during the Convention’s day.

What will I get out of volunteering?

It depends on what motivates you. Volunteering with the Convention will mean you are making a difference (directly or indirectly). You could also benefit from helping or supporting other people, using existing skills or learning new ones, gaining confidence, being creative, responding to challenges, and being with other people. You may feel satisfaction from playing a positive role in someone else’s life or the Community. If you’re looking for work, you will gain valuable experience for your CV. Above all else we want our volunteers to have fun and enjoy their experience.

How much time do I have to give?

As much or as little as you want . You can tell us what you can do and when you can do it and we will help you find a volunteer role which is suitable.

Some roles, especially those reaching out to the Community are very challenging as you may need to work at unsociable times. Other roles have a minimum time commitment of a few hours per week. At Last year’s convention some people volunteered for a couple of hours a week, others helped out at one-off events or during community outreach campaigns.

What skills do I need to volunteer?

This will depend on what you do. If you don’t have the skills needed, where possible, we’ll help you develop them. Often, patriotism, enthusiasm, the ability to smile and encourage are the most important skills required.

Volunteer’s roles:

Social-media (face book, twitter, likened etc updating information and awareness
Fundraiser/sponsorship co-coordinator
Event co-coordinator – guide & motivate the event committee
Marketing
Ushering on the day
Community outreach awareness campaigner, visiting social and church gatherings

About the Convention:

The expo bring together experts, business leaders, professionals and representatives from prominent organisations based in Uganda, the UK and internationally. Delegates obtain up-to-date information on the vast potential for investment that Uganda (East Africa) offers to both the domestic and international community, acquire business tips, obtain relevant literature on priority sectors for investment, take part in an interactive Q & A session and hear about the realities of doing business in Uganda.

The expo is now the biggest forum focused on Uganda in Europe and attracts more than 2000 on the day. We have two sessions from 9.00am to 7pm sessions and workshops and later an after party which also attracts more than 1500 guests.

Delegates at the event will gain:

Gain key insights and trends from industry experts
Breakdown challenges and access guidelines on investment opportunities in Uganda
Learn how to navigate various sectors’ business and investment opportunities
Network with other delegates interested in diversifying their portfolios
Meet key industry leaders, policy makers, and other creative business thought leaders
Explore the options available to grow your businesses
Highlight the commercial gaps in an economically ripe industry
Access networking opportunities with government officials, current and potential investors, private sector companies, inter-governmental and multilateral organisations, consultancies and advisory firms, and other stake-holders, including high level speakers.
Gain access to opportunities for scheduled or one-to-one meetings are also available with our VIPs

If you want to know more about our volunteering opportunities, please contact us on

Mobile: +447790647089 | Email: info@ugandanconventionuk.org

Team -Uganda Convention-UK (UCUK)
Whattsup (+44) 7790 647089

________________________________________

Online Tickets:
8th Uganda-UK Investment Convention
Sat, 15 Sep 2018 | time: 9am – 6.30pm
Order at: https://ucuk2018.eventbrite.co.uk

After party: The Legendary AFRIGO BAND + FIK FAMEICA
15th Sept 2018 | Time: 8pm – 02.30am
Venue: Troxy, 490 Commercial Rd, E1 0HX London UK
Buy your ticket at https://goo.gl/gsKL2M.
or call ticket Hotline: 0844 249 1000*

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However, African opportunities are now and have been for over the past 100 years. I speak from experience as I am a beneficiary and my family who is in Uganda and East Africa over the past 100 years and many of you also share that experience.