KITINTALE PROGRESSIVE STUDENTS DONATE TO BWEYA CHILDREN'S HOME

In the course of 2011, students of Kitintale Progressive Secondary School made a trip to Bweya Children's Home International. These students, out of their pocket money, they thought it wise to spare some shillings and buy some items for children who are vulnerable. They ended up at Bweya Children's Home. This is commended by children if they realize that they have brothers and sisters who don't have someone to give them pocket money as a routine because such a one is biologically responsible for their upbringing. What Kitintale progressive did for Bweya can be done by many children/students countrywide to help the education needs of their brothers and sisters. What Kitintale did is comparable to what I proposed sometime ago in the name of Donor's Clubs as is below.

ABOUT DONOR'S CLUBS
We are all aware of the high drop out rates in schools due to the cost and if students can form of Donors’ Clubs at class level in each boarding secondary school for a start, chances of bailing out many needy children is possible.
Raising financial resources by vulnerable children to meet the cost of education in Uganda is the major reason for non attendance at school. The Common Country Assessment of Uganda, UN, 2004 says that only 24% of boys and 21% of girls in the 2003 Universal Primary Education (UPE) completed Primary Seven (P7). While Education is nominally free of charge, the 2004 National Service Delivery Survey, Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 2004 found that payments were often requested. There are associated costs, such as Transport, Uniforms, Exercise books, Geometry sets, capacity to do homework (no fuel); 63% of those dropping out of school cited cost as the main reason. One in four children from urban households can count on receiving secondary education while one in ten from households living in rural areas is likely to have access to same level of education. Orphan hood is a major barrier preventing school attendance; and those due to HIV/AIDS who are under 18 years are over 900,000, and, with a population growth rate of 3.4% per annum, the situation worsens with time. Yet, according to the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) 2006, Uganda has a young population with the majority 52% below 15 years. Loss of parents results in lack of proper care hence limiting access to education. It is important getting a solution to the would-be uneducated children as they add to the army of the uneducated whose prospects to development are under exploited. Secondly, the non-school going children are constantly looking for support in for of bursaries yet many cannot access them leaving them frustrated. There is evidence that many vulnerable children when availed education opportunities are positive development agents as deprivation induces them to deliver to society. Leaving them uneducated induces them to criminals.
Why the 10% Donors’ Clubs?
Not long ago, parents turned up for a Visitation at St. Mary’s Secondary School Kitende. Unfortunately, on the way back, one parent died in a motor accident on Jinja Highway . This is one of the many cases where students lose parents and they are unable to continue with studies. In other instances, some bright children are admitted to secondary schools but due to lack of fees, these ones either go to very poor schools if they don’t drop out of school completely. The 10% Donors’ Clubs is therefore an initiative to bail out students with such problems not forgetting the many whose parents are being claimed by HIV/AIDS. It is also an initiative to encourage the students at an early age to have a practical feeling for the deprived. It also focuses on helping bright vulnerable children to get education given that the chances that (the helped) have a big potential of making sound contribution to the development of the country.
Deciding on the beneficiary
Members at class level may agree on helping a chosen student; it could be a classmate or a known child out there or; the school administration could make a proposal say among admitted students of one or a number of such students with fees problems. Because the exercise should be done every term, chances of supporting an identified beneficiary through secondary school are great. If this exercise takes off in all boarding secondary schools in Uganda ; the total number of beneficiary students may not be few.

William Kituuka Kiwanuka

MAKING AN ANNUAL REPORT

Some organizations have a problem with making annual reports, the major reason why this may be so is that these organizations don’t make monthly reports; or even weekly reports. When these reports are in place, an annual report just summarizes the salient areas of performance in a year and the document is at hand. If an organization can have departmental reports together with photo images of activities, I don’t see how making an annual report can be a headache. NGO’s in Uganda are required to submit reports prior to re-knewing their certificates, I see the good side of this being that it makes the NGO to seriously document what has gone on in the year of operation, in fact time is ripe for organizations in Uganda to change their financial year to move in line with the Government’s Fiscal year. To better understand what has gone on the country in a financial year, it is best to incorporate the non government sector as it is a serious player in the country’s development process. With time, the Civil Society Organizations should be required to submit a summary of their operations in a year to Government so that they are incorporated into the development activities of the country in a given fiscal year.

William Kituuka Kiwanuka

JUSTICE JULIA SEBUTINDE SPEAKS ON NEW WORLD COURT JOB

wmutenza 12/14/2011 0
Justice Sebutinde speaks on new world court job

Kampala

Justice Julia Sebutinde has described as a dream-come-true her election as the world court judge while Uganda welcomed the positive vote by the UN as a “relief”.
“I am excited and look forward to embarking on the job,” Justice Sebutinde said by telephone from New York, where she pitched camp to campaign for the coveted International Court of Justice (ICJ) job. She added: “I take nothing for granted and I know that this is going to be a tough job and an ultimate test of my personal judicial independence and courage.”
Justice Sebutinde is presently one of the judges at the Hague-based UN Special Court for Sierra Leone, trying former Liberian President Charles Taylor. She beat off spirited competition from Sierra Leonean Judge Abdul Koroma to win the ICJ slot after obtaining 97 votes in the UN General Assembly compared to Koroma’s 83. The 15-member Security Council gave her nine votes and six to the Sierra Leonean, who already served at the World Court for 18 years.
The vote came three weeks after 11 rounds of inconclusive UN votes on two separate days when Sebutinde won majority votes in the General Assembly but Justice Koroma beat her in the Security Council.
It is understood the deadlock prompted President Museveni to make personal calls to foreign capitals, resulting in a swing vote by UN Security Council delegates in Sebutinde’s favour. “It is a real relief,” Uganda’s acting Permanent Representative to the UN, Mr Adonia Ayebare, said by telephone from New York. “Sebutinde was the African Union-endorsed candidate. There is discipline in Africa and we did not have to go through this mess.”
Mr Ayebare’s remarks were in reference to Sierra Leone’s surprise presentation of Justice Koroma as a candidate against Justice Sebutinde who had been unanimously endorsed by AU technocrats, the ministerial council and heads of states’ summit.

Unsettled ballot
His candidature for re-election polarised the continental bloc as well as UN member states, resulting in 11 rounds of voting during last month’s contest. Mr Ayebare said: “We hope in future the AU endorsements for jobs and international assignments or positions will be respected.”
The victory, said Justice Sebutinde, was a product of aggressive lobbying by the “small but able” team of Ugandan diplomats in New York, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials in Kampala as well as State House. She said: “It was a long struggle involving a lot of perseverance and support of our small but able team. I don’t look at this job as one only for the personal benefit of Sebutinde but the whole of Africa.” She becomes the first African woman to serve as judge at the World Court.
Since Justice Koroma was seeking re-election for a third term after serving at ICJ for 18 years, Uganda focused on the need for a fresh blood, gender equality and the country’s Common Law jurisdiction to rally reluctant states.
This newspaper has learnt that Ugandan diplomats in New York managed to identify states opposed to Sebutinde’s candidature – even when the previous votes were taken by secret ballot – and forwarded the list to Kampala so President Museveni would engage them directly.

Interview: Ambassador Patrick Mugoya, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism Wildlife and Heritage

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The Promota: Uganda was selected the world’s tourist destination for the year 2012 by “Lonely planet”, an international publisher of the world’s largest travel guidebook and digital media. How is Uganda Travel Bureau (UTB) taking advantage of this accolade, internationally?
Ambassador Mugoya: Uganda Tourism Board has incorporated this recognition into the country’s short term and medium term marketing campaign through a number of initiatives including; the use of social media to market the various tourism destinations and products in Uganda; encouraging destination endorsement through familiarization trips by the leading tourism suppliers and celebrities coming to Uganda.
We have emphasized this strategy in all up-coming conferences such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly due to take place in April 2012 and major National events like, the upcoming 50th Independence Anniversary Celebrations of Uganda 2012. We are urging the highest levels of political and other structures to embrace it as part of the national promotion initiative.
PM: What are Uganda’s unique selling points? Have there been any new discoveries or projects taking place?
Ambassador Mugoya: The new projects taking place include, repositioning of the Tourism sector with the creation of a fully fledged Ministry and prioritization of the sector in the National Development Plan.
By regional and international comparison, Uganda is exceptionally endowed with unique and rich ecological and cultural resources; hence the historical brand as the “Pearl of Africa” stated by Sir Winston Churchill in 1908. Over 270 tourist attraction sites have so far been recorded including 10 National Parks and 13 Wildlife Reserves, 13 Wildlife Sanctuaries, 5 Community Wildlife Areas, 506 Central Forest Reserves and 191 Local Forest Reserves. All are characterized by mosaic of landscape inhabited by and comprising a unique diversity and richness of wildlife, cultures and way of life of indigenous peoples.
Uganda’s unique selling points include the following; Uganda hosts 54% of the world’s Mountain Gorillas; the Source of the River Nile, the second longest River in the world; more than 1,150 species of birds which equates to 11% of global bird species, and more than 4,500 plant species which makes Uganda an eco-tourism paradise. And Mountain Rwenzori, situated on the Equator, is a mountaineering wonder with permanent snow throughout the year.
Uganda is home to a large number of primates and 8% of the global mammal diversity including the big five; 19% of the Africa’s amphibian species richness and 14% of Africa’s reptile species richness. White water rafting, bungee jumping and sport fishing also offer unique experiences on the River Nile.
The country has unique and rich ecological and cultural resources, and is also well known for its wide cultural heritage and excellent hospitality.
PM: Considering the 350,000 Ugandans believed to be in the UK, do you have any plans to tap into this market?
Ambassador Mugoya: Uganda is very interested in the Ugandans in the Diaspora and sees them as Ambassadors for marketing Uganda abroad. Accordingly, UTB intends to identify new clusters in which Ugandans in the Diaspora can be mobilized and sensitized so as to encourage not only themselves, but also their friends, relatives and acquaintances to visit Uganda. This will be done in collaboration and coordination with the Uganda Missions abroad, as representatives in the source markets.
PM: Uganda earns over 650 million US Dollars from over 500,000 tourists annually. Why is it that very little is invested in promoting the industry compared to other regional markets?
Ambassador Mugoya: For sometime the focus of government was on investing in sectors that would enable the economy to recover, such as agriculture, infrastructure, industry, health, education and security, after the many years of upheaval prior to 1986. Since then, a lot has been achieved and the focus is now shifting to sectors likely to further catalyze the growth of the economy such as tourism.
PM: The tourism industry was growing during the most severe economic crisis of a generation, and it was said that the number of international tourists globaly in 2012 would break through the one billion barrier. What are you doing to ensure that tourism is sustained to maintain growth?
Ambassador Mugoya: Steps being undertaken to ensure that tourism is sustained to maintain growth include; the review of Uganda’s Tourism Master plan which expired in 2003, the development of a responsive tourism marketing strategy, focusing on international, regional and domestic tourism promotion and skills development to ensure quality service delivery.
The Ministry is also positioning itself to ensure protection and sustainable utilization of Uganda’s natural and cultural heritage resources, reviewing key issues that affect the overall destination competitiveness and carrying out product development through Public Private Partnerships. We have also embarked on the promotion of domestic tourism including the formation of Tourism clubs in schools.
PM: Ugandan Embassies have always been poorly branded and under-utilised when promoting Uganda. Are there any plans to change this in par with most African countries?
Ambassador Mugoya: Embassies are an important tool for destination promotion. When poorly branded and utilized, they become a weak link in the chain for Tourism promotion. We therefore intend to brand the Embassies, identify and train personnel in order to promote tourism in source markets. We shall also increase our support to the Embassies with the necessary marketing materials.
PM: Africa is leading the world in mobile commerce with the travel industry at the forefront of the movement, reveals the WTM Global Trends Report, released in early Nvember 2011 at World Travel Market. What plans have been set up by UTB to promote tourism via technology?
Ambassador Mugoya: UTB together with other strategic Tourism Partners intends to further leverage the power of technology in promoting Uganda as an attractive tourism destination through the development of a National tourism portal and a dedicated social media campaign.
PM: Were the Ministry of Tourism’s expectations realised at the WTM?
Ambassador Mugoya: The Ministry’s expectations were well met during the World Travel Market exhibition. The ministry participated at the highest level of representation. The delegation was led by Hon. Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu, Minister of Tourism Wildlife and Heritage and included private sector participants.
Overall, the attendance at the Uganda stand was encouraging gauging from the interactions with the participants. The delegation participated in a number of activities, including the Ministerial meeting that addressed the topic ‘How Tourism can prosper during times of uncertainty’. At the Regional Ministers meeting hosted by Hon. Ephraim Kamuntu, members discussed joint marketing activities of the East African Region; a networking cocktail for Uganda’s business partners at the Uganda stand, where a number of Uganda’s Tourism attractions were highlighted and the World Travel and Tourism Council meeting.
Uganda registered a substantial number of inquiries on the country’s products, while the private sector participants signed a number of contracts with international tour operators. The interest in Uganda’s stand reflected the big potential the country has. During his stay, Hon. Ephraim Kamuntu also gave a number of press interviews.
PM: What are the best opportunities to invest in tourism in Uganda and what incentives are in place?
Ambassador Mugoya: Uganda has a favorable investment climate with a one-stop investment centre, the Uganda Investment Authority. The areas for investment include among others, accommodation, tour, travel operations and charter flights, heritage parks, and entertainment centers, water transport, angling/ sport fishing, water rafting, game ranching, restaurants, tourism and hospitality training institutions.
PM: Normalcy is back in Northern Uganda. Are there any plans to rejuvenate the tourism industry in the region especially the cultural sites?
Ambassador Mugoya: There are plans to rejuvenate the Tourism Industry in the northern region. The documentation is ongoing of the tourism sites to be put in the database for future development. The preservation of four memorial sites in conjunction with the communities, has already commenced. A strategy to promote the northern slave trade route, covering Fort Patiko, Pabo, Wadelai, Dufile and Nimule is also ongoing. The Fort Patiko trail was launched in September 2011 as part of the activities to mark the World Tourism Day. Plans are also in advanced stages to develop the Tourism facilities at the Nyero Rock paintings in Eastern Uganda.

SPEECH BY HON.MARIA KIWANUKA MINISTER OF FINANCE

Speech – Hon Maria Kiwanuka, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning.
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Hon-Maria-Kiwanuka

Session Keynote speaker – Investment Opportunities for Diasporas
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC2OzlXWZw0
She said that the Convention was very timely as developments at home had created many opportunities for members of the Diaspora. Uganda and Africa currently present some of the highest returns on capital in the world, with some projects having a ROI of up to 30%. This figure, she said contrasted very favourably with the recession that the Diaspora had had to face in the UK and other parts of the world.
She said that the Ugandan Diaspora had special skills and networks, that they were very resilient people who migrated just with skills but still made it, for which she congratulated them, amid loud applause! She explained it was these very skills, attributes and a “I can do it. I am not afraid of anything. I can make it” attitude that she wished to be brought back home. This attitude should position well anyone wishing to exploit the opportunities in Uganda, to bring transformation back home and to themselves.
She assured the audience that her Ministry is committed to provide all the necessary help for people to settle back in Uganda or to invest in the country, aiming to provide the necessary infrastructure and policy environment. She said that the reforms had created a vibrant financial sector to provide credits and advice on financial strategies, and also strong telecommunication and transport sectors, which had lowered the costs of doing business in Uganda. She mentioned as an example how MTN and Western Union had joined forces to lower the costs of sending money back home by mobile phone.

Next, she highlighted the opportunities available in Uganda:
Oil sector – construction of oil refinery, storage facilities and pipelines, distribution of natural gas products, logistics and transportation, marketing of oil products, skills training and capacity building in oil and gas
Tourism – Provision of accommodation facilities in major tourist parks, beach resorts around the water bodies, especially around Victoria Lake, Hospitality training facilities, marketing efforts worldwide to help promote Uganda globally.
Manufacture – Agriculture – Housing – Health – Finance
Textile, ceramics, dairy, beef, medical and veterinary drugs, plastics and packaging, fertilisers, seeds implements and paper product; agriculture processing (Uganda’s most promising and key strength); commercial fish farming, establishment of commercial seed multiplication centres, poultry, animal and crop farming, value addition through the processing of fruits and vegetables and other agricultural products.
Construction of silos would address the lack of storage, which is now forcing farmers to sell their products straight after harvest, at whatever price they can get, to avoid it perishing.
Leather processing, planting of trees, mining and ITC, establishment of business processing and outsourcing centres, digital paid television, management and transmission of data storage facilities.
Housing sector, energy, financial sector, mortgage facilities, merchant banking, Islamic banking products, leasing finance for example for farm machinery, education, infrastructure, highways maintenance and construction, water transport ferries (more ferries needed to the one currently available), health infrastructure, quality health care at affordable prices and credible health care insurance.
She mentioned that all these investment areas could be entered into on a PPP principle (Public Private Partnership).
She then shared her views on the role of the Diaspora in the Ugandan economy. In 2010, Diaspora remittances were estimated at $800 million, playing a crucial role in the economy. This role can be further enhanced by continuing working through organizations such as the Ugandan UK convention, UNAA in North America and some other community organisations. She suggested forming investment clubs, set up jobs database to help employers in Uganda to identify qualified and experience staff in the Diaspora. Uganda aims to strengthen and modernize the capital markets to make it easier for non-residents to invest in capital markets back home.
She talked about how Uganda plans to utilize the proceeds generated by the petroleum development. The Ministry of Finance is committed to transparency in the utilization of oil proceeds. The priority will be to invest in physical and human capital so that when the oil runs out, the nation’s children and grandchildren will have something to remember it by. It will not be used for consumption but only for capital development, such as the new hydropower dam in Karuma and major infrastructure rehabilitation works. A comprehensive policy paper is being worked on with technical input from partners such as Norway, the IMF and the World Bank. This paper will be publically discussed, and presented to parliament for approval.

She finished by talking about the youth. 70% of Uganda’s population is under the age of 25. Her ministry, she said is addressing this by putting more emphasis on vocational training, on business and technical skills enhancement rather than going for traditional white collar jobs. The ministry is looking to make agriculture more effective and productive and thereby be more attractive as an occupation for young people, instead of driving boda bodas. Agro-processing is encouraged as a job creation tool. This has been started in a small way with some of the commercial banks in Uganda, coming in to assist, and the Diaspora is very welcome to share ideas and suggestion on this matter.
She appealed to the Diaspora to get in touch through their local MPs at home in Uganda, explaining that the dual citizenship would have been approved much sooner if it had passed through a local MP rather than be presented as a matter from abroad. She urged Diasporans to come to Parliament through their local MPs
She then talked about the people present being privileged to have been born and brought up in Uganda and now working in the West , saying that their children born in the West do not have the same advantage . This is why the government made sure that the dual citizenship was approved. As the older generation retires and return to Uganda, the children will be left as the workers. What will their views on Uganda be? How is the current Diaspora positioning them to view Uganda? “As the mother country” Hon Minister asked, “or as ‘somewhere over there’ that Mum and Dad keep on talking about”?
Hon Minister’s answers to some commonly asked questions:
What are the measures put in place to stabilise Uganda shilling against the dollar?
Answer: She enumerated the 3 major causes for the fluctuating rates. The first one is global, where the financial crisis had now reached Uganda; the events in the Middle East and North Africa which affected oil products, and a global demand for the dollar.
The regional aspect of the problem included a drought and climate change in East Africa that had had an effect, as well as the infrastructure bottleneck that is hitting home. And locally, the farmers received very high demand for their food as a result of the crisis in the horn of Africa.
There are 4 main sources of the dollar: export; foreign direct investment from companies and governments abroad, who through their own problems invest less; remittances on the decrease and lastly an increased demand for imports such as electronics (TVs, cameras, mobile phones) so that imports heavily outweighs exports, factors which all cause loss of dollar reserves.
The role of the Bank of Uganda is to smooth the curve, to sort out the volatility, so that the movement is not so erratic; its role is not to pump dollar into the economy. The rate is determined by the market. The government cannot control the exchange rate, but can only promote and diversify export, so that the export earnings close the gap with the import demand. This is the area where Hon Minister appealed to the Diaspora for assistance, “We must transform our nation from a consuming one with a much higher rate of import to a producing one with a higher rate of export”. Value added must be maximized through agricultural productivity, increased agro-processing, and improved skills training and utilization.
Are there any measures put in place by the government to discourage landlords from making tenants pay in dollars rather than our local currency?
Answer: There is no such law in the open economy of Uganda. It would cause unnecessary interference in the business environment. Tenants could be asked if they want the government to control the price at which they sell their products in those landlords’ premises. In any case, if landlords were made to charge in shillings, they would be writing contracts for a month or three months rate. In some cases, landlords charge in dollars because they took out loans in dollars and the tenants charge for their product or services in shillings but they change their rates as befits their cash flows.
Another question put forward was why import duties and clearing taxes were so high.
Answer: She explained that import duties in Uganda are determined amongst other factors, at the East Africa Community level. For example, Uganda suffered recently a shortage of sugar and the price shot up by more than 100%. The Ministry of Finance suggested to Cabinet, which approved, to temporarily lift the duty on imported sugar, so that it could fill up the gap and make the price comparable to local sugar. “But we had, as a government, to ask the East African Community to clear this suggestion. This is to show that many of the taxes and duties are fixed by the EAC, in much the same way that what is happening in the UK is fixed at Brussels”.
She concluded by saying that the right time to go back home is to “listen inside you at the still small voice that will tell you when it is time”.

Exclusive Interview with His Excellency Maurice Peter Kagimu Kiwanuka Uganda’s Ambassador to Switzerland

Exclusive Interview with His Excellency Maurice Peter Kagimu Kiwanuka Uganda’s Ambassador to Switzerland
wmutenza 12/11/2011 0
The Promota: Can you give us a brief biographical background and current duties?
Maurice: I am Maurice Peter Kagimu Kiwanuka, 50 years old, married, with 3 kids. I am a son to the former Chief Justice the late Ben Kiwanuka, murdered by Amin and his regime.
I am Uganda’s Ambassador to Switzerland and Permanent Representative of Uganda to the United Nations, World Trade Organisation and Other International Organisations. I am based in Geneva. Formerly, I was the Minister of State for Economic Monitoring, office of the President, and an ex-officio Member of Parliament. Before that, I was a Member of Parliament for Bukomansimbi constituency in Masaka District from 2002 to 2006. In 1994, I represented my constituency in the Constituent Assembly that drafted Uganda’s current Constitution.
I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Makerere University, Kampala, and a Bachelor of Philosophy degree of Urbaniana University, Rome.
I worked in Bank of Uganda as a Banking Officer in the foreign exchange section and in National Housing and Construction Corporation as an Administrative Officer in charge of office administration and group employees, who were so many in this Housing Corporation.
I was at one time an Importer of hardware from Dubai and an Importer of motorcycles and motor vehicle spares from Japan.
What is the role of the Mission in Geneva and how has it promoted trade between Uganda and multinational organizations abundant in Geneva?
Maurice: Briefly, we handle multilateral diplomacy in Human rights and trade among others. In multilateralism, countries negotiate together. In human rights, all countries come together to ensure that all of them respect human rights and the rule of law.
In trade, in the world trade organization, countries group together according to regions like the LDCs (the least developed countries), ACP (Africa, the Caribbean and Pacifi c countries), AG (the African group) among others, to fight for common interests. Uganda belongs to the 3 groups.
Currently, we are fighting for Market access to the Western markets which seem to be very closed. Though they seem to open up, regulations like the phyto sanitary standards, carbon prints, among others make it look like someone giving you with one hand and taking away with the other.
We are now fighting to see that in the ministerial conference in December, (for 10 years the world has failed to implement what they agreed upon in the Doha round) they give LDCs an early harvest (a special package) they agreed upon in HongKong in 2005. In the package were items like DFQF (duty free quota free) market access, services waiver, remove the cotton subsidies given to western farmers among others. However, this is still a very uphill task.
There are also other organizations like Unctad, EIF etc…which give technical support to countries.
WTO is now opening up to support infrastructure development by assisting regions to acquire world bank loans to put up regional infrastructures.
We also do bilateral relations with the government of Switzerland. Currently, we are in the process of re-drafting the investment treaty between Uganda and Switzerland which was last signed in 1971 and which expired in 1976 ! This is a very important treaty on which investors insist because it protects their investments.
So far, more than half of Uganda’s coffee is sold in Switzerland though now our government insists on promoting value addition. So far, a company called Masaba has started selling processed coffee. There are also several Swiss companies in Uganda like Roko.
Swiss companies deal more in pharmaceuticals. For Nestle, we have tried to lure them though not with much success. But we are luring some German companies and recently German businessmen visited Uganda to explore investment opportunities.
Do you think Diasporas have a role to play in Uganda’s development ?
Maurice: Oh my God ! a lot! In fact that’s why I want to come and talk. at next year’s Convention in the UK. Our proverb says : obwavu lwoya lwa mu nyindo, olwejja wekka mu nyindo and Nkoba za mbogo, zejja zokka mu bunnya and omugg’oguli omwa munno tegutta ngo etc….
Many people think that that there is an uncle in Europe who loves us very much and who will come to develop our country. This is very wrong, people come to make dividends and siphon them away ! Take the example of Barclays bank. For how long have they been in Uganda? But look at their poor structures. They would be owning 20 workers houses!
The diaspora sends a lot of money to Uganda : about $1bn a year but it is mainly in real estate and recurrent expenditure for relatives. Its impact is not felt. This is because it is not channeled into production. This is my point and that’s why I want to come and give a talk, to sensitize our people so that even the conventions can have an impact. They have been taking place in the US for long but with little impact apart from housing companies going there to advertise houses for the diaspora to buy!
We have to organize ourselves and invest together. It is high time the elite entered production like for example through large scale mechanized farming. The peasants can no longer feed us plus the region. They are not credit worthy. They cannot qualify for a billion loan. The elite should stop looking at farming as a domain for the uneducated and failures. In the West, farmers are billionaires and educated. All the food is going to Southern Sudan and Kenya. This is a huge opportunity to make money but we need to be organized first. Everybody who gets money only thinks of building a house ! I will develop these points when given a chance to talk.
The mobile telephone companies are siphoning out a lot of dollars. Actually they are the ones which keep the exchange rate high because each buys almost US $ 30million a month to take out and they are about 6 ! Imagine !
Putting up a mobile telephone company requires US $ 100 million. This is a tenth of what the diaspora sends home. If we team up we can do a lot and save our country’s foreign exchange for further development. The sky is the limit. We need to set up a credible company run by serious and credible managers from companies recommended by companies like PricewaterhouseCoopers etc…. This is because, with such companies involved, people can entrust you with their money and besides, one is sure they know what they are doing. These can do great wonders.
Do you think missions in Europe have done enough to mobilise Ugandans in the Diaspora?
Maurice: No, not all. There is plenty we can do. People in the diaspora usually just criticize government, forgetting that problems are opportunities. If we are organized, we can set up a powerful garbage collection company which can do a good job similar to that done in Europe. We can go into a joint venture with an experienced European company because we need expert management.
Do you buy into the new idea that each mission should have a dedicated officer dealing with Diaspora issues, especially guidance and investment support?
Maurice: Definitely, but we have to do something first. Government will just beg us to do that.
What is your opinion on initiatives like the Ugandan UK Convention ?
Maurice: This is a wonderful idea but we should do performance evaluation. Since the last convention what has been achieved? We should set up charters, set goals, make performance evaluations etc….so that it does not become a social gathering. I am yet to see the impact of the US Convention which has been there for many years.
The remittance sent back home by Diasporas is close to a $billion a year. As a former Minister for Economic planning, do you buy into the notion that if Diasporas are empowered, they can even multiply the money they send back home? This includes setting up incentives and policies that are conducive for Diaspora investment.
Maurice: Definitely. The incentives are already there like tax holidays, but they are enjoyed by foreigners. I think before we ask for more favourable policies, let’s use the already available ones. You see, people ask God for blessings without exploiting first those he has already given them !
What do you think about new schemes, like Diaspora bond ?
Maurice: Very wonderful. They can be an addition to what I’ve explained above.
Do you support the idea of setting up a Diaspora Ministry with representative in the parliament to lobby for Diaspora affairs?
Maurice: Definitely, but we have to do something first. It will be automatic. If we lobby for it first it will be like one making way for an ugly princess ! He has to invest a lot in shouting !
Any word of wisdom to the Diasporas?
We can neither become rich individually nor develop our country without coming together to invest together. We should stop thinking of working for our families alone, the ‘nnaasiwa mukange’ business ! -‘only me’ business. P
Contacts: The Permanent Mission of the Republic of Uganda Rue Antoine Carteret, 6bis, 1202 Geneva, 1st Floor Tel: +41 22 339 88 10 Fax: +41 22 340 70 30
Email: Chancery – chancery@ugandamission.ch Visa Applications – consular-visa@ugandamission.ch

THE UGANDA SITUATION CAN STILL BE SAVED BY PARLIAMENT

Going by press reports, it is in black and white that Uganda's finances are badly managed. The problem is greatly to do with the powers of the President, which position is made worse when the President uses his position to give instructions to whoever has to implement, which more often than not cannot be question. And what is clear as of now, is that the President in an effort to save his face always leaves the party he gave instruction to alone. Through legislation, it is possible to ensure that no government employee executes instructions contrary to the norm wherever the instructions should have originated from. It is also common experience that much of the misuse is through supplementary budgets.
The second area the Members of Parliament need to work on is that of the representation to join the Parliament. it now makes little sense to have big number in Parliament given our resources. Time is ripe to get constituencies as representative of a given population size. While some MPs may be against such a law, they ought to know that they are not in Parliament for life, whatever they do, some how somewhere they will be replaced, so, it makes good sense to make a law where the Parliamentary numbers get reduced.
Lastly, we cannot continue with the Presidential terms open. the challenge for the current Parliament is to have the term limits back. it does not make sense any more simply because of one person to have the Presidential terms unlimited. This sis the greatest challenge for the current Parliament simply to save the country sink further into mess.
William Kituuka Kiwanuka

BBUMBA, MAKUBUYA IN TROUBLE OVER PAY.
By YASIIN MUGERWA

Posted Thursday, December 22 2011 at 00:00

In Summary

President says he ordered Basajjabala’s compensation but denies dictating the amount to ministers. He promises to ‘handle’ Bbumba and Makubuya.

President Museveni yesterday said he was the one who ordered the cancellation of Hassan Basajjabalaba’s market deals and later instructed line ministers to compensate him and other businessmen for the losses.

The President, who was meeting members of Parliament’s Accounts Committee at State House, Nakasero, however, denied reports that he had given express instructions on amounts to be paid in compensation.

“I am the one who ordered the cancellation of Basajjabalaba’s contracts because the policy of government is that markets must be owned by the people,” Mr Museveni said. “But I instructed the Attorney General (Prof Khiddu Makubuya) to put in place an inter-ministerial committee to study his (Basajjabalaba’s) compensation claims and advise me accordingly.”

Appearing before the MPs earlier, former finance minister Syda Bbumba, former Attorney General Khiddu Makubuya and Bank of Uganda Governor Tumusiime Mutebile all tabled letters from the President instructing them to pay the businessman.

The President yesterday said: “I was ready to take action for attempting to frame me but she (Bbumba) denied, saying she was misquoted. For Makubuya I have not talked to him yet. This prompt obedience of my directive is a new thing. How many times have I directed but nothing has been done? In any case, even if I had taken a stand, was it wrong to guide me on my stand?”

Dismissed claims
Mr Museveni also dismissed claims that letters emanating from his office could have been forged, acknowledging all of them. He, however, insisted that ministers and technocrats were to follow the law while determining how much to pay in compensation. He said according to police reports, Mr Basajjabalaba had so far been paid Shs169 billion and not Shs142 billion as indicated in the PAC report.

The President indicated that the businessman had received an extra Shs26.8 billion this year for Nakawa Market. Described by MPs as calm and cooperative, President Museveni told the legislators led by Kassiano Wadri (Terego) that he had asked State House officials Joy Kabatsi and Godfrey Agaba to appear before PAC this morning for further questioning on Basajjabalaba’s pay. He also said he had asked Police to investigate the possibility of collusion and that the ministers would be ‘handled’.
A press release from State House last night quoted the President saying: “These two ministers will be handled fairly but they will be handled. There is a problem with the Attorney General’s office and because of this I started being suspicious of it. In the oil sector, the minister of energy and Attorney General had cleared the stabilisation clause and oil tax revenue but I had been warned.”
He added: “In order to stop impunity, we must investigate and find the truth and see what to do. We have been investigating and are nearing the truth, those found guilty will be held accountable. The work you see in UBC has been done by the whistle blowers and the CID and we have acted decisively”, he said.
The President also dismissed an idea by Mr Gerald Karuhanga (Western Youth) that corrupt ministers be given a two-month amnesty to resign, seek forgiveness or be sacked, warning the MPs against
He cautioned Parliament against malice. “Do not act the Karuhanga way, presenting unauthenticated documents to Parliament, calling other people thieves before investigations. This can cause irreparable damage”, he said.
On the loss of Shs32billion to Burundi, the President asked for time to first investigate and report back to the committee in February. He said Shs8.1billion which was given to Col. John Mugyenyi for the loss of business in Kisekka market should be investigated and the $16.4 million lost to Dura Cement Ltd through Ministry of defence must be recovered. The blame again blamed ministers and technocrats for negligence in the handling of these compensations.

ymugerwa@ug.nationmedia.com