Defence minister Vincent Bamulangaki Ssempijja has urged the new board of directors of Uganda Air Cargo Corporation (UACC) to work towards making it a competitive player in the air cargo industry so that Uganda can take advantage of its business potential in the region.  

Ssempijja made the remarks during the inauguration of the new board on Thursday at the UACC headquarters in Entebbe, Wakiso district. 

“UACC remains one of our national strategic capabilities that requires our commitment and determination to remain efficiently operational,” said the minister.

In a statement from the defence ministry, Ssempijja underlined that achieving self-reliance is of prime importance for any developing country like Uganda.

“I wish to thank His Excellency, President Yoweri Museveni, who is also the Commander-in-Chief, for his strategic vision and emphasis on self-reliance.

"Indeed, it is clear that the only way we can position Uganda as an economic hub in the region is by developing critical infrastructure and investing in key enabling sectors, such as communication, transport and aviation industry,” said Ssempijja.

He commended the outgoing board members for serving with utmost commitment and determination and the management for keeping UACC afloat.

He urged the new board to cultivate new partnerships and strategies on how UACC can be expanded through the acquisition of new air assets and personnel so that the entity can ably exploit fleeting business opportunities.   

Lt Gen. Nakibus Lakara, the general manager of UACC, thanked the outgoing board for the harmonious working relationship for the two years that he has been in the management of the corporation.  

“We did not have variants of opinion. At the end of the day, we always agreed on how to move forward,” he said, pledging to work and support the new board members as they work to fulfill their duties. 

In his handover remarks, the outgoing UACC board chairman, Capt. John Emilly Otekat, implored the new leadership not to work in isolation, but to instead work as a team and with the defence ministry/UPDF in order to move the corporation to greater heights. 

New board chairperson Capt. Gad Gasatura said that a board is critical to the success and survival of any organization, especially public entities like UACC.

He pledged that the new board will work closely with the defence ministry/UPDF and the UACC management to ensure efficiency of the corporation's operations.