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Value addition begins with each one of us
Ultimately, the goal is not merely to produce more. It is to get more benefit from what we produce, what we know and what we do, writes Sandor Walusimbi
Sandor Walusimbi. (File)
By: Admin ., Journalist @New Vision
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OPINION
By Sandor Walusimbi
Whenever President Yoweri Museveni speaks about Uganda’s economic transformation, one of the messages that keeps coming up is value addition. It is a message he has consistently shared with Ugandans, fellow Africans and international partners.
Most recently, while hosting European Union ambassadors at State House Entebbe, he emphasised the need for Africa to process more of its raw materials, instead of exporting them in their basic form and buying back finished products at higher prices.
The message is simple. If we grow coffee, we should not be satisfied with selling only the raw beans. We should roast, grind, package and market it. If we produce milk, we should make yoghurt, cheese, butter and other products. If we grow cotton, we should make fabric and clothes. This way, we earn more from what we produce, create jobs for the wanaichi and build stronger industries.
However, I believe value addition is more than an economic policy. It is a way of thinking and living that each one of us can apply every day.
Mzee often speaks about the four sectors of the economy, namely commercial agriculture, manufacturing, services and ICT. Value addition has a place in each of them.
In agriculture, a farmer who sells fresh tomatoes may earn a modest income. But the farmer who processes them into tomato sauce, packages it well and finds a market for it can earn more. A farmer who dries fruits, processes groundnuts into paste or turns cassava into flour is moving beyond simply producing raw materials.
In manufacturing, the opportunities are even clearer. Instead of exporting unprocessed minerals, we can refine them and use them to make products for local and international markets. Instead of importing furniture, we can use our timber to produce quality beds, tables and chairs. Instead of selling leather as a raw material, we can make shoes, bags and other leather products.
In the services sector, value addition means giving consumers more than they expect. A hotel does not add value simply by providing a bed. It adds value through cleanliness, good kimere (food), professional service and an experience that makes a visitor want to return. A taxi driver (and his conductor) adds value through reliability, safety and good customer care. The musomesa adds value when learners leave the classroom with knowledge and skills they can use in life.
In ICT, a young Ugandan can use digital skills to develop software, create mobile applications, market local products online or build solutions to everyday problems. Technology becomes more valuable when it helps people work better, save time, reach new markets and solve real challenges.
These examples show that value addition is not reserved for large factories or wealthy business people. It begins wherever someone sees an opportunity to improve what already exists. This is where the conversation becomes personal.
A public servant can add value by serving citizens more efficiently, treating them with respect and reducing unnecessary delays. A manager can add value by helping colleagues develop their skills rather than merely giving instructions. An employee can add value by identifying a problem and suggesting a solution, instead of waiting to be told what to do.
A teacher adds value by finding a better way to explain a difficult subject. A health worker adds value by listening carefully to a patient and improving the quality of care. A business person adds value by improving product quality, keeping promises and treating customers honestly.
Even in our homes, we can add value. Parents can invest more time in teaching their children discipline, responsibility and practical skills. Young people can use their time to learn something new rather than allowing their talents to go to waste. We can all become better listeners, more reliable colleagues and more useful members of our communities.
In manufacturing, the opportunities are even clearer. Instead of exporting unprocessed minerals, we can refine them and use them to make products for local and international markets. Instead of importing furniture, we can use our timber to produce quality beds, tables and chairs. Instead of selling leather as a raw material, we can make shoes, bags and other leather products.
In the services sector, value addition means giving consumers more than they expect. A hotel does not add value simply by providing a bed. It adds value through cleanliness, good kimere (food), professional service and an experience that makes a visitor want to return. A taxi driver (and his conductor) adds value through reliability, safety and good customer care. The musomesa adds value when learners leave the classroom with knowledge and skills they can use in life.
In ICT, a young Ugandan can use digital skills to develop software, create mobile applications, market local products online or build solutions to everyday problems. Technology becomes more valuable when it helps people work better, save time, reach new markets and solve real challenges.
These examples show that value addition is not reserved for large factories or wealthy business people. It begins wherever someone sees an opportunity to improve what already exists. This is where the conversation becomes personal.
A public servant can add value by serving citizens more efficiently, treating them with respect and reducing unnecessary delays. A manager can add value by helping colleagues develop their skills rather than merely giving instructions. An employee can add value by identifying a problem and suggesting a solution, instead of waiting to be told what to do.
A teacher adds value by finding a better way to explain a difficult subject. A health worker adds value by listening carefully to a patient and improving the quality of care. A business person adds value by improving product quality, keeping promises and treating customers honestly.
Even in our homes, we can add value. Parents can invest more time in teaching their children discipline, responsibility and practical skills. Young people can use their time to learn something new rather than allowing their talents to go to waste. We can all become better listeners, more reliable colleagues and more useful members of our communities.
The point is not that we must make a dramatic change every day. Sometimes value addition is a small improvement, such as completing a task more accurately, learning a new skill, helping a colleague or finding a way to reduce waste. What matters is that we do not remain satisfied with doing things the same way when there is an opportunity to do them better.
For Uganda to become a more prosperous country, we need to build a culture in which people constantly look for ways to improve what they produce and how they work. Government must provide an environment that supports production through affordable electricity, infrastructure, skills development and access to markets. Investors must be willing to build industries. Farmers, workers and entrepreneurs must also embrace innovation, quality and efficiency.
Our international partners can support this transformation through investment, technology transfer and partnerships that enable more processing and manufacturing to take place in Africa. A more prosperous Africa can also become a stronger market for the goods and services of its trading partners.
Ultimately, the goal is not merely to produce more. It is to get more benefit from what we produce, what we know and what we do.
We should, therefore, make value addition part of our daily thinking. Before we leave our workplaces, close our businesses or retire for the night, we should reflect on what we have improved. Have we added value to our work, our colleagues, our businesses, our families or ourselves?
If each Ugandan took this question seriously, the combined effect would be significant. Better products would emerge, services would improve, businesses would grow, workplaces would become more productive, and our communities would benefit.
Value addition begins with what we have, but its greatest promise lies in what we can make of it.
The challenge before us is to stop settling for the minimum when we have the ability to do better. Every day should leave something better than we found it. That is the spirit of value addition, and it is a mindset that can transform both our economy and our lives.
The writer is the Senior Press Secretary to the President
For Uganda to become a more prosperous country, we need to build a culture in which people constantly look for ways to improve what they produce and how they work. Government must provide an environment that supports production through affordable electricity, infrastructure, skills development and access to markets. Investors must be willing to build industries. Farmers, workers and entrepreneurs must also embrace innovation, quality and efficiency.
Our international partners can support this transformation through investment, technology transfer and partnerships that enable more processing and manufacturing to take place in Africa. A more prosperous Africa can also become a stronger market for the goods and services of its trading partners.
Ultimately, the goal is not merely to produce more. It is to get more benefit from what we produce, what we know and what we do.
We should, therefore, make value addition part of our daily thinking. Before we leave our workplaces, close our businesses or retire for the night, we should reflect on what we have improved. Have we added value to our work, our colleagues, our businesses, our families or ourselves?
If each Ugandan took this question seriously, the combined effect would be significant. Better products would emerge, services would improve, businesses would grow, workplaces would become more productive, and our communities would benefit.
Value addition begins with what we have, but its greatest promise lies in what we can make of it.
The challenge before us is to stop settling for the minimum when we have the ability to do better. Every day should leave something better than we found it. That is the spirit of value addition, and it is a mindset that can transform both our economy and our lives.
The writer is the Senior Press Secretary to the President