We will create 50,000 jobs in next 10 years, says UDC boss

The Uganda Development Corporation (UDC) has said it is embarking on an ambitious investment project that will create about 50,000 jobs to mitigate unemployment in the country.

In an interview with the New Vision, UDC executive director Dr Patrick Birungi said the organisation should be able to come up with solutions that can develop the economy including job creation.

He said UDC intends to make long-term investments in strategic sectors of the economy in order to stimulate industrial and economic development and thus, spur private sector growth, which he believes would result in at least 50,000 jobs within 10 years.

We focus on sectors that are not effectively covered by the private sector yet they are vital for national development. We have already invested in a number of businesses that have been profitable both to the Government and the citizens. Our focus now is to invest in more projects so that we contribute to the fight against unemployment in the country,” Dr Birungi said.

This, UDC will accomplish through continuously investing in sectors of the economy, which at times are not readily attractive to the private sector either due to high initial capital requirements, resource constraints or low returns in an immediate future and yet provide a strategic bridge that would foster private sector developments.

“I joined UDC in 2019 when the entity was very small in terms of visibility due to thesmall annual budget of sh1b that was allocated to us, but within two years we have been able to build the institution’s capacity not only in numbers of staff, but quality as well and our budget has grown from sh1.1b to sh10b. I believe if we continue in that direction, we can achieve a lot for the country,” Birungi said.

In promoting development of a private sector-led economy, Birungi said UDC seeks to maximise the benefits that come from specialised skills in the private sector while providing the critical government partnership required for the mutual benefit of both the Government and the private sector hence the strategy of Public Private Partnerships.

To achieve this, he said, they have worked with other government agencies, such as the National Agriculture Advisory Services, the Uganda Development Bank, the trade ministry, as well as partnerships with the United Nations and the World Bank.

“This has seen our investment portfolio growing and becoming more operational. These include the Soroti Fruit Factory that was launched in 2019 in Teso sub-region with an estimated annual turnover of more than sh10b employing 127 people. Then there is Atiak Sugar factory that crushes 1,850 tonnes of sugar cane daily,” Birungi said.

According to him, UDC selects investments based on established investment principles and values. He explained that it does not seek to control or influence the companies it invests in, but is interested in those companies running professionally.

“We believe in the importance of having a long term vision, and as a result, we are committed to investing for long-term, stable, sustainable, and risk-adjusted return on investment,” Birungi said.

“UDC’s investments are not limited to any particular sector, geography, or asset class and include industry and mining, agro-processing, infrastructure, real-estate and energy,” he said.