Industrial parks: Future for economy
At least 291 companies have been allocated land at the Kampala Industrial and Business Park, popularly known as Namanve.
An aerial view of Namanve Industrial Park
After years of slow growth and development, the Kampala Industrial and Business Park (KIBP) Namanve has begun to take shape, and is expected to generate 200,000 jobs at full operational capacity.
According to the state minister for investment, Evelyn Anite, 37 factories are fully operational, while 99 others are still under various stages of construction. They are expected to be fully functional at the end of the current financial year. About 291 investors were licensed and allocated land by the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA), to develop factories in the 2,200 acrespark located off the Kampala-Jinja highway, about 15km from the city centre.
The Uganda Investment Authority building at Kampala Industrial Park, also known as Namanve
Anite said these would greatly drive the country's import substitution agenda. Balance of trade According to the central bank projections, the gap between exports and imports, also known as the current account deficit, widened by $882m in June due to increased import volumes. The bank said the Government and the private sector had pushed up the import volumes on account of oil investment imports. Uganda is a net importer of a number of goods and to some extent services, which continues to have a drag-on effect on the country' balance of trade.
However, Uganda also registered a 5 % ($188m) increase in export receipts, driven by an increase in gold exports, which expanded by 23.2 % to $514.9m. Anite said development of Namanve and other industrial parks would consistently change Uganda's balance of trade position. She said in addition, the factories would help in the implementation of the country's value-addition strategy, which is ultimately aimed at increasing the volume, quality and value of Uganda's exports. "The completion of Namanve and other industrial parks is expected to add value to the locally available raw materials and boost the agricultural and mineral sectors," she said.
Namanve Industrial substation
The minister said the new factories will boost the country's Gross National Product (GNP) and the volume of exports, hence reducing over dependence on imports. "We are excited that this industrial park is progressing, because it has immense potential in advancing our economy especially through creation of jobs and taxes," she said.