Museveni calls for industries

Nov 24, 2007

PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has called for the harmonisation of development among Commonwealth countries. Opening the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit, the President pointed out that there was a direct link between the level of industrialisation, per capita income and human development indicato

By Felix Osike, Alfred Wasike
and Milton Olupot


PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has called for the harmonisation of development among Commonwealth countries. Opening the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit, the President pointed out that there was a direct link between the level of industrialisation, per capita income and human development indicators.

Using figures, Museveni said countries like UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand had shifted from agriculture to industries and services, which has translated into higher income, lower child mortality and higher life expectancy.

“The present partial transformation of the Commonwealth societies is not good enough for the individual countries, nor is it good for the Commonwealth in general or the wider world,” he said.

He identified, as reasons for this unequal development, the lack of a large market to absorb what a country produces. For small countries like Uganda, he noted, regional integration and access to international market were very important.

Other strategies needed for transformation were stimulating private sector-led-growth, adding value and exporting finished products, instead of exporting raw materials, the President remarked.

By exporting raw coffee beans, Uganda was ‘donating’ $19 to the outside world for every kilogramme of coffee sold, he argued.

“We do not only donate money, but we also donate jobs. If a Third World country exports semi-processed lint cotton, it, in effect, exports several levels of jobs: the spinning jobs, the weaving jobs, the printing jobs and the tailoring jobs.”

He slammed certain groups that “speak loudly about good governance (but) do not speak about this haemorrhage that is a form of modern slavery”.

Museveni cited other factors that bring about transformation as human resource development, through education for all, and improved health through immunisation, hygiene, nutrition, accessible to all and behaviour change in relation to AIDS prevention.

“A healthy, educated, skilled and intellectualised population is the greatest resource a country can possess.”

Good infrastructure, which lowers the cost of doing business, as well as peace and political accountability were additional prerequisites for transformation from an agricultural to an industrial society.

“In this process of democracy, we also need to twin rights with responsibilities of political actors and the media.”

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});