Opportunities abound in tourism - Museveni

By Titus Kakembo     
 
President Museveni has identified tourism, which earns the state coffers $820m annually, as a new channel of income generation.
 
“It is time to make the attractions comprising, The Source Of The Nile, Mpumwire Hill, Bishop Hannington’s site of execution and rafting areas appeal to more tourists,” said President Museveni.
 
“Citizens, there are many ways you can exploit these opportunities through farming, ICT, opening factories and services like transporting or tour guiding.”
 
This was during the launch of a campaign, “Brighten Up Your City” which is going to have 60 shops in Jinja Municipality,  given a new coat of paint in the next thirty days.
 
Touching the brim of his safari hat, Museveni stressed that countries like Spain, Egypt and Cuba, with lesser attractions than Uganda, get more tourists and earn fortunes from tourism.
 
 “Government has few jobs to employ the 30m Ugandans. Worse still political jobs are not reliable. What we need are five star hotels, crafts, entertainment and reliable transport services to make the entire chain of tourism services efficient.”                                                   
 
On the same note, the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga requested government to upgrade the existing Jinja airstrip into an airport in order to reduce time spent, by tourists and the business fraternity in transit.
 
 “The local government needs financial help from the central government to improve The Source of the Nile site,” said  Kadaga. “There is little of consequence to attract visitors here today. There is need to elevate it to international standards.”