Ssekandi attributes economic growth to good leadership

ECONOMY

The Vice-President, Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi, has said Uganda's economy is growing fast thanks to good leadership, peace and security.

Ssekandi said when the National Resistance Movement (NRM) came to power, it adopted the principle of having a private sector-led economy that has given the country exponential economic growth. Ssekandi made the remarks during the Eight Visionaries of Uganda awards ceremony at the Kampala Serena Hotel recently.

He said the private sector is fully addressing the lack of essential commodities and guaranteed macro economy stability. "Prior to NRM coming into power, the country's economy had collapsed following the expulsion of the Indian community in 1972, which formed the backbone of the private sector," he said. Ssekandi said economic growth has enabled the Government to increase tax revenue from sh5b in 1986 to over sh21b today.

However, Dr Ivan Lule, a board member of the National Planning Authority, said the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the speedy growth of the country's economy. "We have noticed a deceleration in economic growth with a loss of 3.1 points, when growth declined from 6.2 to 3.1 in the 2019/2020 fi nancial year," he said.

Lule said the formal and informal sectors have been affected differently. "We have seen increased unpaid domestic work especially in persons that work in homes taking care of children," he said.

For the formal and private sector, Lule said they have noticed a decline in national investment in a short-term and the remittances from Ugandans in the diaspora have continued to decline. He added that there has been disruption of markets for goods and services, which has affected supply and demand.

"We have had workplaces closed and later reopened, reducing the productivity of the population," he explained. Lule, however, said COVID-19 hit the world when the Government was fi nalising the National Development Plan III (NDPIII). "This called for the revision of the selected NDPIII indicators.

I want to assure Ugandans that the current NDPIII takes into consideration the impacts of the COVID-19 on the economy," he said. Vision 2040 aims to transform Uganda from a peasant society to a modern and prosperous country. One of the aspirations the country has is that by 2040, the annual income of a Ugandan should be $9,500 (sh34m).

AWARDS

The Visionaries of Uganda is a private development consultancy firm promoting Uganda Vision 2040 and other initiatives in partnership with the Government, private sector and development partners. At this year's event, over 30 private companies and government entities were awarded for their tremendous work towards the country's achievement of its Vision 2040.

They included Biplous Uganda Limited, Case Clinic and Uganda Printing and Publishing Corporation. Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo and Public service minister Muruuli Mukasa each received an award for best personality of the year.