The president went ahead to proclaim that the Ugandan economy would grow by billions, off of the strength of its newly established oil drilling project, estimating that by June 2023, Uganda’s economy will have grown from Ush 162.1 trillion ($45.7 billion) for the financial year ending June 30, 2022, to $48 billion.
“We now have the electricity and we are adding more, we have the varied and massive raw materials and, increasingly, we have the entrepreneurs, local and foreign and we have the African market that we have put in place with our pan-Africanist comrades,” the president stated.
Uganda also plans to diversify its petrochemical industry from the oil drilling project with the production of petrochemicals such as polymers and fertilizers.
Aside from the oil drilling project the president mentioned that Uganda has some high valued produce it can leverage on to achieve its highly optimistic projections mid way into the year.
Some of the produce he mentioned includes coffee, cotton, maize, forest products and minerals, all of which he stated are lined up for processing.
“This low middle-income economy we are now talking about, is still mainly a raw materials producing economy, where for a kilogramme of coffee, we get $2 (Ush7,380) for bean coffee while the wiser foreigners who roast the coffee, grind it and pack it for sale in supermarkets, get $50 (Ush184,000) for the same kilogramme. I have, finally, woken up some Ugandans from this sleep of ignorance,” he added.
However a few hiccups on the way threaten to alter the ease at which the president’s projections would be achieved. Alongside an increased cost of living and a hike in prices of essential commodities, the Ugandan government has also struggled to meet its obligations recently including paying salaries, following infrastructure schedules and servicing loans.
Source:
www.pulse.com.gh
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