Policy options to enable the private sector takeoff post-COVID-19 induced lockdown

As Uganda eases the COVID-19 induced lockdown, what is on everyone’s mind is how to reboot Uganda’s economy to at least pre-COVID-19 level of economic activity. As is the business outlook is rather bleak. Indeed, the Purchasing Managers’ Index dropped from 45.3% in March to 21.6% as of April 2020, the lowest it has been …

Covid-19 pandemic: what opportunities can Africa exploit?

The Coronavirus which was once a Wuhan/China challenge has found its way across the globe virtually touching all aspects of life in every nation irrespective of their level of economic, social and political development. Even for the hitherto robust strong health systems in western economies; have been tested, stressed and found wanting. There has been …

Covid-19: Africa may need a coordinated complete shutdown to contain and abate the pandemic

Covid-19 is an exogenous healthy shock to the economic system of African countries. Ordinarily, economies face demand and supply shocks to which monetary and fiscal policy interventions could be straight forward to abate the distortionary effects of such shocks. In this particular case however, Covid-19 is a health shock that has brought the global economy …

The Middle East Crisis: Is it time for Africa to emerge as an alternative oil and gas investment destination?

The security, political and economic environment in the Middle East can at best be deemed fragile. For example, conflict in Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Libya and Syria does not seem to end any time soon as different world, regional, national and /or factional leaders directly or indirectly take sides with none of them willing to …

Uganda is Losing Unquantifiable Time, Man-Hours and Revenue Due to Traffic Congestion!

Uganda’s main trade artery is the Northern Corridor which starts from Mombasa, Kenya through the border towns of Malaba and Busia to Kampala via Jinja. The road thereafter connects to South Sudan via Gulu, Rwanda via Katuna and through the Gisenyi border to Congo DRC and also to Congo DRC via Kasese, Bundibugyo. The state …

The need to tie government missions abroad with strategic investment options

One of the most interesting theories of economic growth is the Harrod-Domar model. The key ingredient of the theory is that economic growth is jointly determined by the saving rate and the capital-output ratio of an economy. Implying that keeping the capital-output ratio constant, while increasing the saving rate, an economy should experience economic growth. …

Could clustered smallholder farming mitigate the risks associated with Uganda’s youth population explosion?

As we draw closer towards the 2021 general elections the talk has been about how to tap into the youth vote especially in the an environment of slow transition to meaningful productive opportunities whether as an entrepreneur or employee. In fact, the rise of the “People Power” mantra is partly associated with its proponents seeking …

Should Uganda be worried about its current public debt burden?

In Financial Year (FY) 2005/06, Uganda’s public external debt was 45.7 percent of GDP. The external public debt was mainly on concessional terms with the World Bank and African Development Bank (ADB) taking 86.7 percent of it. Much as external public debt was largely on concessional terms, it was deemed to have risen to unsustainable …

A look into Uganda’s government expenditure rationalisation drive.

Liberalisation polices in early 1990’s came with government not only getting out of the market and production spaces but also with a leaner public service workforce. With post liberation, whenever government sought to fix a public service problem, the solution lay in setting up an agency or authority. The thinking at the time was that …

Are boda bodas the answer to Uganda’s persistent poverty stricken peasant farmer question?

Today boda boda is part of the Oxford English dictionary to partly mean transportation by a motorcycle or bicycle from one point to another. Boda boda which grew out of cross border informal trade has now become an acceptable means of transport in peri-urban and urban areas. Most importantly, it has absorbed youths shying away …