A senior research fellow at the Economic Policy research centre(EPRC), Dr. Isaac Shinyekwa has called for a mindset change among Ugandans to prioritize producing instead of selling finished commodities most of which are imported, it the export economy is to grow sustainably.
Speaking as a panelist at the 10th annual Trade, Industry and Cooperatives Joint sector review conference at Hotel Africana on Wednesday (October 16, 2019),Dr. Shinyekwa posed a question “What if the mushrooming malls were converted into factories, what would happen to our economy?”.
Discussing the theme “Sustainable industrialization for jobs creation and export growth,”Dr. Shinyekwa who heads the Trade and regional integration department at EPRC, argued that Ugandans are concentrating efforts more on selling than producing for export. He observed that we need a strong developmental state to facilitate trade through regulation to create an enabling environment, reigning on the commercial lending rates or availing credit finance through UDC and UDB.
The researcher also argued that government must be both a producer and a consumer by taking lead in key sectors of production where the private sector has limitations while promoting a deliberate Buy Uganda Build Uganda policy.
He said the strong developmental state should also be an innovator promoting Science, Technology and Innovation (STI).For instance we need export centres at border areas like Nimule and Elegu from where Sudanese traders can find a one-stop market for all the known commodities which are scattered in Kampala.
He also rallied for one- stop border points, which expedite the clearance of goods consignments to reduce time and cost of having to clear on two customs points within the same location, signing agreements outside the EAC bloc with non-members like DRC and removal of non-tariff barriers. On the establishment of industrial parks, he observed that entrepreneurs especially the Micro, Small and Medium firms should be allocated slots in fully serviced and equipped parks with roads, utilities banks and common user facilities, for them to break even. He noted that in Uganda, the current practice is identification of land, which is labelled an industrial park where innovators are allocated slots where they spend colossal sums of money developing which eats into their capital and eventually there would be profits. He asserted that Uganda could emulate the example of Ethiopia where government allocates their traders slots in fully serviced industrial parks.
Dr. Shinyekwa equally emphasized the need for strict observance of standards and certification of commodities for them to easily penetrate regional markets. He however argued the process of certification ought to be made cheaper and accessible especially to the SMEs. He further argued that the Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) should decentralize its services to promote skills of the entrepreneurs in packaging, product development. He advised that to survive in a competitive environment, production costs need to be subsidized and taxes reduced so that prices compete in regional markets to promote exports.
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