Kampala – Kololo|President Yoweri Museveni has made a bold promise to transform Uganda’s economy, vowing to catapult it to a staggering $500 billion in the near future, driven by value addition to raw materials and exponential growth in key sectors.
The President made the remarks while officiating the reading of the National Budget for F/y 2024-2025 at Kololo ceremonial ground by the Finance Minister Hon. Matia Kasaija.
In his speech, the President emphasized the importance of adding value to raw materials, enhancing competitiveness, and developing infrastructure which he says could help drive growth and prosperity as well as propel the country’s economy to new heights.”We shall catapult the economy to the size of $500 billion,” he declared.
According to the President, much of Uganda’s economy today is comprised of raw materials that are in value normally 10% of the value of the final products. “By adding value to coffee, maize, forest products, minerals, etc., our economy will grow exponentially.” He revealed
Museveni also emphasized the need for affordable electricity and financing to support wealth creation, saying “We need affordable electricity, which is already being worked on. We need low-cost money for the wealth creators, which is already available in the forms of PDM, Emyooga, and UDB loans.”
He also highlighted the potential of Uganda’s oil revenue, estimated at $2 billion, which will be used for infrastructure and science development.
“This oil money will never be used for consumption. It will only be used for infrastructure and science development,” he assured.
In addition, President Museveni announced plans to revive rail and water transport for cargo, and invest in irrigation systems to boost agricultural development. “We are going to start building the SGR from Malaba to Kampala and Kampala to Mpondwe. Later, we are going to expand the SGR to Gulu-Nimule,” he said.
Furthermore, he encouraged Ugandans to take advantage of opportunities in commercial agriculture, artisanship, manufacturing, services, and ICT to create jobs and exceed current employment levels. “Ugandans, wake up. Work. The capital to help you go into any of the sectors is already available in UDB, PDM, Emyooga, etc. We can always add more to these figures,” he urged.
With these strategic interventions, President Museveni is confident that Uganda’s economy will grow exponentially, creating jobs and prosperity for all citizens.
