EnterUganda

. Kampala, Uganda.

Sectors in which to invest:
Because the country's economy is still young, the potential and choice of investment opportunities is much wider for the prospective investor than would be the case for more developed economies.
Uganda's existing comparative advantage is heavily concentrated on agriculture, forestry and mineral resources, and their primary processing. This implies there is scope for further development and secondary processing of these resources.

The identified potential investment opportunities are based on the availability of domestic natural resources and intermediaries, the existence of surplus domestic labour, the good market prospects, the "high value low transport costs" to export markets as well as the relative competitive advantage of Uganda vis a vis her main trading partners in the region.

Agriculture:
With its good climatic conditions and fertile soils, Uganda offers rich opportunities in the agricultural sector. Generally, opportunities in this sector range from agribusiness, forestry to food processing and the manufacture of inputs. The available opportunities include but are not limited to the following:

Non traditional agriculture
This includes cereals, oilseeds, fresh and preserved fruit, vegetables and nuts, fresh, dried and ground species, vegetable oils, essential oils, plants, orchids, flower seeds and sericutlure (silk).

Traditional export agriculture (Commercial/Large Scale Farming)
Possible areas of investment include coffee, tea and cotton growing, processing and packaging, growing of high quality tobacco, cocoa rehabilitation and expansion. The main opportunities are in the development of modern large scale farming, and processing for both the domestic and export markets. Uganda is currently the second largest producer of coffee in Africa. Uganda's cotton is of the best quality and compares most favorably in the world market.

Livestock:
Current output in this sector can only meet half the domestic demand. There is, therefore great room for expansion and investment in a number of livestock related areas including ranching (cattle, goats, sheep), poultry (chicken, pecking duck and ostrich), hides and skins, bee-keeping for honey products, leather processing and preservation and canning of the various livestock products such as meat and milk.

Fisheries:
Uganda's fish processing sector has expanded greatly in recent years and current export earnings are in excess of US$100 million per year. Uganda is blessed with large fresh water expanses that are home to a wide variety of fish products. Opportunities are also available for fish farming.

Forestry:
With over 1.5 million hectares of rich forest vegetation, Uganda possesses abundant potential in areas like timber processing for export, manufacture of high quality furniture/wood products and various packaging materials.

5 Good Reasons to Invest in Uganda's Agriculture Sector
With its excellent natural endowments, fertile soils, adequate rainfall, Uganda is a low cost producer for coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco and a number of high value agricultural export crops such as cut-flowers and asparagus. With improved efficiency, this natural advantage can be exploited to make Uganda a major exporter of agricultural produce and agri related products.

Market prospects in Europe and the Middle East for Uganda's non-traditional agricultural export products such as flowers and horticultural products are excellent. Uganda's agricultural exports to the European Union are tariff free under the provisions of the Lomé Agreement.

Uganda with its relative food surpluses is already exporting food to the neighboring countries - a ready market already exists.

Uganda has over 18 million hectares of arable land of which less than 30% is currently under cultivation.

The Uganda Government supported by donors has put in place a number of schemes to support the development of Uganda's agricultural potential. These schemes include credits to private farmers, export incentives as well as marketing assistance.

Manufacturing:
Uganda's manufacturing sector is one of the fastest growing sectors in the country with manufacturing output expanding by more than 10% annually over the last five years. Opportunities exist virtually in all areas ranging from beverages, leather, tobacco based processing, paper, textiles and garments to pharmaceuticals, fabrication, ceramics, glass, fertilizers, plastic/PVC, assembly of electronic goods, hi-tech and medical products. Uganda offers such wide potential in manufacturing largely because the sector was greatly devastated during the pre-1986 period when the country suffered gross political and economic mismanagement.
The opportunities to market manufactured products from Uganda are not limited to the domestic market. Investors in the country can look to exporting to the neighboring countries within the Common Market of Eastern and Southern African countries (COMESA) region of which Uganda is a member. In addition to its labour force and abundant resources, Uganda offers attractive fiscal and physical export incentives that make it a favorable location for targeting the rest of the Sub-Saharan and Southern African region.

Mining:
Uganda provides special incentives to the mining sector with some capital expenditures being written off in full. Past records show little investment in Uganda's mining sector in spite of the vast opportunities that continue to exist. Uganda has large, as yet untapped or barely explored mineral deposits of gold, oil, high grade tin, tungsten/wolfram, salt, beryllium, cobalt, kaolin, iron ore, glass sand and phosphates (fertilizer). There are also significant quantities of clay and gypsum.

Infrastructure:
Although significant efforts have been made to develop and rehabilitate the existing physical and non-physical infrastructure, potential investment opportunities still abound. For instance, the communications and energy sectors still require further investment particularly from the private sector. The Government of Uganda is seeking private in the energy sector given the bright prospects of Uganda's economy. With less than 10% of the mainstream capacity of 2,700 megawatts of power exploited, Uganda has the potential to be a major power supplier in the Sub-Saharan African region. Other areas with possible investment potential could include storage, education, communication & related services, general construction/real estate development and medical services.

Uganda has gazetted over 1000 hectares of prime industrial land to be developed into fully serviced industrial estates and export processing zones. The Uganda Investment Authority, which holds the government interest in the proposed project, is actively courting private sector participation in the development of industrial estates and export processing zones.

Financial Services:
Investors can also target the financial sector, which is still young. Uganda's banking system is stretched in its lending operations as demand for credit facilities far outweighs the sectors capacity to mobilize savings. The situation is creating great opportunities for investors in the financial sector. Opportunities for investment do exist for international multinational banking groups of which there are still a limited number in the country.
The Bank of Uganda has also stated its willingness to approve only financial institutions, which promote new products (vis. Mortgage finance, venture capital, merchant banking and leasing finance) …. And also saving institutions, which propose to operate in rural areas. Generally, though, new investors in the sectors are encouraged to merge with existing institutions. Investors can also target the insurance sector as well as the private bureaux de change where the opportunities are expanding.

With the growth of private investment, the need for specialized services such as insurance and management support services is likely to even grow further. Insurance, in particular is still a relatively emerging sector and offers several opportunities for investment.

Tourism:
The distinctive attraction of Uganda as a tourist destination arises out of the variety of its game stock and its unspoiled scenic beauty. Within a relatively limited space of just over 250,000 square kilometres, Uganda offers an interesting contrast ranging from the wide East African plains and expansive savanna grasslands to the impenetrable, mountain rain forests and snow peaked mountains in the south western parts of the country.

Uganda offers a wide range of bird species and wild range in addition to numerous opportunities for mountain climbing and water sports such as a white water rafting. The opportunities in tourism range from constructing high quality accommodation facilities, operating tours and travel circuits to the development of specialized eco-tourism. Figures from the World Trade Organization for 1999 reveal that Uganda's annual tourist arrival growth rates are higher than other countries in the region. This confirms Uganda's steady emergence as a premier tourist destination in Africa.

3 Good Reasons to Invest in Uganda's Tourism Sector
With its rich eco-tourism potential, Uganda is the ideal choice for tour operators targeting market niche areas such as bird watching, observation of unique primates like the gorilla and mountain trekking.

There is as yet unutilized potential for cross border complementary programs combining safaris to Kenya and Tanzania with excursions to Uganda.

Uganda can be marketed as a new destination with tailor-made packages that are different from the mass tourism that other African countries have been offering.

Printing and Publishing:
The printing, publishing and packaging sector also has considerable potential. In the printing and publishing sub-sector, opportunities exist for the printing of textbooks for schools. Currently, over 90% of Uganda's text book requirement (estimated at over U$7 million a year) is met by foreign suppliers. Given Uganda's situation as a predominantly agricultural country, there is potential for a vibrant packaging industry supplying the agro-processing industry.

Education:
There are more opportunities in the education sector most especially due to the Universal Primary Education in the following areas:

· Secondary Education
· Technical and Vocational Education
· In-Service Specialized Training Programmes
· Agricultural Services and Skills Development
· Managerial Skills Development
· Development of Computer Skills
· Support Services for the Education Sector
· Joint Ventures with various institutes like Uganda Polytechnic Kyambogo (UPK), St. Joseph's Technical Institute Kisubi, Wairaka Institute of Technology. Institute of Teacher Education Kyambogo, Pioneer Institute of Applied Electronics, Victoria Technical Trust Limited

Information Technology/ Electronics Sector:
Opportunities include the establishment of service centers for the available brand radio, television and power conditioning equipment and the manufacture and assembly of computer equipment targeting the local and regional markets