Given the expanding middle-income class, increasing population, improving products and services quality, expanding manufacturing sector and government commitment to increase salary, BUBU will continue to better impact Ugandan’s local manufacturers and service providers, says the State Minister for Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Hon. Ntabazi Harriet (in the picture).

In this exclusive interview, Hon. Ntabazi assesses the BUBU policy’s impact over the first five years.

Please comment on the areas of trade and industry where BUBU Policy has scored high or low; and why.

This question gives me an opportunity to evaluate Buy Uganda Build Uganda (BUBU) policy impact on the priority sectors. It focuses on footwear, textiles, cement, Iron and steel products, foods and beverages, and pharmaceuticals. Others are furniture, electrical cables and conductors, educational services, non-consultancy services, accounting and auditing, construction services and construction materials.

Over the gone-by five-years of implementing BUBU, it is the construction sector that has been the biggest beneficiary followed by pharmaceuticals and textiles. 

The benefits to the construction sector have majorly been through subcontracting of roads and public works, maintenance and renovation. These achievements are due to opportunities offered through public procurement resulting from the NRM Government’s commitment to expanding the tarmac road network.  

The sector could have benefitted more but most of the local construction companies lack enough equipment and funds to solely undertake high-value construction projects. Indeed, a number of construction projects are contractor financed which limits local participation. 

The footwear sector has not benefited as much as we expected. This is because most of the players are SMEs which concentrate on producing craft shoes rather than office, party and sports shoes. The few which produce office and party shoes sell them at exorbitant prices, at an average of UShs130, 000, whereas local manufacturers have failed to cope with the ever-changing consumer tastes and preferences.

Whereas some regional economies impose non-tariff barriers, to the detriment of Ugandan exports, it is not Uganda’s government policy to respond in kind. Please talk about how Ugandan manufacturers are advised to cope and with what outcomes.

Over the years, Uganda has had challenging experiences with some neighbours banning our exports into their territories. This is in contravention of our regional trade arrangements and costs local manufacturers millions of US dollars; the closure of the Uganda-Rwanda border resulted in a loss of over US200 million.

The state of insecurity along Uganda’s borders and transit routes amounts to non-tariff barriers, restricting our regional trade and hence as we write, there is almost no trade between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) across the Bunagana border. 

It is therefore prudent to promote domestic consumption, look for alternative export markets, diversify into other areas and study the possibilities of producing in those countries (that bar our goods), preferably with government support. Nonetheless, the government has always entered into negotiations which have resulted in the re-opening of such closed borders to Ugandan exports. 

Please share any other BUBU-related information you wish the public to know of. 

The BUBU campaign implementation is one of the affirmative actions the government undertakes to promote Ugandan product competitiveness. This is concerning enhancing the local manufacturers’ and service suppliers’ capacity to supply reliable and quality products within specified timelines. It also promotes patriotism, given that BUBU supports Ugandans’ efforts in keeping with Uganda’s Development Agenda. 

My Ministry implements several activities aimed at creating more impact on the local manufacturers and service providers. We have carried out visits to manufacturers to assess their achievements, challenges and to develop solutions. 

The challenges identified include non-compliance to orders and delayed payments by certain MDAs, the high cost of production mainly due to high electricity tariffs and a negative mindset. 

Consequently, the Ministry engages the MDAs and hence deadlines are set to effect payments. The Ministry has also contracted a private marketing company to interest young people into consuming local products, in a bid to address the issue of the negative mindset.

Uganda’s private sector is dominated by Micro Small and Medium Enterprises which in most cases cannot afford marketing costs. To address the matter, my Ministry has requested local governments, especially the cities and municipalities to identify land to set up BUBU marketing centres. 

They will promote local textiles, furniture, footwear and any other two major locally produced products. The enterprises in these centres will simply pay management and maintenance fees (which will be decided by them) to their local councils. This is expected to reduce the cost of doing business for such enterprises.

Together with the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority and relevant stakeholders have revised the Reservation Schemes Guidelines into the Reservation and Preference Schemes Regulation. 

The regulation covers more products and caters for the enterprises owned and managed by youth, women and persons with disabilities and has special offers for local enterprises. 

I am aware of the high cost of quality certification, the high cost of capital and comprehensive incentives regimes for Start-Ups. To counter these challenges, my Ministry constituted a Technical Working Group to develop an appropriate policy and legal framework of interventions to support the establishment, growth and sustainability of startups in Uganda. 

Start-ups are key in spurring economic growth in that they originate innovations and foreign direct investments are youth dominated and cause positive disruptions in the sector or Country; start-ups such as Fintechs and energy companies have attracted US$409 million. They would have attracted more foreign direct investments if their challenges had been addressed.

A reduction in the cost of quality certification and the implementation of compulsory standards of products which have a direct impact on health and safety of life has contributed to improved local products quality to the existing 70 per cent score.

I am grateful to the local manufacturer, service provider and consumers who have supported the BUBU campaign. I pledge to keep addressing the challenges facing local enterprises, especially concerning reducing the cost of investment capital, negative mindset and non-compliance to BUBU and Public Procurement procedures. 

I urge local manufacturers and service providers to continue supporting the BUBU campaign and where necessary diversify, partners with international companies as a market penetration strategy and table challenges to the government for solutions. 

I urge individual consumers to prioritize locally Ugandan-made products because by so doing, you support employment opportunities creation, and increase the prospects for household incomes and better livelihoods for those living now and in the future. 

The NRM government is committed to addressing all challenges facing local manufacturers and service providers for the betterment of our country.