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Museveni full address: Why government won't intervene amid rising cost of living

Monday May 23 2022

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni. PHOTO | PPU

Summary

Nearing 78 years of age in September, I am doing very well. I have no hesitation bearing testimony for our much better indigenous food. Millet is the only cereal in nature that has got protein, carbohydrates and iron. I had also read something comparable for sorghum. However, for the indigenous sorghum, there was the problem of some bitterness. However, with bio-technology by our researchers, the bitterness can be removed.

By YOWERI MUSEVENI

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The Ugandan government will not intervene amid an outcry over the rising cost of living.

President Yoweri Museveni, in a televised state address on Sunday night, said government subsidies or removing import taxes would collapse the economy.

The rising prices of goods have been occasioned by surges in the cost of petroleum products and other imports amid global supply chain constraints following the war in Ukraine.

Mr Museveni advised the citizens to make do with the imported items the country can afford, and substitute expensive wheat with locally available food such as cassava, bananas, millet, and maize.

Here is the full address:

Countrymen and Countrywomen,

Greetings. I am here today to remind you of the challenges we have been able to face and successfully handle, together, in the last three and a half years. The following have been the challenges:
1. locusts (enzigye);
2.   the rising waters of the lakes;
3.   the landslides;
4.   the floating islands that were threatening to destroy the power dams;
5.   the armyworms (kanyanaanga);
6.   the Covid-19 pandemic;
7.   the terrorist attacks in Kampala and the bijambiya (machete) killers in Masaka;
8.   the resurgence of cattle-rustling in Karamoja and the surrounding areas; and, recently, the rising costs of commodities on account of the globe recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

As usual, those who do not believe in God and in themselves, started panicking and predicting doom. However, we, the NRM fraternity, whom God has enabled to handle even bigger problems in the past, such as the wars emanating from the unconstitutionalism in Uganda between 1966 and 1986, were sure that each and everyone of these challenges could be rationally, not irrationally, handled.

As we speak today, many of these challenges have been handled. Indeed, many Ugandans may have even forgotten about these problems. Where are the locusts? Where are the floating islands, etc.? Of all these problems, the Covid-19 pandemic, was the most challenging. Why? It was because, after a quick but careful analysis, we saw that the pandemic could, indeed, be handled but with massive lockdowns, starting with the unprecedented sending home, prematurely, of our 15 million grandchildren (the learners – pupils, students) in the primary schools, the secondary schools, the tertiary Institutions and universities and keeping them there for one and a half years. I do not think that this figure included the pre-primary pupils. No sooner had the pandemic confronted us, than the “struggle between the two lines”, to use Mao Tse Tung’s words, started.

Read: Uganda kept schools closed longest – Unicef

Also read: Uganda schools reopen after 2-year Covid closure

This is the struggle between the correct line of the revolutionaries (the change-makers) and the line of the reactionaries (wapinga maendeleo); the struggle between the “narrow path that leads to heaven and the broad road (Omuhanda Rugyeendwa) that leads to Gehena (hell), as it says in the Book of Matthew Chapter 7 verses 13-14. In the Book of Genesis, Chapter 1 verses 26-28, it talks of Man “establishing dominion over nature”. As I normally like to quote, it goes as follows:

“26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

Right from the beginning, God empowered man to use his superior brain to find solutions to the problems that confronted him.

The struggle between the two lines, therefore, was as follows: the revolutionary side (our side) pointed out that what was primary was to avoid death (massive death – ekyorezo), all other problems notwithstanding. The reactionary line was to emphasise the loss of jobs, loss of businesses, loss of school time, pregnancies of young girls, etc. Our line was that ebizibu (problems) are not equal (comparable) to death (okufa). Death is irreversible, while problems are reversible at the appropriate time. “Ekitatta Muhima, tekimumalako ente”, we say in Luganda (if a Muhima does not die, even if he loses cows, he will, in time, recover them).

What were the results of the struggle between the two lines? The extreme example of the line of ebizibu (problems) are equal to death (okufa), was the European Country of Sweden. Up to now, they have a total of 18,941 people dead from the small population of 10.2.million people. Other countries were oscillating between the two lines and the losses, up to today, are as follows:

USA - 993,691,
UK - 177,890,
France - 144,449,
Germany - 138,204,
Italy - 165,738,
Spain - 105,642,
India - 524,323,
South Africa - 100,898,
Argentina - 128,776,
Brazil - 665,319.

In Uganda, the death toll up to now is 3,600, out of a total of 164,153 that were infected. Our total population is now 43 million people. Those are the results of the recent struggle between two lines. Our deaths from corona up to March 2021, were only 335 persons. It was the indiscipline of the opposition during the elections that pushed the figures to the present 3,600. On account of the strictness, taking the Biblical narrow path, Uganda, up to now, has had two waves of the corona pandemic, while other countries have had 3 and even 4 waves.

In Luganda, we say: “Akutwaala ekilo, omusiima bukedde” (the one who successfully guides you in the night, you thank him in the morning for the good work). Now that we are emerging from the consecutive nights of problems (Locusts, rising waters of the Lakes, terrorism, cattle-rustling, Covid-19, etc.), it is time to both thank the NRM and reconfirm its credentials as a no-nonsense, problem solver.

Read: Uganda relaxes Covid restrictions for travellers

As the other problems were being solved or waning in severity, in comes the problem of high costs for commodities. Of course, the problem of high commodity prices is much easier to deal with and it is not new. At the beginning of the NRM Administration in 1986 and for the period 1972-1986, following the expulsion of the Ugandan-Indian entrepreneurs by Idi Amin, Uganda experienced continuous high inflation, severe shortages of commodities (so-called “essential commodities”), very high prices, forex black market (Kibaanda), smuggling of goods out and into Uganda (magendo) and speculation (kusamula).

Read: High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

All these were solved by the NRM and, indeed, the recent problem of ekyengera (omweeru – surplus) of sugar, soap, maize, milk, bananas, cement, mitayimbwa (steel bars) etc., is a result of that success. This is why we have been engaging with neighbours (eg. Tanzania, Kenya, etc.) to help us solve the problem of ekyengera (surpluses – omweeru). How did the NRM solve the problem of ebula ry’ebintu (eibura, shortages) of between 1972-1986? We shall see how in this document. However, this history is clear.

Read: Tanzania reaps spoils of Uganda’s trade fights

Therefore, the recent phenomenon of high commodity prices, is, indeed, a problem but it is easier to solve than, for instance, Covid-19 was. Covid-19 needed severe restrictions and new science (eg. Vaccines). This one will be solved with existing knowledge but rightly applied.

The high commodities prices are from the following factors:

1. The end of Covid-19 pandemic, meant that sectors of the economy that had been closed, such as hotels, suddenly opened when the production of, for instance, palm oil for soap manufacture had also declined because there had been no demand for two years. The resumed production levels cannot yet match the demand.

2. I also hear, that some of the producers decided to turn their palm oil into petrol, just like we were about to turn our surplus sugar into petrol as a way of solving the problem of kyengera (surplus).

3. The war in Ukraine and Western sanctions on Russia, have also caused shortages of wheat for the bread-eaters that do not include me because I am a muhogo-karo-banana eater and milk drinker, fertilizers, petrol, gas, etc.

Read: Outcry as Uganda fuel crisis escalates

Again, here, we confront the struggle between the two lines: the revolutionary, patriotic line of the truth and seriousness on the one hand and the reactionary line of populism, cheap popularity and lack of realism of: prices-control by Government, subsidies, tax cuts on the other hand. Although this is not as serious as Covid-19, the choices here, are also with serious implications. It is a choice between okubandama (collapse) of the economy on the one hand or survival (kwetaasa, kuhonoka). The real medicine for high prices and shortages, is increased production. Produce more, if you can.

In 1986, as we were beginning to deal with the catastrophic situation of shortages that had characterized Uganda for 14 years, starting with the 1972 mistake of Idi Amin expelling our Asian business people, there was talk by some of price and rent control. In one Cabinet meeting, we were informed of an Indian known as Gandesha that owned many buildings in Kampala and was charging exorbitant rents. Some were saying that we should invoke the Rent Control Act and the Government should set the rent levels itself. After careful analysis, we rejected that logic. The solution we adopted, was letting rent-levels remaining high for that time. This would attract many people to invest in housing. It is that flooding into housing, that would solve the problem of high rents by making rentable buildings many. That is how the huge growth of buildings in the Kampala – Entebbe – Wakiso – Mukono area, was triggered. Within a year or two, I started hearing of there being so many houses for rent, that many of them had no People to rent them.

Read: Uganda’s real estate sector remains resilient

Shaku shaku: Shambagira (riddle). Nyabweengye, n’obweengyebwe (Each wise person has got his own smart solutions to problems). What is the answer to the riddle? N’enkoko, kuchuutsya, etaine mabeere. It is the hen bringing up its chicks, when it has no breasts to feed them.

Now, coming to the issue of high commodity prices of: petrol, diesel, sugar, salt, bar soap, powder soap, cooking oil etc., we have to remember the nature of the challenge: Kubandama (collapse) or survive (kuhonoka). As already pointed out above, the problem of high commodity prices is not as dangerous as Covid-19. However, if it is not handled correctly, it can lead to collapse. Yet, with patience and correct response, it will turn out to be an advantage for the country.

Straight away, a serious problem solver, would cluster the commodities with high prices into two clusters: the imported ones on the one hand and the locally produced ones on the other hand. Some of the ideas people think about when confronted with high commodity prices, are the idea of subsidy (Government okutu kwatirako) or removal of taxes by Government from those commodities. With imported commodities, this is a recipe for disaster. It will lead to collapse. Why? Let us take the example of petrol. A litre of petrol before the rise of prices in November 2021, was Ugx. 4,590 which meant USD 1.3 at that time. A litre of petrol is now Ugx. 5,500 which means USD 1.48. This is all with the tax. The more expensive litre of petrol (ey’obuseere), is doing two bad things: emptying the pockets of the consumers, but also emptying our national dollar reserves. We now have USD 4.5 billions in our Reserves.

These are enough to support imports for 4.2 months. If we subsidize or even just remove the taxes on imported commodities, the level of consumption will either remain the same, but this time each litre taking more dollars, or actually increase. The dollar drain will now increase per litre and also, worse, people may buy more of this expensive commodity. With the Great Lakes area, there is another problem – smuggling (magendo). When an item is cheaper in one country, eg. Uganda, there is a powerful incentive for smugglers to buy cheap in Uganda and sell expensively in the neighbouring country. Therefore, cheaper petrol in Uganda, would be cheaper for the Region.

It would seriously encroach on our reserves. Moreover, the removal of taxes on some of the commodities, would mean tax loss to Government of: Ugx. 1.53 trillion for petroleum, Ugx. 1.15 trillion for diesel, Ugx. 520 billion for wheat. How, then, do we fund our budget for – roads, electricity, schools, medicine, security, etc.? There are items we do not tax – eg. Medicine, raw materials, etc. It is, therefore, not true that we tax everything. The very crucial items, are not taxed. Therefore, removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder.

In my head, I had sympathy for removing taxes on locally produced goods such as sugar, milk, cement, etc. because, if People buy more of them, it will be good – they would be buying more local goods. This was until I looked at the taxes to be lost. On sugar, we would lose Ugx.193 billion, on cement, Ugx.200 billion, mitayimbwa Ugx.120 billion. We could see that the route to tax cuts and subsidies, even for the locally produced goods, was not a wise one. What, then, is the wise way? The wise ways are, therefore, the following:

1. To use frugally these imported items

(kukekereza, kwereembareemba) or kubyesonyiwa (get alternatives);

2. To use our own raw-materials – such as sunflower oil and castor oil (enshoga-shoga) for soap as we wait for the expanded palm oil production which takes longer – sunflower takes only 4 months; for bread, we can use our banana and cassava flour for bread-making apart from eating the traditional foods; for many years now, I do not eat wheat bread nor rice; I eat our richer indigenous foods of akaro (millet), muhogo (cassava), empogora (bananas cooked in their skin), ebinyobwa (G-nuts), obushaza (peas), enyamay’ente (beef), etc.

Nearing 78 years of age in September, I am doing very well. I have no hesitation bearing testimony for our much better indigenous food. Millet is the only cereal in nature that has got protein, carbohydrates and iron. I had also read something comparable for sorghum. However, for the indigenous sorghum, there was the problem of some bitterness. However, with bio-technology by our researchers, the bitterness can be removed. We, the Ntungamoists, the only advantage we found in bread was convenience in storing and transporting.

This is what Dr. Muranga in Nyaruziinga, in Bushenyi, is going to solve with the banana flour and cassava flour which is much healthier than wheat flour that has got the problem of dry glutin which is 9.9% and, therefore, is not good for the human body. The ministry of agriculture is going to guide you as to how our farmers can up-scale the production of sun-flower and castor oil seeds for vegetable oil for soap making as well as bananas and cassava for flour for bread. Sun-flower takes just 4 months and castor oil seeds (enshoga-shoga), take between 140

– 180 days to produce pods. With Palm oil, I hear that Indonesia and Malaysia have banned the export of that item and, therefore, removing the tax will not change anything.

This leaves the problem of petrol and diesel, products for which we do not have an easy local replacement until our own oil comes on stream in, 2025 with first production and the refinery expected in 2026 and we refine some of it for the final products. Even before the War in Ukraine, the price of fuel was going up, on account of the worry by the fossil fuels producers of the global movement for clean energy (solar, wind, nuclear, geo-thermal, hydro-power, hydrogen, etc.).

On account of that fear, the petroleum companies were, apparently, no longer exploring for new reserves. Yet, the new clean energies, would take time to be available. The Russian-Ukrainian war, has made it worse. Just before the Ukrainian war, the price of crude was USD 80 per barrel. It is now USD 114 per barrel. Therefore, the Ukrainian war, has added another USD 34 per barrel. Of course, this is an artificial addition caused by the countries of the Global North (the Bazungu) mishandling their bilateral relations and also mishandling global affairs as well.

We are quietly engaging these actors to see how these actors can remove this artificial burden from the World. Nevertheless, this artificial distortion, should not divert us from our long-distance journey of achieving social-economic transformation because that is the only way of not only increasing our affluence but also immunizing ourselves against the mistakes of others.

Inspite of being obstructed by some elements within Uganda that many times delay our programmes, the way we have been able to transcend the recent challenges of locusts, rising Lake Waters, Covid-19, etc., shows that we are moving towards that state of immunity from the mistakes of others. Even with the high commodity prices, we are still doing much better than many countries in the World. Our inflation has risen from 2.7% before the artificial crisis to 4.9% now. Compare this with other countries: UK 9%, USA 8.3%, France 4.8%, Germany 7.4%, Italy 6%, Spain 8.3%, Russia 17.8%, China 2.1%, Kenya 6.47%, Tanzania 3.8%, Rwanda 10.5% and Ghana 23.6%.

If it was not for the endless obstructions to our programmes, eg. The Palm Oil project in Buvuma, Sango Bay – we would even be much better off. With our coming Oil, Uganda will be immune to the external disruptions. Working with our African brothers, Uganda and Africa will be prosperous irrespective of the actions of the mistake makers, short of using nuclear weapons among themselves which may affect the whole World. Let us, therefore, not be diverted.

We are self-sufficient in food (maize, bananas, cassava, milk, beef, Irish potatoes, beans, peas, fruits, etc.). This is one of the most important factors for survival in times of peril like these. We have good infrastructure, we have a strong Army for guaranteeing peace and we are beginning to pay our scientists well. Nothing can stop us from growing if we work with our African brothers and sisters and other people of good will.

Actually, in my opinion, the only, really serious, vulnerabilities for Uganda, are two: continuing to depend so much on rain-fed agriculture and the damage to our incomparably good environment by encroaching on the wetlands (ebisharara, ebitoogo), Lake Shores (emyegyeego), river banks (enkuungu), forests and steep gradient mountain cliffs (ensa). I have agreed with both the Ministries of Agriculture on enhanced irrigation and with the Ministry of Environment on restoring our wetlands by promoting fish-farming on the edges (emiiga) instead of drying them with swamp rice growing, restoring the forests, etc. We should even agree with the Coastal Countries (Kenya and Tanzania) on, possibly, using nuclear energy to desalinate sea-water as an insurance in the face of the erraticness of the rain caused by the sabotage by the mistakes of global mistake-makers.

In conclusion, I repeat that the only, really, serious dangers to our future are: reliance on only rain-fed agriculture; damage to our environment; and a nuclear-war among the mistake-makers.

During the State of the Nation Address on the 7th of June, 2022, I will touch on the issue of the so called “coffee deal” that was being discussed in Parliament the other day. I could see fundamental disorientation in the position of some of the speakers that were speaking in Parliament. Uganda, indeed Africa, being in a slave-relationship with external actors, is not comparable to any other factors.

To recapitulate (summarize), we need to know and do the following:

1. Subsidies for and removing taxes from imported products is definite suicide because it will deplete both the family savings and the National Reserves, leading to inability to pay for imports because foreigners beyond East Africa do not accept the Uganda shilling as a unit of exchange. They insist on the dollar, gold, etc.

2. The correct action is to kukekereza (being frugal) – kwereembareemba or kubyesonyiwa (get alternatives for the non-oil items).

3. With the internally produced commodities, I was tempted to look at removing taxes because, with these, increased consumption would favour Uganda. However, the tax loss of Ugx. 193 billion for sugar, Ugx. 200 billion for cement, Ugx. 120 billion for mitayimbwa, would cripple our budget and the planned developments. Some of these challenges are

temporary. We have been having the phenomenon of low commodity prices eg. for maize, etc. It is the continued development of the economy that will get us to the stability of a more integrated economy. Only a few months ago, I opened a new factory of industrial sugar in Kinyara. This is the sugar, that is used in Coca Cola as refined sugar, different from the raw-sugar for tea. It is also used for medicines like children’s syrups. Its opening, was helping us to tackle the issue of surplus sugar. There are plans to get petrol out of sugar. With that phenomenon of a more integrated economy, the instability of ekyengera with low prices today and, then, ebula with high prices tomorrow, will be tamed.

4. With petrol, diesel and paraffin, the artificial crisis of the Bazungu has added another $34 dollars. We are engaging the involved actors on this. When we succeed here, we shall remain with original reason of the fossil fuels being worried about the clean energy sources. That will be much better than where we are now. It is important for Ugandans to know that even when we get our own petroleum, we cannot sell it below the World prices minus transport costs.

I thank you everybody for listening.

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

Dar port reaps from rising political heat ahead of Kenya polls

Monday May 23 2022

Trucks at the Port of Mombasa. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Summary

Smarting from the 2007 post-election violence that subjected businesses to heavy losses, Tanzania has become the favourite for most importers, who are avoiding the Northern Corridor ahead of the August polls.

By ANTHONY KITIMO

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The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August 9 General Election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting from the windfall as more cargo destined for the Great Lakes region is diverted to the Dar es Salaam port.

With memories of the 2007/08 post-election violence that disrupted transport on the corridor still fresh — and a $63 million compensation award ordered by a Nairobi court still pending — many importers, especially Ugandans and Rwandans, are opting for the Central Corridor.

Due to this cargo flight, transit volumes through the Dar es Salaam port to the Central Corridor have recently recorded significant growth as Mombasa registers plateaued or declining volumes of goods on the northern route.

According to the latest Mombasa Port Corridor Community Charter report, transit volumes through the Dar es Salaam port grew at 21 percent in 2021 while those through the port of Mombasa declined 6.2 percent in the same period.

The decline is blamed on a move by importers in Uganda, Kenya’s largest transit market in the region, to divert more cargo to Dar es Salaam. Rwandans, too, diverted imports, especially during to the political impasse with Uganda that saw a three-year blockade of the common Gatuna/Katuna border point on the Northern Corridor.

The new report shows that Uganda-bound cargo reduced by 5.7 percent in 2021 while that going to Rwanda had dropped by 56.7 percent. In 2022, experts predict further decline for the Mombasa port, even as the government continues to upgrade it and offer lucrative incentives to users.

The port operators are reassuring their customers of security on the route, amid heightened campaigns for Uhuru Kenyatta’s succession that pits his rival-turned-ally former prime minister Raila Odinga of the Azimio la Umoja coalition against his ally-turned-foe, Deputy President William Ruto, leading the Kenya Kwanza alliance.

Aware of the shift in fortunes, the Kenyan government has moved to ensure increased efficiency and cargo-handling capacity in the Mombasa port after Japanese contractor, Toyo Construction, which has been constructing a second container terminal, completed the project. The government has appointed Swiss firm, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), to run it.

Read: Kenya readies expanded Mombasa port for operations

The completion of this terminal gives the port an additional annual capacity of 450,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (Teus), bringing the total capacity to 2.1 million Teus.

However, the political temperatures have gone a notch higher this past week after the two frontrunners named their running mates from President Kenyatta’s backyard in Central Kenya, a battleground in the hunt for votes. The region largely supports Dr Ruto, but Mr Odinga seemed to gain some ground after naming veteran politician from Kirinyaga County and former Justice minister Martha Karua as his running mate. Dr Ruto has chosen Rigathi Gachagua, the MP for Mathira Constituency in the neighbouring Nyeri County.

This has set the stage for a bruising battle for the State House race, with some neighbours and the US having jitters about a possible contested presidential election result. Dr Ruto’s camp has often alleged that there is a plan by state agencies to rig the polls in favour of President Kenyatta’s preferred candidate, Mr Odinga.

Read: Kenya’s polls heat drives jitters up the Northern Corridor

Uncertainty around election

In March this year, top US spy agencies expressed concerns about the uncertainty around the Kenyan election, warning that any disruptions will not be healthy for regional stability. Kenya, a strategic ally of the US in the region, faces the test of stability in a hotly contested presidential election at a time it has emerged as a peace broker in the conflicts in Ethiopia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Kenya has invested heavily in infrastructure, among the standard gauge railway and two inland ports to facilitate transport of cargo from Mombasa port to Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo. This has also seen Kenya refurbish its old railway to transport cargo to Malaba border with Uganda.

A recent report titled Worldwide Threat Assessment, which presents a consensus among 17 US intelligence agencies, said that East Africa probably will see new bouts of conflict … “as the region becomes increasingly strained by the civil war in Ethiopia, power struggles within the transitional government in Sudan, continued instability in Somalia, and a potentially contentious election in Kenya.” The declassified 31-page document came at a time the Ugandan Cabinet and legislators were voicing their concerns about the rising political friction in Kenya, which has driven up the cost of living along the Northern Corridor due to hesitancy by importers and transporters to use the route.

The leaders called on their government to put in place a robust contingency plan for factors that could drive up commodity prices, key of these being the Kenyan elections.

Lessons from the past

Kenya is the main route for imports into Uganda, with oil from international sources delivered to Eldoret in the North Rift, where other Northern Corridor countries of Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda and eastern DR Congo pick it up for transportation to their markets.

Uganda has learnt from the 2007 polls, when post-election violence in Kenya led to blockage of fuel imports and rail-bound cargo from Mombasa after sections of the railway track were uprooted by rioting youth. “Uganda should facilitate imports and exports through the Central Corridor and deploy more water vessels to connect to the Central Corridor,” said Jane Nalunga, executive director of the Southern and Eastern Africa Trade Information and Negotiations Institute, Uganda.

Port and rail service providers in Tanzania and Uganda in early March signed a freight forwarding agreement with Roofings Group of Uganda to increase the volume of cargo through the Dar es Salaam port. Uganda Railways Corporation Chief Operating Officer Okachi Abubakar said 70 carriages had been flagged off from Uganda to Dar, and two ships would facilitate transportation of the cargo through Lake Victoria.

While there has not been major election-related violence in the current campaigns, the ghosts of the 2007/8 violence continue to haunt importers and transporters on the Northern Corridor. In 2018, a Kenyan court ordered the government to pay 16 Ugandan and Rwandan companies $63 million as compensation for trucks and goods lost during the post-election chaos.

Read: Northern Corridor states ‘monitoring Kenya’s elections’

Michelle D. Gavin, a former US ambassador to Botswana, earlier told The EastAfrican that the August elections will be among the most consequential political events in Africa in 2022.

“In a turbulent region, Kenya’s stability, economic muscle and diplomatic leadership are more essential than ever before,” she said. “An electoral process that takes a wrong turn could threaten the country’s capacity to continue playing a pivotal regional role going forward.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during his first official visit to Kenya last year, urged the government, opposition parties, civil society to work together to ensure safe and stable elections that reflect the will of the Kenyan people in the elections.

Mr Odinga, who is also the African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development, on Wednesday visited South Sudan and held talks with President Salva Kiir before commissioning the 3.6km Freedom Bridge, a symbol of trade connectivity between Juba and the rest of the region.

Later on Thursday, the Kenyan leader held talks with President Yoweri Museveni in State House Entebbe.

“We discussed a wide range of issues concerning our two countries,” President Museveni wrote on his Twitter handle.

Mr Odinga also tweeted: “We walked down memory lane to discuss the shared history of our countries aimed at forging stronger ties moving into the future.” Whether the Kenyan leader’s tour to the two EAC member states will help calm the jitters remains to be seen.

The Northern Corridor has in the past year witnessed increased competition from the Central Corridor in cargo throughput to landlocked Rwanda, Burundi and eastern DRC, with indications of higher costs and transit time through the route, attested to by a decrease of cargo destined to Uganda.

In the past five years, cargo destined for Burundi through Mombasa registered the highest decline in volumes, at 53.3 percent, followed by Tanzanian cargo at 3.9 percent, and Uganda at 0.5 per cent, while DRC registered highest increase in cargo through the northern route at 21.6 percent, and South Sudan at 12.1 percent.

The latest Mombasa Port Corridor Community Charter report warns that the corridor’s performance could be worsened by the electioneering period. Gilbert Langat, the Charter’s chairperson and CEO of the Shippers Council of East Africa (SCEA), said they are engaging partners on the corridor to assure them of safety and security of their cargo and vehicles to build confidence.

Shippers have also cited high penalties charged by the port, detention charges to, delays in railage to the Inland Container Depot in Nairobi, delays in offloading and return of empty containers and unstable automated systems by agencies as other reasons driving them to the Central Corridor.

SCEA reports indicate that 80 percent of imports through the port of Mombasa are handled as through bill of lading (TBL) due to an unpredictable operational environment resulting in an additional cost of between $100 and $150 per Teu. A through bill of lading allows for transportation of goods within domestic borders and through international shipment.

These charges are estimated to have cost the business community between $1 million and $1.5 million, paid to the shipping lines and ship agents in 2021. The detention cost accruing before containers cleared from the ICDN was estimated between $190,000 and $350,000 weekly, due to delayed railage, system downtimes and equipment breakdown.

Structured engagements

Shippers through the port of Mombasa in 2020 paid an average of $3,600 as storage penalties, but in 2021 the cost declined 33 percent to $2,400, a decline the Kenya Ports Authority attributes to “progressive structured engagements between the lead agencies and the private sector led by SCEA”.

Despite the decline in transit cargo volumes through Mombasa, the port still registered a positive performance in 2021, the impact of Covid-19 and global economic crisis notwithstanding.

Between January and December 2021, the Mombasa port registered 34.5 million tonnes of cargo compared with 34.1 million tonnes in 2020.

Containerised cargo increased 5.15 percent from 1.36 million Teu in 2020 to 1.43 million Teu in 2021. Transit cargo was 9.3 million tonnes in 2020, compared with 10.1 million tonnes in 2021.

Meanwhile, Tanzania’s “softened” borders with Kenya has reduced non-tariff barriers in the one year of President Samia Suluhu’s reign. Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that Tanzania’s exports to Kenya doubled in just 10 months after the Samia takeover. In the John Magufuli era, the two countries engaged in many trade rows, with Tanzania playing protectionist while imposing restrictions on trade with Kenya, against the EAC Common Market rules.

KNBS’s Economic Survey 2022 shows that the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic notwithstanding, Kenya imported more goods from Tanzania in the past year than before.

In May 2021, President Samia and Uhuru Kenyatta agreed on targets, including eliminating 14 identified non-tariff barriers in six months.

After President Samia’s visit, President Kenyatta directed the country’s agriculture officials to allow Tanzanian maize imports that had been barred. He also directed that work permits be harmonised and relaxed the policy on business visas for traders. Tanzania exported more food to Kenya in 2021.

Increase in imports

“Kenya’s imports from Tanzania nearly doubled from Ksh27.9 billion ($242.6 million) in 2020 to Ksh54.5 billion ($473.9 million) in 2021, partly attributable to increase in imports of maize and rice from this country,” said the report released by Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani earlier this month.

“Similarly, Kenya’s exports to Tanzania and DR Congo exhibited a significant rise from Ksh31.8 billion ($276.5 million) and Ksh14.3 billion ($124.3 million) in 2020, to Ksh45.6 billion ($396.5 million) and Ksh24.4 billion ($212.2 million) respectively.”

The rise was due to an increase in domestic exports of tea, cut flowers and coffee to DR Congo and soap to Tanzania. Uganda remained the largest export market for Kenyan products, according to the report, trade disputes notwithstanding.

“The value of exports to Uganda increased from Ksh72.2 billion ($627.8 million) in 2020, to Ksh91.7 billion ($797.4 million) in 2021, largely driven by increase in domestic exports of cement clinkers, palm oil, flat-rolled products of iron and non-alloy steel and re-exports of machines tools for drilling, boring sinking, milling, threading or taping,” the report states. “As a result, Uganda continued to be the country’s key export destination, accounting for 12.3 percent of total export earnings. Increased demand for sugar and milk led to the increased expenditure of imports from Uganda.”

In the period, exports to South Sudan declined 26 percent to Ksh17.1billion ($148.7 million), resulting in a reduction in domestic exports of food supplements, and re-export of dried leguminous vegetables.

In the headlines

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Monday May 23 2022

President Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi hosts DRC's Felix Antoine Tshisekedi at State House in Bujumbura on May 21, 2022. PHOTO | NTARE HOUSE

Summary

By MOSES HAVYARIMANA

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The Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Antoine Tshisekedi arrived at Melchior Ndadaye International Airport in Bujumbura on Saturday evening for a three-day state visit to Burundi.

He was received by Burundi’s Foreign Affairs minister Albert Shingiro before meeting President Evariste Ndayishimiye at State House Bujumbura.

President Tshisekedi was honoured at Burundi’s State House (Ntare House) with a 21-gun salute and tree planting to mark his visit.

After a closed-door meeting, the DRC leader said the two countries are seeking to strengthen bilateral ties and economic cooperation in agriculture, defence and security, and railway project.

This is the first visit for Mr Tshisekedi to Burundi since his country’s admission into the East African Community (EAC) in March this year. He last visited Burundi in June 2019.

DRC has been galvanising support from EAC countries to stem rebel activity in its eastern frontier which borders four member states, including Burundi.

Last July, Presidents Ndayishimiye and Tshisekedi signed several agreements in Kinshasa during the former’s visit to the country. They included cooperation development; maintenance and strengthening of peace, defence and security; trade facilitation; and political and diplomatic consultations.

Read: DRC and Burundi sign cooperation deals

“We are looking at common interest areas that include the railway project which will link Tanzania, Burundi and DRC,” President Tshisekedi said at a press briefing in Bujumbura on Saturday.

The railway project is expected to connect Tanzania through the central corridor Uvinza to Musongati, Gitega and Bujumbura in Burundi and Uvira and Kindu in eastern DR Congo.

While in Burundi, Mr Tshisekedi will visit two agricultural organisatons, including the main fertiliser manufacturer Fomi. He will also lay a wealth on former president Pierre Nkurunziza’s grave.

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Sunday May 22 2022

A vessel docks at the port of Dar es Salaam. The DR Congo says it has obtained yard spaces in Mombasa and Dar es Salaam to roll out offices for its new shipping line, The Lignes Maritimes Congolaises, that will start operations from June. PHOTO | AFP

Summary

The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) is banking on the admission of the DR Congo to the East African Community to increase its business market in the region.
DRC’s new shipping line will also use Tanzanian ports and this could be an added incentive to Dodoma’s latest programme to expand its inland ports.

By APOLINARI TAIRO

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By ANTHONY KITIMO

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The Democratic Republic of Congo is entering shipping business with eyes on East Africa’s two biggest ports in Kenya and Tanzania, signalling further intent by the bloc’s newest member to ease its importation channels.

This week, officials from Kinshasa announced they had obtained yard spaces in Mombasa and Dar es Salaam to roll out offices for DR Congo’s new shipping line: The Lignes Maritimes Congolaises (LMC) that will start operations from June.

The decision that came just about a month after the DR Congo was formally admitted into the East African Community reflects the country’s desire to tap into the benefits of being in the trade bloc, where it is now cheaper and easier to import as tariffs are headed for reduction.

The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) is banking on the admission of the DR Congo to the East African Community to increase its business market in the region.

LMC, the state-owned shipping line mandated with maritime transport and the operation of marine vessels in DRC, is targeting to channel more import-export cargo through the Port of Mombasa, as well as raise volumes in Dar.

The LMC delegation led by director Banze Nkulu Mulunda and other government officials agreed to open office at the Port of Mombasa to coordinate imports and exports from their country.

“After a discussion on operational and logistics issues with KPA container terminal principal operations officer Michael Bokole and his team, we have agreed to start our operations from Mombasa starting next month.

‘‘This will help in creating more jobs and business opportunities not only for DRC but to Kenya,” said Dr Mulunda.

Mr Bokole welcomed the delegation and said it was a big milestone in ensuring the DRC is integrated into the EAC.

“The DRC recently joined the EAC community bolstering trade opportunities among member states who are keen to increase intra-EAC trade and benefit from the common market. Them coming to Mombasa will increase both import and export of goods through the port,” said Mr Bokole.

The Kinshasa team agreed LCM will be responsible for collecting royalties from shipping lines that carry cargo to and from the DRC.

LMC has adequately addressed the issue of storage, traceability and security of its products as the DRC expects to increase its business after joining the EAC in April.

Open for trade

DRC is now expected to deposit the instruments of acceptance with the East African Community secretariat, agreeing to open up its market to other member states for business as it got admitted to the regional bloc.

The instruments of acceptance will see the member states trade freely with Kinshasa in line with the Common Market Protocol that allows free movement of goods and services.

Prior to admission, EAC states had to pay tariffs for imports or exports because of external rules that were applicable.

The DRC comes into the bloc with a huge market of 90 million people and the potential to contribute to an expanded market and investment opportunities to boost the EAC common market.

Already, Kinshasa has bilateral and multilateral cooperation arrangements with EAC partner states in various areas, including customs, infrastructure and productive and social sectors as a member of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern African (Comesa), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries (CEPGL) and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR).

In March the EAC Council of Ministers met to “ensure all ground” had been covered and agreed upon by all parties to allow seamless integration of the newest member of the bloc.

Tanzania ports

DRC’s new shipping line will also use Tanzanian ports and this could be an added incentive to Dodoma’s latest programme to expand its inland ports.

The Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), for example, is expanding the Kasanga port on Lake Tanganyika at a cost of Tsh4 billion ($1.7 million). Kasanga is the second biggest port on Lake Tanganyika after Kigoma.

The Lake Tanganyika Business Summit held in Kigoma last week discussed various measures to speed up movements of goods and people within the Great Lakes Region, mostly to DR Congo.

Officials in Tanzania have also been driving for more markets in DR Congo, holding a business summit with top traders in the DRC last week. The summit attracted business executives and other stakeholders who use the Dar es Salaam Port as a gateway for imports and exports.

Kigoma Regional Commissioner Thobias Andengenye said in a statement that the Lake Tanganyika Investment and Business Summit will further open the Kigoma region for cross-border trade. TPA said in its latest report that other five ports on Lake Tanganyika have been established to handle Congo cargo, while a shorter road has been designed to connect Tanzania and Lubumbashi in Eastern DR Congo through Kasanga Port on Lake Tanganyika.

Bulk copper

The ports authority said it is currently facilitating the exportation of bulk copper from the DRC.

The Dar es Salaam port is currently, handling over 1.8 million tonnes of cargo from the DR Congo per year.

Tanzania exports to the DRC in 2021 were estimated at $207.23 million, according to the Tanzania Embassy in Kinshasa.

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Sunday May 22 2022

A man buys bitcoins at a Bitstop ATM in Miami. Last week, the cryptocurrency market witnessed one of the worst meltdowns with Bitcoin falling by more than 50 percent. PHOTO | AFP

Summary

With the price of Bitcoin, the largest and most popular cryptocurrency, falling by over 50 percent since November 2021, crypto-traders are now counting cumulative losses of at least $1.2 trillion over the period.
But this has not affected the appetite for the volatile digital assets as traders believe the prices will soon rise and stabilise.

By VINCENT OWINO

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The cryptocurrency market witnessed one of the worst meltdowns last week, with the total market capitalisation falling by 40 percent to $1.3 trillion in just a month, but traders stay put, confident that the market will soon revamp.

Experts say the meltdown was caused by massive sell-offs spiked by speculations due to rising inflation in most countries, coupled with a move by some nations, including the US, UK, Australia and India, to raise interest rates to tackle rising commodity prices.

“The effect of raising interest rates is that as people reduce their expenditure, they also reduce their investments, and that cuts across the crypto, stocks and equity markets,” said Rufas Kamau, a Nairobi-based financial markets analyst and researcher.

Massive losses

With the price of Bitcoin, the largest and most popular cryptocurrency, falling by over 50 percent since November 2021, crypto-traders are now counting cumulative losses of at least $1.2 trillion over the period. But this has not affected the appetite for the volatile digital assets as traders believe the prices will soon rise and stabilise.

Timothy Kamau, a Nairobi-based cryptocurrency investor, told The EastAfrican: “I’m not sure how long it will take to resume, but I know eventually the prices will rise again. That’s why I haven’t lost interest.”

Based on statistics by global crypto assets tracker CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin’s price rose from about $26,000 last week on Thursday and is currently trading at just above $30,000.

“It has been worse before, and still prices revamped. This is certainly not any different,” remarked Eric Michubu, a Bitcoin entrepreneur.

The worst affected cryptocurrency was the fairly new Luna, which had been trading at about $116, but slumped to $0.0002. Digital asset traders say the collapse of Luna sparked fears among smallholder retail investors in other digital assets, causing them to sell off to avoid the risks.

“It is possible that there was market manipulation to instigate the fears, leading to the sell-offs, because what happened with Luna is unnatural,” said Mr Michubu.

High volatility is among the main reasons regulators — including the Central Bank of Kenya, the Capital Markets Authority and the International Monetary Fund — have consistently warned against cryptocurrencies, encouraging other forms of digital currencies like central bank digital currencies.

For regulators, crypto-investments remain a challenge because they siphon out money that would otherwise be invested in the countries’ stock and equity markets, which suffer low domestic participation.

But Mr Kamau says global trends show that whenever investments in crypto markets fall, so do those in equity and capital markets, which means that the cryptocurrency meltdown will not benefit regional bourses.

“When people sell-off investments in the crypto markets, it is usually due to the same reasons people sell-off in the stocks and equity markets,” he said.

The effect of sell-offs has also been felt at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), which shed $2.5 billion in one month since April 13, as foreign investors fled.

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

Sunday May 22 2022

Green growth “promotes and maximises opportunities for sustainable economic development by building resilience and managing resources efficiently.” PHOTO | FILE

Summary

Green growth is “the means to promote and maximise opportunities for sustainable economic development through building resilience and managing resources efficiently.”
Report warns that despite this political commitment, “broader stakeholder buy-in and participation are required to formulate and implement inclusive, locally relevant policies and solutions.”

By VINCENT OWINO

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African leaders across the continent are increasingly showing commitment towards promoting sustainable economic development, a new report has shown, reflecting the changing political will.

The Africa Green Growth Readiness Assessment Report, compiled by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), sought to establish how nine strategic and operational aspects, including political commitment, in seven African countries promote green growth.

Green growth has been assessed by AfDB and other lenders of being crucial in preventing depletion of natural resources.

The findings reveal that in each of the seven case study countries — Kenya, Rwanda, Morocco, Mozambique, Gabon, Senegal, and Tunisia — there is significant political commitment, shown by the involvement of high-level government officials, including heads of state, in championing green growth agenda.

Green growth is “the means to promote and maximise opportunities for sustainable economic development through building resilience and managing resources efficiently.”

Broad participation

In Kenya, for example, President Uhuru Kenyatta chairs the National Climate Change Council, which is responsible for overall coordination of climate change affairs, including guiding the implementation of the national climate change action plan.

The other countries have also “enshrined fundamentals of green growth, including the right to a clean and safe environment and citizens’ right to consultation, in their constitutions” it states.

It, however, warns that despite this political commitment, “broader stakeholder buy-in and participation are required to formulate and implement inclusive, locally relevant policies and solutions.”

The report also looked into how government institutions, policy ecosystems, legal environments and regulations, financing and budgeting, research, human resources, and instigated monitoring and reporting systems impact green growth.

It also poked holes into the countries’ readiness in terms of “re-evaluating their budgeting structures in view of the paradigm shift needed for joint implementation at sectoral and sub-national levels.”

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

Saturday May 21 2022

Fresh food produce sold at Nakasero market in Kampala. Consumers are feeling the pinch of rising food prices. PHOTO | FILE

Summary

The last time President Museveni addressed the nation about the increasing prices was Labour Day, when he advised Ugandans to choose between buying bread and cassava.
Finance minister Matia Kasaija told the nation to brace for the worst, saying the government cannot intervene and or reduce taxes.
Household budgets and operating costs in Uganda have risen sharply in the face of the government’s stance not to give a tax rebate on fuel, adding uncertainty to economic recovery.

By KABONA ESIARA

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The high cost of living, a widening budget deficit, corruption and growth uncertainties continue to blot Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni’s sixth term in office.

The president, expected to address the nation this weekend after the end of the first year of his current term, has been facing calls from businesses and the public to tame the escalating cost of commodities, especially fuel, whose retail price has risen over 70 percent in the past year.

The last time President Museveni addressed the nation about the increasing prices was Labour Day, when he advised Ugandans to choose between buying bread and cassava.

Finance minister Matia Kasaija told the nation to brace for the worst, saying the government cannot intervene and or reduce taxes.

Household budgets and operating costs in Uganda have risen sharply in the face of the government’s stance not to give a tax rebate on fuel, adding uncertainty to economic recovery.

Although the Bank of Uganda says the economy is recovering from the pandemic downturn, domestic growth weakened in March 2022 due to the rising prices of food and fuel.

Juliet Najjinda, manager of tax services at PricewaterhouseCoopers Uganda, said it is time the government introduced a fuel subsidy to reduce pump prices, as the manufacturing sector is feeling the heat.

“It is no longer sustainable to leave the fuel price to market forces,” said Ms Najjinda, adding that the government collects between Ush1,200 ($0.33) and Ush1,300 ($0.36) per litre of fuel.

Opposition Members of Parliament Cecilia Ogwal, Muwanga Kivumbi and Anthony Akol said that until the government comes up with specific funding, the greater north -— Busoga, Bukedi, Teso, Karamoja, Acholi, Lango, and West Nile — will continue suffering.

“The outlook of the country seems to indicate there are two countries in one; the greater North and South,” said Mr Kivumbi, the shadow minister of finance and economic planning. “If not addressed, it poses a threat to the security of and posterity of the country.”

Corruption

Willis Bashasha, director of manifesto implementation in the Office of the President, said that they are facing challenges in carrying out their policies.

“Corruption is our biggest enemy. It affects the implementation of the projects,” he said.

Although the government has set up institutions to fight corruption, there is still a lot to be done. A survey by the Inspectorate of Government found that the country loses Ush20 trillion ($5.5 billion) to corruption annually in key government agencies, and Ush590 billion ($161.7 million) in fraudulent procurement deals.

The report has helped Parliament question multimillion-dollar contracts that the government has single-sourced. Members have called on the government to cancel the deal giving Uganda Vinci Coffee Company Ltd exclusive rights to buy all Uganda’s coffee. In 2019, the same company was contracted to manage the construction of the stalled Lubowa Specialised Hospital without being subjected to a competitive bid process. The government issued a promissory note of $397 million.

In the 2021/2022 budget, the hospital was given Ush348 billion ($95.4 million) and, in the 2022/2023 budget proposals before the Committee on Finance, additional Ush319 billion ($87.4 million) is allocated to the project.

Political finance watchdog Alliance for Financial Monitoring says single sourcing seems to be synonymous with big-ticket procurement deals.

“This makes it by far the most expensive hospital to be built in Uganda, in comparison to Kiruddu, which cost Uganda $25 million. The Lubowa hospital project is about 16 times more expensive,” said Henry Muguzi, a member of the lobby. “The lack of transparency around this procurement exposes the process to abuse. This is what is unravelling in the Lubowa hospital case, which makes it subject to financial crime.”

The increase in administrative units is also putting pressure on the national budget. From 14 districts in the country in the 1960s, there are now 146 districts.

Stretched resources

“A lot of resources have to be used to cater for the new units, which affects delivery of services as resources get overstretched,” Mr Bashasha said.

Uganda faces a perennial problem of running a budget deficit, given the low domestic revenue collections.

“Over the past decade, Uganda’s tax-to-GDP ratio has increased by over three percentage points to about 12 per cent. It stagnated at this level in the years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. Although during the pandemic revenues declined, the tax-to-GDP ratio held up well,” said Izabella Karpowicz, resident representative of the International Monetary Fund Uganda.

Ms Karpowicz said Uganda has to increase domestic revenue collection by 0.5 percent of GDP per year.

She said further stagnation in revenues could push Uganda to borrow more or contain spending, including on priority outlays. This would further delay implementation of the sustainable development goals.

President Museveni’s year has borne some good fruits, such as the restoration of relations with Rwanda, culminating in the opening of the border at Katuna. Rwandan President Paul Kagame visited Uganda to attend Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s 48th birthday party last month. It was the first visit in four years.

Uganda’s deployment and collaboration with Democratic Republic of Congo forces to root out Islamist rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces - who have been destabilising the region, killing thousands of people in the past two decades - is also a positive act. The government has also started on the construction of roads in the DRC as part of efforts to ensure security, promote trade and access new markets in the vast mineral-rich country.

In the year, President Museveni also hosted Mozambican president Felipe Nyusi and the two countries committed to strengthen co-operation in defence and security, immigration, agriculture, energy, petroleum and mineral Development.

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

JOHNSON-SMITH: I will take the Commonwealth agenda further as it evolves into a stronger entity

Saturday May 21 2022

Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson-Smith hopes to be the next Commonwealth Secretary-General. PHOTO | AFP

Summary

I bring extensive leadership experience and strong relationships with member countries. I propose to apply a visionary, innovative and transparent approach to the job, within a results-based framework.
My vision for the Commonwealth is aligned with areas of concern of member countries. This includes promoting robust efforts towards the sustainable development goals as part of recovery from the pandemic.
My candidacy underscores the value and principles of the Commonwealth — as an opportunity for all member states, big and small, developed and developing, to play a leading role in the collective pursuit of their sustainable development goals.

By BERNA NAMATA

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Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson-Smith, a contender for the Commonwealth Secretary-General position, spoke with The EastAfrican’s Berna Namata.

Why do you think you are the best candidate for the job of Commonwealth Secretary-General?

The Commonwealth can accomplish much more than it has so far. Now is an opportune time for the community of nations, with shared values and goals, to evolve into a stronger entity for the economic and social development of its member states.

I bring extensive leadership experience and strong relationships with member countries. I propose to apply a visionary, innovative and transparent approach to the job, within a results-based framework.

I have successfully held leadership posts both regionally and internationally, serving as president of the OACPS Council of Ministers, Chair of CARIFORUM and the CARICOM Council on Trade and Economic Development. Jamaica has also served as ACP co-ordinator at the World Trade Organisation since 2019. The co-ordination is led by me and my team in Geneva. I was the first Jamaican Foreign Minister to be invited to G7 and G20 ministerial meetings.

What are your priorities for the Commonwealth if you get the seat?

My vision for the Commonwealth is aligned with areas of concern of member countries. This includes promoting robust efforts towards the sustainable development goals as part of recovery from the pandemic. Advancing gender and youth empowerment while intensifying advocacy on climate action, climate finance and resilience, as well as re-investment in the capacity of the Secretariat to deliver critical technical support to member states, among other areas, are of strategic priority.

Critics say the Commonwealth is largely a talking shop, and outdated due its origins in the British Empire. What reforms are needed to make the group effective and relevant?

The Commonwealth is diverse, comprising countries across five regions of the world, each at various stages of development, but importantly, it unites peoples who have a shared desire for peace and prosperity, drawing on their interconnectedness. My candidacy underscores the value and principles of the Commonwealth — as an opportunity for all member states, big and small, developed and developing, to play a leading role in the collective pursuit of their sustainable development goals.

What is your take on the work of the Commonwealth on issues such as the separation of powers, rule of law, and human-rights?

Since its inception, the Commonwealth has placed human rights as a core value and guiding principle. The Commonwealth remains committed to equality and respect for the protection and promotion of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development for all, without discrimination on any grounds, as these are the foundations of peaceful, just and stable societies.

What needs to be done to strengthen the Commonwealth monitoring and oversight mechanisms such as the Ministerial Action Group?

The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) was created to assess violations of values and recommend measures to restore democracy and constitutional rule.

In my first days in office, in pursuance of the work being undertaken by the CMAG, I hope that I can play a more supportive good offices role, particularly where the intersection of social and political issues impedes development processes of critical importance to the lives of the people of the Commonwealth.

Some commentators say the Commonwealth has done nothing useful over the past decade. How do you view such criticism?

While it certainly is less the household name it used to be, the fact that 54 states have come together in an association speaks for itself. A unique facility is the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation, which delivers targeted support in areas in which the Commonwealth has a competitive advantage. Admittedly we must generate re-investment in the Fund as it is one of the most outstanding examples of effective Commonwealth co-operation.

With Brexit, there is speculation that the UK could return the Commonwealth to a trading bloc?

The Commonwealth presents an opportunity for the UK to establish robust trade relations with member countries. Together, we can examine areas for possible partnerships. There are other opportunities as well, given the growth of countries ratifying the AfCFTA.

You visited several African countries. How can the Commonwealth promote South-South co-operation?

During my visit to Africa, I met with representatives of eight member states. South-South co-operation promotes integration and synergies among developing and some emerging economy countries to mitigate difficulties. It presents opportunities for countries to share best practices and forges trade, investment and financing relationships. We can leverage the Commonwealth in promoting these opportunities.

***

BIO

Kamina Johnson-Smith is an attorney-at-law who worked in private practice for 17 years, including 13 at Cable & Wireless Jamaica.

She holds a Bachelors of Arts Degree in French from the University of West Indies as well as a Bachelors of Laws Degree also from the University of the West Indies.

She pursued graduate studies at the Norman Manley Law School, and attained a Masters Law Degree in Commercial Law from London School of Economics and Political Science. She speaks French as a foreign language.

In the headlines

Dar port reaps from rising political heat in Kenya

The heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting.

Museveni's address: No govt intervention amid high cost of living

Removing taxes or subsidizing many of the imports is suicidal and a blunder, President Museveni told Ugandans.

DRC’s President Tshisekedi in Burundi for 3-day visit

Kinshasa enters shipping business, set to rock EA boats

Crypto market meltdown linked to sell-offs triggered by inflation

Political will is evident as Africa accepts green growth

High fuel, commodity prices dampen Museveni’s first year in his sixth term

#JusticeForShireen: Who will call this journalist’s killers to account?

Saturday May 21 2022

Veteran journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh during one of her reports from Jerusalem in this undated handout photo released by Al-Jazeera TV. She was shot dead by Israeli troops early on May 11, 2022 as she covered a raid on Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, according to the network. PHOTO | AL JAZEERA | AFP

Summary

The Israeli authorities were quick to deny any responsibility, as they do every time something like this happens, even suggesting that Shireen could have been hit by a Palestinian bullet!
But it soon became clear that this was rubbish, when the Israeli military attacked the crowd escorting Shireen’s cortège to her burial site, beating up the mourners and almost capsizing her coffin, an abomination in every faith you can think of.

By JENERALI ULIMWENGU

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Time and again, something happens just to remind us that we live in a truly cynical world, in which politicians and governors only care for what works for them in the here-and-now calculations of crass political gains.

Such an occasion was once again offered with the killing of Shireen Abu Aqleh, who was shot by the Israeli military in Jennin a week ago.

The Israeli authorities were quick to deny any responsibility, as they do every time something like this happens, even suggesting that Shireen could have been hit by a Palestinian bullet!

But it soon became clear that this was rubbish, when the Israeli military attacked the crowd escorting Shireen’s cortège to her burial site, beating up the mourners and almost capsizing her coffin, an abomination in every faith you can think of. The indignity of that attack on the cortège erased any doubt that could have existed as to the murderers of the journalist. The hatred for the young woman was demonstrated in all in its ugliness by that act.

Israeli forces

It is so simple to understand why Israeli forces will deliberately target any journalist documenting their crimes in occupied Palestine. Since 1948 when Israel was established through the forceful removal of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians — thrown off their land and made to live in refugee camps such as the one in which Shireen was killed —this has been the pattern.

What the Palestinians called al Nakba (the Catastrophe) of 1948 was not an event, and it continues to this day with the illegal settlements of Jews continuing on Palestinian land, evicting the lawful owners. I was watching the other day the story of a woman who, having been evicted as a baby back in 1948, was now being expelled from the refuge she had taken back then. In other words, she was being tuned into a double evictee.

The documentation of such crimes is what the Israeli authorities do not want to happen, because they show the true colours of a regime that more and more sections of world opinion have begun to recognise as an Apartheid system akin to what we got rid of in Pretoria in 1994. Shireen’s work was helping to shed more light on the atrocities committed by Israel, and she simply had to be stopped. Many other journalists in occupied Palestine have paid this hefty price.

The usual hypocrisy of the powerful came into play when the American president, Joe Biden apparently “did not have all the facts” to pronounce himself on the assassination, despite the fact that Shireen was actually an American citizen with the right to claim protection from the US government.

But how can the Americans provide that protection when the knee-jerk defence of Israel — no matter what she does — is a cornerstone of US foreign policy, including unquestioning funding and other forms of support in security and military spheres

Cruel version

In fact, the bullet that went into Shireen’s head could have been an American bullet. That reminds me of Anton Myrer’s classic novel, Once an Eagle. The shafts striking you are your own, or a cruel version of “friendly fire.”

The continuation of America’s unthinking support for the state of Israel is truly baffling, but it is a fact that the long-suffering people of Palestine (and the whole wide world) will have to live with till something really fundamental changes in international relations, and that is something we cannot put a time-frame to.

It is not possible to say with certainty when American world hegemony will finally wane, though we know it definitely will have to.

What we can do in the meantime is to demand that those occupying other countries illegally — a heinous crime in itself — abide by norms of civilised society when dealing with journalists in war and crisis situations.

It is the role of such people to brave the dangerous conditions caused by such conflicts in order to bring to the world as accurate accounts as possible so as to allow the world to know how to behave toward whatever is going down in the area concerned, and perhaps craft a way of ending the conflict. Deliberate targeting of journalists hampers such efforts.

It goes on and on. A couple of years ago, another American journalist was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, and his killers have not been hard to identify, although they remain secure from sanctions. Jamal Khashoggi remains a silent witness to the murderous brutality of the Saudi regime, which, like Israel, is a valued client of Washington’s.

American politicians

It is now almost accepted universally that Israel cannot do wrong in the eyes of American politicians, that she can literally get away with murder, which is exactly what happened in the case of Shireen’s shooting.

I would expect our governments to show they are concerned with this kind of behaviour by a government they have diplomatic relations with, but unfortunately who among our governments would like to raise issues concerning a dead journalist?

Jenerali Ulimwengu is now on YouTube via jeneralionline tv. E-mail: [email protected]

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