The Federation of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (FSME) has partnered with The Innovation Village (TIV) to provide digital literacy to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Uganda.
This partnership aims to address the urgent need for digital skills among SMEs and MSMEs, which account for 90% of the business sector in Uganda.

According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), MSMEs face significant challenges in accessing finance, markets, and technology in Africa and in Uganda alone, MSMEs account for 75% of private sector employment, yet only 16% have access to formal finance. This lack of access to resources, combined with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and several other challenges has created a need for innovative solutions to support MSMEs and enable them to build resilience and grow their businesses.

Arthur Mukembo, the Future Lab Lead at the Innovation village said that “The partnership is under the Digital Economy program which we are implementing with our partners Mastercard Foundation. Some of the objectives of this partnership include designing and implementing digital skilling programs that will support the growth and business resilience of MSMEs, delivering innovation capacity building while supporting FSME and its members with designing, refining, and implementing innovation strategies that promote business growth and create jobs for young people,” he also added that “all of this is going to be achieved by building a reporting dashboard tool for FSME as part of a capacity building and institutional strengthening initiative”.

The executive director of FSME’s John Kakungulu Walugembe emphasized the importance of this partnership and how it is going to benefit MSMSE’s. He explained that “by increasing efficiency and productivity for MSMEs to automate tasks and streamline operations we are heading towards higher productivity and profitability. We are glad to partner with the Innovation Village and equally excited to be championing MSMEs resilience, competitiveness and sustainability in this burgeoning digital economy.”
Mr. Saul Weikama, the Digital Economy Practice lead at the Innovation Village said the Digital Economy program has the potential to transform the way MSMEs operate and access markets, as many lack digital literacy and skills needed to take full advantage of these opportunities, FSME and TIV partnership comes in, offering MSMEs access to digital literacy campaigns, technology solutions providers, financial services, business development services (BDS), and resilience support.

Building digital literacy among MSMEs will increase their participation in the digital economy program and ultimately lead to greater financial inclusion, business growth, and job creation.
The partnership is a significant step towards empowering and supporting MSMEs in Uganda by leveraging the recently launched Digital Economy Program at The Innovation Village. Through digital skilling programs and innovative digital solutions, MSMEs will have access to the resources and tools needed to grow their businesses, create jobs and build resilience in the face of challenges which will lead to creating new opportunities for growth and job creation in the country while serving last mile users.

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Over one million people applied for loans in different financial institutions across the country in the last three months, a report by the Bank of Uganda indicates.

However, the approval rate also declined, amid fears of default due to sluggish economic performance, the State of the Economy Report for April 2023 released on Thursday, 11 May 2023, indicates.

According to the report, the approval rate for credit declined in the three months to March 2023 to 60.44 percent from 63.59 percent in the three months to December 2022 in value terms, on the back of approvals to multinational borrowers

“Notably, there was an increase in the number of loan requests to 1.09 million applicants in the three months to March 2023 from 0.97 million in the three months to December 2022,” the report states.

This came as growth in private sector credit remained sluggish across major sectors, except for the personal loans and manufacturing. The agriculture sector also recorded contractions in credit since November 2022 while Building, Mortgage, Construction and business services sectors experienced major credit growth slowdown.

According to the report, total private sector credit growth moderated to 9.8 percent in the three months to March 2023 from 10.2 percent in the three months to December 2022 driven down by declining lending in foreign currency.

“The moderation of credit growth reflects the increasing lending rates which somewhat negatively affected credit demand and valuation changes at the back of the shilling appreciation. Nonetheless, at 8.7 percent, private sector credit growth net of valuation and capitalized interest was relatively stable in the period but below historical trends,” the report states.

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President Yoweri Museveni has called for a cease of fire in Sudan.  Museveni said while meeting the Special Envoy of the Chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council in Sudan, Amb. Dafallah Al-Haj Ali at State House Entebbe.
Museveni said a ceasefire is critical to allow peace, for people to elect their leaders as owners of the country.
“I reiterated my earlier advice that they should do away with politics of Identity & concentrate on politics of Interest. The country does not belong to the Sudan Army, it belongs to the people,” he said.

Last month violence erupted in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, between rival military groups fighting the Arab country. Two military men behind the dispute include; Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the head of the armed forces and in effect the country’s president, and his deputy and leader of the RSF, Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti.

Since the 2021 coup, Sudan has been run by a council of generals, led by the two military men who are at the centre of this dispute. Several countries including Uganda have since evacuated its nationals from the war ravaged country.
Atleast 600 people have been killed and more than 5000 have been injured in the conflict as 60,000 seek refuge in Egypt.  Currently Saudi Arabia is hosting a round of talks with the RSF to resolve the conflict.

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The President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Félix Tshisekedi has threatened to expel East African Community (EAC) regional forces if its efforts do not yield by June this year.
East African Community (EAC) formed a military force to respond to the crisis last June, with Kenyan soldiers deploying in November followed this year by Burundian, Ugandan and South Sudanese contingents.
Speaking at a press briefing in Botswana, Tshisekedi said the EAC force’s mandate ends in June and if we feel that the mandate was not fulfilled will return them and thank them for having tried. We have the confirmation of the coming of SADC troops which we will have to put in place.

He said there is cohabitation that we have noticed between the contingent of the East African Community and the rebels.
“That is a genuine problem when it comes to the mission assigned, and also compels to ask, what is the purpose of the mission?” he said, claiming that except for the Burundi troops, others “are now living together with M23,”he said.
His comments come a day after a special summit of the 16-bloc Southern African Development Community (SADC), held in Namibia, resolved to deploy forces “to restore peace and security in eastern DRC”.

In November 2022, Kenya’s Parliament approved the deployment of nearly 1,000 soldiers for a new regional force in DRC. The approval followed EAC Heads of State Conclave on Inter-Congolese Dialogue deliberation to jointly deploy in Congo. The soldiers later flew into Goma from Nairobi to fight rebels in DRC.

Last month, Uganda’s contingent of the East African regional force joined Kenyan troops to foster peace in the war torn Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo-DRC. Uganda will as well deploy 1,000 soldiers as part of the regional military force.
The North Kivu province is occupied by different militia groups including the M23 rebels who are fighting government forces and causing civilians to flee.

Last month, EAC Regional Force Commander Major-General Jeff Nyagah exited the mission in the DRC due to an aggravated threat to personal safety and systematic plan to frustrate efforts of the force.
Gen Nyagah said there was an attempt to intimidate his security at his former home by deploying foreign military contractors, who placed monitoring devices, flew drones and conducted physical surveillance at his home earlier this year.
“There has been a well-orchestrated and financed negative media campaign targeted at my personality and false accusations for the force’s complacency on the handling of the M23 label group,” he said.

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The president Yoweri Museveni has mourned the fallen State Minister for Gender, Labour and Social Development, Late Rtd Col Okello Charles Patrick Engola, saying he was a sacrificial lamb.
Engola was on May 2, 2013 shot and killed by his bodyguard, Pte Wilson Sabiiti at his residence in Kyanja, a Kampala suburb. The killer fired several shots at close range before fleeing the scene up to the trading center where he entered a salon and shot himself dead.

“Engola was really a sacrificial lamb. He has been sacrificed by some problems that were not his and we should use them to really sort out all these dark areas,” Museveni said at Kololo Ceremonial grounds.
He said Engola had nothing to do with the cause of his death. There is no way you can say the soldier did what he did because of the actions of Minister Engola. The soldier had been there for only one month. It was not Engola, it was something else that triggered him.

“Engola was a patriot but he ended up being killed by a bad product produced by our system. I want to apologize to the family and to the people who belong to the people of Uganda,” he said.
“I first saw him in 1986 at Lubiri Barracks, manning a 14.5 mm anti-aircraft gun. You could tell at the time that he was a patriot because initially, the political elite from the North were disorganizing people to be against the National Resistance Army (NRA). He was part of the cadres from the North who rejected that nonsense,” he said.
“When the soldiers come from the army and mix with the civilian sector, they get involved with parasite mercenaries who don’t think about their country just for money.” he said.

He revealed that the guard battalion at Bombo was sending food to these escorts through the ADC of their principals. Bodyguards should not be the responsibility of the principal to feed them. It should be the unit who sends them food, they may not cook it for them, and they can cook for themselves and the guard battalion should make arrangements for accommodation, not necessarily renting buildings. They can have tents.

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Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa has expressed disappointment with international financial institutions, which have shied away from funding the $5 billion East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) amid pressure from climate change activists.

Speaking during the 10th East African Petroleum Conference and Exhibition in Kampala on Tuesday, 09 May 2023, Ms Nankabirwa said such funders are complicit to Africa remaining stuck in energy poverty.

The minister said energy access and security are an important aspiration for the East African region and therefore there is a need to exploit all the available energy resources, including oil and gas.

“We are closely watching international financing institutions that are burying their heads in the sand at a time when Africa is fighting energy poverty. I can assure you we shall get the funding needed for the EACOP,” Nankabirwa said.

She was speaking days after it emerged that another prospective funder, Standard Chartered Plc, withdrew from funding the project, flagging it as an environmental risk.

The construction of EACOP, the world’s longest heated crude oil pipeline proposed by French Oil Company Total and the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has already been delayed by the complexities and grievances regarding environmental concerns.

But according to the minister, it is not fair for the funders to pull out yet they financed the exploration.

“It is not fair for financing institutions to pull out of our projects when you financed the exploration, as Africa, we may not have enough finances but we are not poor. Africa is to start looking for financing from alternative sources,” Nankabirwa said.

The conference, which ends on May 11 is being held under the theme “East Africa; a hub for investment in exploration and exploitation of petroleum resources for sustainable energy and social economic development.”

In her remarks, Ms. Irene Batebe, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy, said there is a lot of oil potential in many areas, which are yet to be explored.

“We are looking at operational sustenance, so we have an aggressive program where we are exploring new basins.  We are happy to report that we have encountered some prolific seepage  in the Moroto-Kadam Basin,” Batebe said.

She added that Uganda has 88% drilling success, with 85% of the Albertine Graben unlicensed, while 5 blocks up for grabs in the 2nd licensing round.

NJ Ayuk, an author, who was a guest speaker, said despite the funding challenges, encouraged African countries to become energy independent.

“Wealth nations need to decarbonise and East Africa needs to industrialise. East Africa must use its resources to eradicate poverty,” he said.

“East Africa must continue on its mission to exploit its resources and keep moving, keep driving, keep exploring because it’s through exploration that we shall make more discoveries of new resources,” he added.

Dr Elly Karuhanga, a businessman, called on the public and private sector in the region to unleash their full potential while devising practical solutions to local challenges in the sustainable development of the oil and gas sector.

“A good father leaves behind wealth for his children’s children, and as East Africans, we should ensure we leave wealth for our East Africa’s children’s children,” he said.

Vice President Jessica Alupo was the chief guest at the exhibition and toured several stalls.

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