The Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry-UNCCI has pledged to strengthen and grow trade with Algeria.

This will include harnessing investment and trade opportunities between the two countries, and exchange of ideas, and information between local businesses and Algerian counterparts.

These commitments were made during the visit of the Algerian business delegation to the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce in Mulago on Thursday, May 19, 2022, where they engaged with the private sector.

Samuel Musoke Majwega, the Vice president, of UNCCI, affirmed the commitment to work together with the Algerian Chamber of Commerce and stakeholders encouraging joint projects and associations to strengthen relations between both countries.

“We have received at least twenty business people from the Algerian business community. Some of them are from sectors like ICT, tourism, value addition, and industrialization among others. They are looking for whom to partner with within Africa,” said Majwega.

Speaking at the business council, the Commissioner of Finance and Planning at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Paul Okitoi, said this was a chance for government entities to showcase business opportunities to the business community from Algeria

Okitoi noted that the Ministry has enormous opportunities ranging from the petroleum subsector, energy subsector, and the mineral subsector. For the mineral subsector, there is the enormous potential for natural resources, and materials distributed across the country.

“For example, [there are] 300 metric tons of iron ore deposits in Kabale and this can be used for turning around the iron and steel industry in the country. We have over two billion deposits of iron ore and Marble in Karamoja and this can be used for developing the construction industry, and the cement industry.

Through this value addition, the government will be able to generate a string of jobs across different value chains, generate incomes, and taxes, and increase exports hence reducing the balance of payment deficits in the country,” said Okitoi.

On his part, Deus Muhwezi, from the Ministry of Agriculture, indicated plans of processing powdered milk to penetrate the Algerian market.

With an agrarian economy, Uganda’s major sector is agriculture as a source of income and investment. The export revenues are up to 53% for over 10 years and there are over 4.2 million smallholder farmers

Currently, Uganda is producing 3billion liters of milk annually in the dairy subsector. The dairy has grown getting close to South Africa but penetrating markets with Uganda’s milk is still a challenge, according to Muhwezi.

He said currently the ministry is into plans of processing and package the milk into powdered milk and high-end milk products like ghee to be able to penetrate the market in Algeria and South Africa.

“We would like to see strong partnerships with Algeria in value addition to Ugandan milk in the Dairy Sector,” he said.

The fisheries subsector is a potential agricultural opportunity as well, with export revenue up to USD 143 Million. Aquaculture development such as cage farming, fish feed manufacturing; fish breeding, and so on can be done since Uganda has 20% of its surface area like water.

This is a prime investment opportunity for Algeria for they will be earning, as well as providing employment opportunities for both Ugandans and Algerians. With high market value, the fish exported from Uganda is in high demand within the region and worldwide. Therefore, the investment in fish growing and exportation is substantial.

Cherif Oualid, Ambassador of the Republic of Algeria said Ugandans can also go and invest in Algeria.

“There was a rule of a 49 percent for shares for foreign investors however this rule is changing now. The government is doing its best to help this one-stop center facilitate investors. Right now there is a meeting brainstorming about it to improve on the incentives of the beat of investment. This will be soon passed into law,” Oualid said.

Both Representatives from the National Chambers of Commerce of Uganda and Algeria signed a Memorandum of Understanding of business trade that could spur trade and investments Last year in June 2021.

Uganda has managed to export a number of items to Algeria including milk, coffee, beef, poultry, and other agricultural products but the exports are still low yet the demand curve is gradually moving upward.

The export earnings from Algeria are still low, standing at $2M according to the Bank of Uganda’s report 2020.

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Many Ugandans respected Ugandan businessmen Patrick Bitature of Simba Group of companies and Hamis Kiggundu of Ham Enterprises until financial scandals surfaced, pinning the two businessmen who don’t want to pay their loans, based on the available unclear law.

Kiggundu is in cattle battling Diamond Trust Bank Uganda (DTB-U) and Diamond Trust Bank Kenya (DTB-K). Kiggundu borrowed Shs120 billion from the two sister institution but claimed that DTB-K is not registered to do money lending business in Uganda.

The Uganda Bankers’ Association and other regional financial groups have castigated Kiggundu and those who support him on this matter.

However, as the world castigated Kiggundu for not wanting to pay his loan, little did we know that another Ugandan businessman, who sits on the boards of reputable agencies like UMEME is involved in the similar financial scandal where he does not want to pay his debts, even though he borrowed the money willingly.

Kiggundu

In his case filed at the High Court Commercial Division and won before it was quashed by the Court of Appeal, averred then that DTB fraudulently withdrew Shs 29,035,682,682 billion from a shillings account and 22,938,528.29 million from a United States Dollar account as per the account statements for a 10-year banking relationship that they had operated those accounts, without consulting or notifying him.

DTB-U on the other argued it was retrieving its loan as Kiggundu was unwilling to pay despite several reminders.

Kiggundu’s lawyer Fred Muwema of Muwema & Co. Advocates, together with Arnold Norgan Kimara of Kimara Advocates and Consultants, argued then that “ illegalities” of withdrawing money from his client’s accounts amounted to felonies punishable by a term of three years imprisonment of the offending Bank officials.

Muwema argued that DTB Kenya issued credit facilities in Kenya to Ugandan entities without the approval of the Bank of Uganda (BOU). DTB Kenya and DTB Uganda committed illegalities when money facilities were availed by DTB Kenya to the Borrowers without prior authorization of BOU even if such funds were availed outside Uganda.

Section 117 of the Financial Institutions Act, 2004 requires a foreign bank to seek the authorisation of BOU before it can engage in activities such as lending and extending credit facilities.
It was illegal for any person to lend any money held on deposit whether within Uganda or outside Uganda without a licence, Muwema argued.

He went ahead to argue that DTB Uganda illegally acted as agent of DTB Kenya and conducted financial institutions business on behalf of DTB Kenya without a licence issued by BOU as required under the FIA and the Financial Institutions (Agent Banking) Regulations 2017 (Agent Banking Regulations).

And that DTB Kenya acted illegally when it failed to obtain BOU’s authorisation before establishing a representative office in Uganda.

However BoU in a statement published by the late Governor Tumusiime Mutebile said there was nothing illegal concerning the loan business that the two parties had entered into.

The Ministry of Finance would also come to castigate Kiggundu, saying his actions tainted Uganda’s image as an investment destination.

Remember that Kiggundu faulted the Principal Judge after the latter pushed the case to the Court of Appeal where he was defeated by DTB-U and DTB-K.  He accused the judge of being biased, even though the judge said the businessman sent emissaries to bribe him so that he determine the case in his favour.

Enter Bitature

Interestingly it is the same lawyer Muwema now representing Bitature who doesn’t want to pay his lender Vantage Mezzanine Fund 11 that gave him USD 30 million in 2014. He doesn’t want to pay, which resulted in advert seeking to attach his properties.

His lawyer Muwema insists Bitature is not a bad guy who should take the money for free. The same man who asked Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) not to register the South African company as a body corporate in Uganda. Bitature was after something, and it has now come to light that from the time he met the South Africans, he intended to con them of their dollars.

Remember Justice Musa Ssekaana in his ruling faulted URSB for declining to register Mezzanine Fund 11, saying that the case in court did not in a way have any attachment with registering Mezzanine Fund 11. We now know that URSB was being stopped to the rightful thing.

Bitature’s case is a bad one to Uganda because he is known regionally. He has held some responsibilities on behalf of government. That he sits on UMEME board of directors is not a simple feat. But now with the on-going scandal, it would be good for Bitature to resign from UMEME board, whose majority shareholder is the NSSF.

However, we know that UMEME has been cheating Ugandans, to the extent that President Museveni is not happy with the company’s 25-year concession.

A member of Uganda Bankers’ Association said Uganda soon will be isolated financially in terms of attracting foreign financiers. “What do you expect when investors in other countries hear Ugandans don’t want to pay back the loans,” he said, arguing that Bitature should be a gentleman and pay his debt.

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Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) representing private sector business associations in partnership with the Government of Uganda will hold the first-ever Uganda- DR Congo Business Summit between May 31 and June 8 in Kinshasa and Goma located in the Democratic Republic of Congo. 

The Summit is expected to attract more than 200 participants from Uganda and DRC, seek to open up new business frontiers as well consolidate trade relations between Uganda and DR Congo through discussions of business linkages, trade fairs and engagements between governments and businesses during the 10 days in the DRC.

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives will lead the Uganda trade delegation to DR Congo, which will include government officials and Private Sector members.

The Summit is jointly organized by the Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU), Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UNCCI), Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA), in partnership in the Government of the Republic of Uganda’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperative (MTIC), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of East African Community Affairs (MEACA), Uganda Export Promotion Board (UEPB), Uganda Investment Authority (UIA), The Presidential Advisory Committee on Export and Industrial Development (PACIED).

DRC was formally admitted into the EAC Regional Bloc on March 29, 2022, bringing together a market size of more than 250 million people.

Speaking ahead of the Summit, the PSFU chief executive officer, Mr. Stephen Asiimwe, said the entry of DRC into the East African Community now provides the Uganda business community with an opportunity to trade in a market that has a population of more than 90 million people. The Uganda business community, he said, was yet to take full advantage of the opportunities that arise out of DR Congo, noting that it is also important to engage in high levels of innovation and creativity to diversify exports beyond food commodities and informal cross border trade.

“We can maximise trade by developing deeper links between domestic producers and external markets such as DR Congo. The country has a population of over 90 million people, which provides a big business opportunity,” said Asiimwe.

Uganda’s trade with DRC has been growing over the years, increasing by an average of 10% annually. During 2017, for instance, Uganda exported goods worth $188.98m to DRC while imports from DRC to Uganda stood at $156.5m. However, this has exponentially grown, with Uganda’s exports to DRC increasing to $338.56 Million in 2021.

“The DRC is one of Uganda’s biggest trading partners in East Africa, with Uganda exporting mainly cement, palm oil, beer, sugar, iron and steel, rice, iron and steel (scrap), cocoa beans and natural rubber,” said Hon. Francis Mwebesa, the Minister of Trade. “Uganda and DRC have been working together to improve trade, through a number of initiatives that include a joint agreement, in which Uganda agreed to support the construction of a 223 kilometer road project linking the two countries. The roads, among others, are expected to boost cross-border trade, improve security, connectivity and deepen integration,” he added.

Asiimwe said Uganda is strategically positioned to gain from the already existing good relations between the two countries, especially on cross-border trade and investment which are expected to blossom due to continued improvement in transport and logistics.

Registration to participate in the Business Summit is officially open through a microsite.

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