Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Diamond Belief Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Godfrey Ssebaana, has issued a clarion name for a paradigm shift in how Uganda funds its manufacturing sector. Speaking at the 2d Annual Uganda Manufacturers’ Affiliation (UMA) Financial Symposium and Exhibition held in Kampala on June 10, Ssebaana passionately argued that if Uganda is to release its full industrial doable, it must basically rethink the monetary structure supporting its manufacturers.
He emphasised that manufacturing is never any longer trusty one sector amongst many, but the “backbone of national transformation,” which is an essential driver of inclusive job advent, worth addition, and enhanced export competitiveness.
“Uganda’s industrial sector holds the promise to transition us from a raw-materials-based fully economy to one grounded in productiveness, innovation, and resilience. Nonetheless this transformation is never any longer going to happen unless we tackle the deep-rooted financing challenge,” Ssebaana emphasised.
He acknowledged limited glean admission to to affordable credit ranking, a chronic shortage of long-interval of time capital, and an absence of customized monetary merchandise because the most essential boundaries maintaining the field inspire. These systemic factors, he famed, proceed to stifle the ambitions of many manufacturers, especially exiguous and medium enterprises which would per chance per chance be the lifeblood of Uganda’s economy.
He challenged both the non-public and non-non-public sectors to employ this moment as a turning level, a likelihood to put into effect strategic monetary reforms and manufacture sturdy public-non-public partnerships succesful of bridging the manufacturing financing gap. Simplest thru coordinated efforts, he argued, can Uganda domesticate a monetary ecosystem that rewards innovation, helps sustainability, and drives the industrial declare wanted for long-interval of time national prosperity.
Highlighting the pressing want for mettlesome monetary innovation, Ssebaana outlined three strategic precedence areas that would per chance per chance remodel Uganda’s manufacturing panorama. First, he championed Blended Finance and Affected person Capital, advocating for hybrid financing items that mix concessional funding with non-public sector investment. These items, he famed, are essential to de-likelihood excessive-influence projects in green manufacturing, agro-processing, and light-weight engineering- sectors which would per chance per chance be pivotal for utilizing sustainable industrial declare.
Ssebaana known as for enhanced potential and capital for establishments such because the Uganda Pattern Bank (UDB), Uganda Pattern Corporation (UDC), and the Agricultural Credit Facility, urging them to present long-interval of time, accessible financing solutions tailored to the strange desires of manufacturers.
Secondly, he placed emphasis on Inexperienced Finance, stressing that Uganda must align with global market shifts against carbon neutrality. He inspired manufacturers to adopt forward- taking a interrogate instruments treasure green bonds, climate insurance protection, and sustainability-linked loans to finance investments in tidy energy, water conservation, and environmentally pleasant technologies.
Thirdly, Ssebaana spotlighted the sport-altering doable of Fintech solutions, significantly in bridging the financing gap for exiguous and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Digital finance platforms, he famed, can revolutionize present chain financing and mobile lending, but excellent if supported by progressive, enabling law.
“Collectively, these innovations represent the foundation of a monetary system that no longer excellent funds declare but additionally fosters resilience, inclusivity, and sustainability in Uganda’s industrial sector,” he argued.
He additionally emphasised that monetary innovation prefer to be underpinned by sturdy protection reform and institutional toughen, stressing that and not utilizing a conducive regulatory atmosphere, even basically the most modern monetary instruments will fail to achieve their supposed influence. To this ruin, he proposed a complete set of protection interventions, along with tax incentives for manufacturers investing in energy-atmosphere pleasant and green technologies, and the pattern of public-non-public financing items to toughen the declare of commercial parks and logistics hubs.
Ssebaana additionally counseled the expansion of credit ranking guarantee schemes to ease glean admission to to financing for SMEs, along with efforts to deepen Uganda’s capital markets to facilitate long- interval of time funding thru bonds, equity instruments, and asset-backed securities. He challenged authorities bodies, regulators, and monetary establishments to switch decisively from diagnosing the nation’s industrial finance challenges to imposing staunch, outcomes-pushed solutions.
David Bahati, Minister of Dispute for Change, acknowledged the urgency of reform and pledged authorities toughen in addressing manufacturers’ concerns.
“Manufacturers stroll into your banking halls and wait weeks for a mortgage choice. Right here’s unacceptable,” Hon. Bahati acknowledged, piquant banks to lower paperwork and adopt trade vision-based fully lending, no longer trusty asset-backed lending.
Drawing inspiration from global most productive practices, he inspired monetary establishments to gaze previous collateral and have in thoughts the vision and innovation at the inspire of companies—citing examples from tech giants who started without sources but with huge solutions.
The Minister famed that Uganda’s economy is projected to hit USD 60.4 billion in GDP by the ruin of June, rising at 6.3% each 300 and sixty five days, positioning it because the 7th quickest-rising economy on this planet. He credited much of this success to the non-public sector, especially manufacturers, who now make contributions about 35% to national earnings and 17% to GDP.
