Exclusive: Ugandan Amb to Ireland Julius Moto courts investors at DFTA meet

On Thursday 6^th, December this year, Amb. Julius Peter Moto – Uganda’s ambassador accredited to Ireland presented his credentials to Ireland’s President Higgins

This took place at the Presidential House located in Dublin – Ireland.

A day after, on Friday, Ambassador Moto had diplomatic meetings with Mr. Ruairi de Burca, Director General of Irish Aid, Mr. Kevin Smyth, Assistant Secretary, Department of Agriculture, and Mr. Frank Smyth, Director, UN Coordination, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Later in the day, he also had Business Round Table Meet comprising Irish and Ugandan companies. Key topics discussed included trade and investment opportunities in Uganda.

At the Ireland Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade [DFTA], Ambassador Moto underscores key needs  to invest in Uganda.

He says Uganda is continuously improving the ease of doing business for investors through a one stop center in Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) where services such as business registration, land acquisition, incentives, and issuance of required licenses is done expeditiously.

“We also have a youthful, educated and highly trainable labor force,” he added – in his speech, Friday.

Read his full speech below.

Senior Officials of DFTA,

Distinguished representatives of the private sector from Ireland and Uganda,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1. I would like to thank DFAT for hosting us and you the distinguished members of the private sector for your attendance. May I also recognize the efforts of Uganda’s Honorary Consul, Ms. Sylivia Gavigan, and Mr. Mark Coleman from the Irish Business and Employer’s Council (IBEC) in coordinating the organization of this Round Table.
2. It is my pleasure to talk to you about the opportunities for trade, tourism and investment in Uganda, shortly after presenting my credentials to President Michael Higgins yesterday and formally starting my tenure as Uganda’s Ambassador. We highly value our cordial bilateral cooperation with Ireland and are committed to strengthening it further for mutual benefit.
3. The first question business people and investors always ask is why should I put my financial and other resources in a given country or venture? Their primary motive, of course, is to make profits. I will share with you the vast opportunities available for profitable investments that companies from Ireland can benefit from either as individual entities or in partnership with Ugandan counterparts.
4. Uganda is a land linked country of about 40 million people with an estimated GDP of USD 75 billion (using the purchasing power parity index) or USD 30 billion (using exchange rate index). We are members of the East African Community which comprises Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan with a total population of about 170 million people and a combined GDP of over USD 180 billion.
5. We are also members of the Tripartite EAC-COMESA-SADC Free Trade Area of 26 countries and a total population of over 600 million people and combined GDP of over USD 1 trillion. I am giving you these statistics to show you the size of the regional market that an investor in Uganda can easily access, in addition to preferential access arrangements beyond the African continent.
6. Uganda is continuously improving the ease of doing business for investors through a one stop center in Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) where services such as business registration, land acquisition, incentives, and issuance of required licenses id done expeditiously. We also have a youthful, educated and highly trainable labor force.
7. An independent Commercial Court for handling disagreements in business was established and hundreds of cases have been brought to logical conclusions thereby increasing confidence of doing business in Uganda. On average, 10 cases are concluded per month.
8. I would like to underscore the need to enhance trade and investment between Uganda and Ireland for mutual benefit, as there is greater scope for doing so. In this regard, initiatives such as the Africa Agri-food Development Program (AADP) which foster partnerships between Irish Agri-food companies and their counterparts in Uganda and other African countries are valuable.
9. Given Ireland’s advanced expertise in manufacturing, agro-processing and food export, Ugandan companies can benefit from technology transfer, business partnerships and sharing of experiences for transfer of know-how.
10. Some of the priority sectors which investors from Ireland could be interested in include:

Agro-processing and value addition to commodities through a whole value chain approach. One of the challenges our agricultural producers face is post-harvest losses due to lack of adequate storage facilities, processing and proper packaging.

Real estate development especially low cost housing given the increasing urban population.

Tourism facilities such as hotels and lodges near national parks.

Education and skills development with an emphasis on entrepreneurship for job creation.

Pharmaceuticals particularly pharmaceutical grade starch for tablets and drugs as well as refined sugar for syrups.

Manufacture or assembly of electronics including computers and phones.

Oil and gas which is being developed and for which concessions for exploration licenses are still available. A crude oil pipe line is expected to be constructed beginning end of 2019 and a refinery in the next 4 – 5 years.

 11. The returns on investment are very good and Uganda operates a liberalized foreign exchange/capital                account regime that allows easy transfer of Forex in and out of the country.

   12. We can provide additional information on request. In addition, you may also wish to contact the                    Irish Embassy in Kampala for your proposed investments in Uganda.