Summary:
- Citing a recent study by the Growth Lab at Harvard University, Ggoobi noted that over the past 15 years, Uganda has diversified its export basket by adding 24 new products.
KAMPALA: The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development, Ramathan Ggoobi, has called on Ugandans to adopt an economist’s mindset to foster economic growth.
Speaking during a radio interview on a Kampala-based station on Saturday, Ggoobi emphasized that the government is working to transform Uganda’s economy to benefit all citizens.
Citing a recent study by the Growth Lab at Harvard University, Ggoobi noted that over the past 15 years, Uganda has diversified its export basket by adding 24 new products.
He explained that this shift reduces the country’s reliance on traditional commodities such as coffee, tea, and cotton for foreign exchange.
“Apart from gold, tea, cotton, coffee, and maize, Uganda now exports manufactured products, including electronics, IT solutions, agricultural inputs, and production chemicals,” he said.
Ggoobi further revealed that the government is intentionally focusing on key growth areas under the ATMS framework like agro-industrialization, tourism development, mineral-based industrialization (including oil and gas), and science, technology, and innovation (including ICT).
“Our goal is to make the economy more broad-based so it can work for the majority of Ugandans. The macroeconomic indicators must align for the economy to make sense at the grassroots level,” Ggoobi explained.
He stressed that the economy cannot improve livelihoods if it is not growing, inflation is rising, exports are insufficient, or the currency’s value is deteriorating.
Ggoobi urged Ugandans to think strategically and focus on building a resilient, inclusive, and diversified economy.
