Uganda

1.0 Introduction

Uganda is a land-locked country lying on the equator in central part of East Africa. It shares borders with Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya. Kampala is the capital city.

Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, employing over 80% of the work force and making up around 32% of the country’s GDP. Coffee accounts for the bulk of export revenues. There has been some revival of tea, tobacco and cotton production.  

There is a modest manufacturing and tourism sector and relatively new developments in horticulture.  Exports continue to rise.  Successful exploration has revealed oil reserves which may have an important future economic impact.

The country’s economy has great potential. Endowed with significant natural resources, including ample fertile land, regular rainfall, and mineral deposits, Uganda appeared poised for rapid economic growth and development at independence. However, chronic political instability and erratic economic management produced a record of persistent economic decline that left Uganda among the world's poorest and least-developed countries.

2.0 Country Snapshot

3.0 Transport and Development in Context

The commitment of the Government of Uganda to reforms during the nineties attracted a series of donor-supported programs that facilitated Uganda’s economic recovery from political and economic turmoil of the seventies and early eighties. In the initial phases of the recovery process, emphasis was given to rehabilitation of key social and economic infrastructure. After this, the country shifted focus onto establishing and maintaining a stable macroeconomic environment. The achievements on the macroeconomic front are manifest in inflation rates being reduced to single digits, overvaluation of the shilling reversed and a market-based exchange rate regime maintained, and positive interest rates restored.

After macroeconomic stability was achieved, the government started focusing on structural strategies that aimed at translating the macro success to real improvements in people’s standards of living. The structural strategies, which feature both long- and medium-term perspectives, are conceptualized and developed in the government’s main policy framework, the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP). The PEAP is the policy vehicle for translating the country’s long-term development aspirations, some of which are expressed in the Uganda Vision 2025, into specific and achievable goals. The detailed plans of action and goals for particular sectors are contained in the respective sector development plans, such as the Education Sector Investment Plan, the Health Sector Plan, and the Plan for Modernization of Agriculture. A number of other sector plans are being formulated to help operationalize different sector specific objectives of the PEAP.
Growth continues to be solid, despite variability in the price of coffee, Uganda's principal export. In 2000, Uganda qualified for enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief worth $1.3 billion and Paris Club debt relief worth $145 million. These amounts combined with the original HIPC debt relief added up to about $2 billion. The global economic downturn has hurt Uganda's exports; however, Uganda's GDP growth is still relatively strong due to past reforms and sound management of the downturn.

With funding from a range of external donors, Uganda launched an ongoing road rehabilitation project in 1987 with the principal aims of providing improved access of agricultural products to markets within the country and a regional network to link Rwanda, the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda with the port of Mombasa in Kenya.

4.0 Overview of the Transport Sector

Uganda transport infrastructure comprises of a network of road, rail and airports. Road network is however the most dominant mode of transport in Uganda.

5.0 Road Classification System

Uganda’s road network comprises of:

• 10,800km National Roads under the responsibility of MoWT, of which about 2700km are paved and the remaining 8,100 gravel;

• 27,500km District roads under the responsibility of Ministry of Local Government;

• 4,300km Urban Roads under the responsibility of Urban Councils;

• 30,000km Community Access Roads under a lower tier of Local Government responsibility (LC III);

6.0 Institutional framework for the sector

The Ministry of Works, Housing and Communications (MOWHC), is responsible for the
development and maintenance of the gazetted road network. The Ministry’s role consists of
Management of the planning, design, construction, maintenance and monitoring of the road links, bridges, drainage and other structures on the network.

http://stategov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2963.htm
http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/uganda.htm
https://www.cia.gov.library/theworld.factbook/ug/html
http://www/theodora.com/wfbcurrent/uganda.economy.html

Uganda NFG Page
East/Southern Africa Region