8th Uganda Economic Growth Forum
The Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED), along with the International Growth Centre, co-host the 8th Economic Growth Forum (EGF VIII) on August 29-30, 2024.
The forum focuses on how Uganda can enhance its competitiveness for sustainable economic growth amidst challenges such as reduced capital flows, rising global interest rates, protectionism, geopolitical tensions, and climate change risks. It brings together senior government officials, donors, academia, and the private sector to discuss Uganda's long-term growth path, with policy recommendations feeding into the 2025/26 national budget strategy. The key themes include growth strategy for structural transformation, industrial policy, turning climate challenges into opportunities for growth, overcoming financing constraints, transforming subsistence farming into urban growth, and developing high productivity services.
For more information about the conference, please email [email protected].
Welcoming and framing speeches
Growth strategy for structural transformation
Albert Musisi
Commissioner, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, UgandaRamathan Ggoobi
Permanent Secretary/ Secretary to the Treasury, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, UgandaMoses Bekabye
Technical Advisor for Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Uganda
Tim Dobermann
Research Director, International Growth CentreFaisal Buyinza
Senior Lecturer, Economics, Makerere UniversityUganda has adopted the goal of raising incomes 10-fold – and transform its economy from a $50 billion dollar economy to $500 billion. It can only achieve this ambitious goal by progressively shifting labor from low productivity and labor-intensive economic activities to higher productivity and skill-intensive activities, that is structural transformation.
Industrial policy: Promoting agroindustry, manufactures, mining, and exports
A robust industrial policy with clear strategic actions to spur industrial development and export growth is a core pillar of structural transformation. Uganda’s 2020 Industrial Policy was designed to address employment, wealth creation, trade imbalances, minerals and oil exploitation, and integration of agricultural value chains.
Climate change: Turning challenges into opportunities for growth
Alfred Okot Okidi
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Water and Environment,UgandaTom Sengalama
Environmental management specialistRachel K. Sebudde
Senior Economist (Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Unit), World Bank, AfricaHugh King
Private Sector Climate Change Advisor - Uganda, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)In the coming decades, Uganda is likely to face more frequent shocks related to climate change. The rural economy will have to adjust to more variable weather patterns, possible floods, and droughts. With agriculture as a pivotal sector in the economy and yet extremely vulnerable to climate change, policies aimed at promoting sound environmental management practices as well as climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies will help in ensuring sustainable growth and development.
Overcoming financing constraints – Public and private savings
Amos Lugoloobi
Minister of State for Planning, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, UgandaPaul Lakuma
Senior Research Fellow and Head Macroeconomics Department, Economic Policy Research Centre
Nhial Kuch
Senior Country Economist, Uganda, International Growth CentreHannington Ashaba
Commissioner,Department of Projects Analysis and Public Investment, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Uganda Financing is at the heart of structural transformation as more resources are required to finance, among others, labour skilling, public investment, and green projects that act mitigation and adaptation measures against climate change. The rise in global interest rates has increased the cost of investment finance worldwide with ineluctable knock-on effect on Uganda’s cost of debt finance. This puts a premium on mobilising domestic tax revenue to raise public savings to finance much need public investment, especially urgent during current periods of fiscal consolidation, high costs of debt finance, and waning concessional development assistance.
Welcoming and summary of day 1
Urbanisation: Transforming subsistence farming into urban growth
Structural transformation involves creating more productive jobs in the rural sector and in cities. Cities are centres of growth in the emerging economies, a factor that can be mimicked in the developing countries. Currently, Uganda has 15 cities which can be translated into growth centers and support transformation from subsistence to market economy, through interlinkages with the rural areas.
Developing high productivity services: Tourism and business services
Services are crucial for structural transformation as they foster economic diversification, knowledge transfer and technological progress. Spillovers from tourism development will also encourage entrepreneurship and development of SMEs (such as transport and logistics) as tourism provides opportunities for local businesses to innovate and create products and services that cater to the needs of tourists.