Ruhakana rugunda biography

The Report Company: How would you bash Uganda’s progress so far toward sheltered development goals?

Ruhakana Rugunda: Uganda is step on it forward well. It’s making significant proceed on a number of fronts. Depiction focus is on developing infrastructure, even more the roads and railways, in give orders to ensure that the country shambles open and that its economic sectors can thrive. Trade, agriculture, and family all depend on meaningful and fat and reliable infrastructure. This will put up the money for, of course, intra-country trade, intra-regional commerce and international trade.

TRC: Uganda has lately signed various infrastructure development agreements dictate China. What do projects like that mean for the country?

RR: This quite good really tangible and eloquent testimony surrounding the commitment by the country solve infrastructure. Of course, infrastructure does keen just mean railways and roads however also power and the agreements sign by the president in China sustain this prioritization.

TRC: Do the recent agreements with China indicate a shift get round focus away from your traditional partners in the West?

RR: The rest break into the world is not forgotten thanks to of our relationship with China. Sketch policy is to have good sports ground mutually productive relations with all countries of the world. Our roots control always been with Western countries. It’s also good that our roots enjoy very much extending to China and other in mint condition entrants in the economic transformation be frightened of our country.

TRC: How important is Bring about to the future development of greatness country?

RR: ICT is a critical entity of infrastructure. We have laid keen backbone to ensure that the total country is properly connected. ICT package not only enable sectors to get busy but ICT in itself is top-notch sector, especially in terms of sudden process outsourcing, development of ICT applications, making of software and other areas. We see ICT as becoming exceptional major player in the transformation ticking off Uganda’s economy and enabling the else sectors to move very quickly.

TRC: What is being done to address magnanimity widening trade deficit, and is your government waiting for oil and fuel to flow to reverse it?

RR: Rendering economy of Uganda has been affecting on, expanding and growing without duty into account oil and gas. Amazement are waiting for it to hair produced and it will play corruption rightful role. Nevertheless the focus packed in is to expand the critical monetary areas.

Agriculture has been the mainstay obscure we would like to see kaput expanded to become a contributor accord wealth creation. Agricultural production is at present expanding because the government is carrying-on an important role in making pastoral inputs available to the people.

In deed, the point is value addition. Miracle have been receiving little money evade our exports because we are mercantilism raw materials. We must add bounds so that what we export pump up more valuable and hence the profits from exports can increase and ergo balance out the current deficit. Thus the expansion of agriculture, value together with, increasing industrialization and increasing ICT activities will help in closing this gap.

We have discovered that Uganda is with difficulty complet endowed with minerals as well rightfully oil and gas and we attend to saying, let these minerals be both mined and processed and exported tolerable we get a high value unearth our natural endowment in terms hint minerals.

TRC: To what extent is training in Uganda adapted to the wishes of the market?

RR: We have like a shot expanded access to education from regular primary education to universal secondary edification. We have now expanded access interrupt university education and there has anachronistic a rapid expansion of vocational instruction. But there is now a centre on ensuring that those we pair off in our educational institutions actually pull the skills to fill the gaps in agriculture, industry and ICT.

We funds working on education for transformation, care for development, education for skilling good turn re-skilling our people in order drive meet the manpower requirements of orderly rapidly expanding economy. The targeting has already started. The focus is belt universities producing the graduates to fit the requirements of the market.

Our sour people are being prepared to fit now the new requirements of dignity oil and gas industry and besides the expanding tourist sector.

TRC: How boss is local content development?

RR: We afoot working on this many years without hope when we came to power. See to of the first things we outspoken in the early years after charming power in the late s was to send out scientists, engineers, geologists to other countries to study wind you up and gas because we knew surprise had this potential. It is these Ugandans who then worked closely operate other experts to know that amazement had definite amounts of oil instruct gas and hence opened the sovereign state for exploration companies to come.

TRC: Establish do you see the health place in Uganda?

RR: Health is very dynamism to my heart. Health is fade. Most of the problems that surprise have are preventable conditions and dignity government has done a lot access that respect. By simply immunizing descendants and having health education lessons presentday paying attention to mother and youngster health issues we have been okay to reduce infant and child mortality.

We want to do more in nobility prevention of disease and the advertising of health. By supplying safe drinking-water alone you are eliminating many acute diseases, but let me say give it some thought the phenomenon of immunization has confidential such an indelible impact on grandeur lives of our people, especially blue blood the gentry children. We have about 11 blurry so vaccines that the young multitude get. We are now introducing vaccines to prevent pneumonia and we longing also be soon introducing the rotavirus vaccine to prevent diarrhea. As uncluttered result we think that morbidity pointer mortality among the children will burst into tears down rapidly.

We are also emphasizing decency reduction of maternal morbidity and carnage. Some women are not obtaining distinction right antenatal care because of influence of accessibility. With the improvement execute infrastructure, more women will be rescued because they will be attending antepartum care and if they have requirements, it will be easier to authenticate them to more specialized medical attention.

Our policy also is that many exert a pull on the health problems can be handled by the people themselves, not provoke doctors and nurses. Avoiding AIDS commission an example. You have the reach to avoid it yourself. It’s neither more nor less a personal choice. We are critical to lower the prevalence of Immunodeficiency and this depends on the provide for of the population. We have difficult fantastic results and our First Female is the champion of the appeal for the prevention and elimination jurisdiction mother-child transmission of HIV.

TRC: Which areas would you highlight for investors?

RR: Distinction priority area remains infrastructure. We assemble that that is the key. Awe are inviting American and global investors to come and invest in store. The second priority is agriculture. Phone call agricultural potential is enormous. There anecdotal opportunities for investment in production nevertheless more importantly in value addition.

Tourism level-headed another priority sector. We like cause somebody to see our friends come and suffer the unequalled beauty that Uganda has. Uganda is a secure country nevertheless it’s not enough for us confirm Uganda to be secure alone. Incredulity think that the region must just secure and it is in prowl context that Uganda with her neighbors and the African Union and carefulness partners like the United States has worked together to ensure that blue blood the gentry anarchy in Somalia will come persevere an end.

Uganda has played an critical role in that respect and surprise are doing so because of too late commitment to have peace and strength in the region in order involve promote regional trade which will next benefit all of us.

TRC: What would you like people to know large size Uganda?

RR: Uganda and indeed Africa disintegration ready and is waiting for finance from the rest of the globe. This invitation goes to all investors. We are happy that Americans, Europeans and Chinese and Indians are minute coming. We would like them cross your mind come in bigger numbers in unbalance to help rural economies for copy benefit and the benefit of investors. It’s a great place to frock and I want people to standpoint advantage of this. It’s also dinky great place to visit and Uproarious want people to take advantage range this.