{UAH} Should Uganda ban the importation of certain products in order to protect local industries?

The Trade and Investments Forum

at the

32^nd Annual Convention of the Ugandan North American Association

September 4 – 6, 2020

 

Should Uganda ban the importation of certain products in order to protect local industries?

 

No country can function effectively as an island in this global world.  There is a fine balance between what any one entity can do by itself and what it needs from the rest of the world.  In essence, you as an individual should do what you do best (based on available resources) and work hard to ensure that you can do it better and more efficiently than I can.  At the same time, I will be working hard to ensure that I do other things better and more efficiently than you do.  Then we engage in (hopefully) equitable trade.

 

Now one can argue that there are some positives to preventing foreigners from engaging in certain industries in your country (like in Tanzania), but the inevitable result is that your economy will lag behind others because you do not encourage foreigners to bring in new ideas.  At the same time, if you literally enact such measures in your country, other countries will do likewise to you. 

 

If I may put this in a more East African perspective, Uganda imports finished coffee and other products from Kenya.  Interestingly, much of this coffee is grown in Uganda but processed in Kenya.  So, it would seem to make sense to limit the importation of processed coffee to Uganda to promote (or protect) the processing of coffee in Uganda – until you consider that overall, Uganda exports more products to Kenya than it imports from Kenya.

 

In Tanzania, non-citizens are prohibited from owning property in the country.  As a result, a handful of mainly Indian Tanzanians have bought up almost all desirable property in Dar-es-Salaam.  Without outside competition this has caused property rent in Dar to climb through the roof.  We all know there is a significant housing shortage in Uganda, but it is like nothing compared to that in Tanzania.

 

So, is it reasonable for the Uganda government to impose "reasonable" taxes on some imported products to protect domestic production?  This is a fine line.  Without the "reasonable" competition from imported products, local production will falter and the country will be left with inadequate and inferior products. 

 

In the same vein, should the country place "reasonable" limits on foreign workers?  In my opinion, a Chinese national should never be allowed to set up a stall in Mpigi to sell cell phones or matoke.  But I am in total support of a Chinese national setting up a factory to manufacture face masks in Mukono even if some of the upper-level management is done by other Chinese nationals – as long as this factory provides employment to a sizeable number of local Ugandans and contributes to the economy.

 

Please join us on September 4^th, 2020, for an in-depth discussion on post Covid-19 investment opportunities in Uganda.

 

-----------------------------------------

www.unaaonline.org

--
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Ugandans at Heart (UAH) Community" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ugandans-at-heart/436929015.1635837.1594850379478%40mail.yahoo.com.