Export revenues from Rwanda drop by 81%
Trucks queue at Katuna on the border between Rwanda and Uganda. The border impasse has seen trade between Uganda and Rwanda suffer. FILE PHOTO
What you need to know:
- Mr Francis Kisirinya, the Private Sector Foundation Uganda deputy executive director, said a number of manufacturers such as beverages, cement and steel producers are experiencing redundancies as a result of the closure.
Kampala. Uganda’s export receipts from Rwanda fell by 81 per cent in the period ended March, according to data released by Bank of Uganda.
The drop comes amid a border dispute that continues to lock out traders and travellers from Uganda and Rwanda transiting through Katuna/Gatuna border point.
Rwanda closed some of its borders connecting to Uganda at the end of February, creating a trade standoff hurting exporters.
According to Bank of Uganda, earnings from Rwanda fell to $2.64m (Shs9.9b) in March down from $14.51m (Shs54.7b) in February.
This was the lowest Uganda has earned from one of its key trade partners since July 2006 when Rwanda was recovering from the aftermath of a debilitating civil war.
Uganda had in January and December, before the standoff, earned $16.96m (Shs63.9b) and $16.90m (Shs63.7b), respectively at the time when tensions between the two countries had started to build.
The border has now been closed to Ugandan traders for close to three months now.
Mr Dickson Kateshumbwa, the Uganda Revenue Authority commissioner for customs, yesterday told Daily Monitor that whereas on the side of the Ugandan border they were working normally, Katuna, the main entry point from Uganda, remains closed with access only possible through Mirama Hills, Cyanika and Kamwezi being operational.
However, he could not readily assess the impact. Uganda, on average, earns $246m (Shs976b) annually from its exports to Rwanda.
Key among the exports include dairy and related products, edible vegetables and food products, machinery and equipment, construction materials, petroleum products, beverages and fast moving consumer goods, among others.
Mr Francis Kisirinya, the Private Sector Foundation Uganda deputy executive director, said a number of manufacturers such as beverages, cement and steel producers are experiencing redundancies as a result of the closure.
“When activities go down, it reduces earnings of employees because of cutback on production,” Kisirinya shared.
Uganda also uses Rwanda as a getaway to eastern DR Congo, which means that traders have to find longer and expensive alternative routes to such markets.
A number of companies including Roofings, Hima Cement and Movit Uganda, among other, have indicated they have been victims of the border standoff.
In the same period, Uganda imported goods worth $1.67m from Rwanda compared to 0.75m in February.
Uganda has since June 2018, on average, imported goods worth $1m from Rwanda.
