Kadaga wants Investment Bill revised

The Speaker of Parliament, Ms Rebecca Kadaga, has assured investors of her resolve to have the Investment Code Bill 2017 revised to suit both foreign and domestic investors in Uganda.
She was speaking to a delegation under the Busoga Investment Consortium and the proprietors of the Liao Shen Industrial park in Kapeeka Sub-county, Nakaseke District on Wednesday.
“The Investment Code Bill 2017 that had been tabled in Parliament was not in the right spirit. We had to send it back to the Ministry of Finance to ensure that the concerns pointed out are fixed. I wrote to the Minister of Finance in protest of particular policies that exclude some of our people from enjoying the would-be investment incentives. Setting $50,000 (Shs186m) as minimum capital investment for one to enjoy the incentives was unrealistic,” Ms Kadaga said.
The Speaker said investment policies must be flexible and friendly to ensure that both the foreign and domestic investors enjoy the same rights without exclusion.
“I happen to be one of those individuals who have been pushed out from enjoying some of the incentives because I could not meet the capital investment threshold that was set. I also agree with you that you need protection from the high competition from the imported ceramics because of the high production costs as stated, but these, among other bottlenecks, will be resolved with time. It is good to have such a consortium of industries providing jobs to many Ugandans. We need these investments in Busoga Sub-region,” she added.

Appeal to government
According to Mr Yang Zhen, the managing director of Goodwill Ceramics Industry Kapeeka, high costs of water and electricity greatly hinders on their production costs.
“We appeal to government to consider our plight,” Mr Yang said.
Mr Patrick Kayemba, the Iganga District LC5 chairperson, said about 580 acres of land have been secured in Iganga District for the proposed Busoga Industrial Park.
“We appeal to the Chinese investment community to consider bringing some of the investment companies to Busoga. We have the land and are very willing to help the investors to establish the factories. What is in Nakaseke can be established in Busoga,” he said