In this sustainability plan, I first detail pertinent macroeconomic trends, as it mostly relates to agriculture and the implications of COVID-19. Then, I highlight development challenges and solutions in Uganda in two industries that largely impact Uganda's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate: agriculture and energy.
Written by Joshua Charles
May 15th, 2021
Preface
During my short but memorable time in Uganda, I have met exceptional individuals who are committed to sustainable development in different capacities. While I appreciate the genuine compassion of these individuals, I am aware about the inextricable nature of non-governmental organizations' (NGOs) relationship with donors. What I mean by this is I am aware that NGOs are dependent on a donor-recipient relationship, as recipients. The challenge here is NGOs may have unstable donor-recipient relationships and this can inhibit the sustainability of community projects. To directly address this, in similar fashion to the Global Livingston Institute, NGO's must fund and facilitate community development projects, where community members can increase their household income by directly working for a NGO or learn and receive the tools that provide and sustain autonomy for community members. I am ecstatic about the potential of GLI's innovative solutions, and for this reason I have included ways that two GLI projects can increase their profit and extend their reach through additional services or partnerships. I would like to express gratitude to the Global Livingston Institute (GLI), specifically, its staff members Jerry Amanya and Raymond Bokua for shedding light about the GLI's sustainability projects as well as Martina Namuddu and Thomas Karrel for simplifying the logistics of being on the ground in Uganda. I In addition, I would like to express gratitude to Children of Peace Uganda and its staff for sharing their brief feedback about this plan. I would also like to thank Jamie Van Leeuwen for providing me with this fruitful and once in a lifetime opportunity.
Introduction
1.1 Sustainability Plan Deliverables
Following suit, I explain the Global Livingston Institute's role in creating innovative solutions that can remunerate workers from infrastructure that creates self-sufficiency within communities. Lastly, I describe two plans that are geared towards increasing the sustainability of the GLI's farming cooperative, in partnership with Children of Peace -Uganda (CPU), and the solar lamp project in Kabale and Rubdanda. For organizational purposes, each new initiative and source presented in the sustainability plans are represented by a letter in alphabetical order. If the initiative or source is included in a year that is not of its original placement, the letter where the source or initiative is originally placed will be represented in the new year.
1.2 Sustainability Plan Assumptions and Scope of Study
In this sustainability plan, I make four assumptions that focus on the GLI's farming cooperative and solar project:
Both projects continue to function three years from now.
The GLI increases its financial capital to fund the plan's proposed deliverables.
The profit margin of the farming cooperative continues to be 15% until the end of 2023.
The non-governmental organizations who have recently expressed interest remain interested in future collaboration.
Overview
2.1 Uganda's Economy
North of Rwanda, Uganda's economic slowdown reflects the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. In FY20, Uganda's real GDP growth rate was 2.9 %, which is 3.9% lower than FY19 (World Bank, 2021). The Ugandan government initially mandated a domestic lockdown of four months. The spillover effects of the lockdown, as evident by the dramatic decrease of Uganda's real GDP growth rate, shows an all-too-common consequence in SubSaharan Africa: the disruptions of the global demand and supply chains related to COVID-19 have reduced public investment and the appetite for private consumption. If the consequences of COVID-19 persist, Uganda's exports, mainly in the form of agricultural commodities, and tourism are likely to stymie the economic productivity and recovery of Uganda (World Bank, 2021).
In recent years, discussion about Uganda's oil sector has attracted investors. Prior to the global pandemic, Uganda expected to produce and export its oil by 2024. The decreased oil price may set back the Ugandan government's timeline. Despite this possibility, the President of the United Republic of Tanzania HE. Samia Suluuhu Hassan and the President of Uganda H.E. Yoweri Museveni recently signed a tripartite agreement with the French multinational integrated oil and gas company Total SE and its Chief Executive Officer Patrick Jean Pouyanné. This agreement marks the beginning of the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (Petroleum Authority of Uganda, 2021). More importantly, the signing of the tripartite agreement showcases that the oil sector development in East Africa is a priority to advance East Africa's economies.
Though the oil sector is emerging in Uganda, the agriculture industry remains vital to stabilizing the country's economy. From FY 2015/2016 to FY 2016/2017, 2010 to 2017, the agriculture sector rose from 23.7% to 24.9% of Uganda's GDP (Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, 2017). This growth represents a positive trend in Uganda's agriculture industry. The impact of COVID-19 has positioned the agriculture sector to maintain its share of Uganda's GDP, which is now estimated to be 25% (World Bank, 2021). Uganda's dependence on agriculture is stabilized by widespread firm closures and rapid shifts in the urban informal sector. Coffee, tea, cotton, and tobacco are recognized as the traditional cash crops in Uganda; in FY 2016/2017, coffee exports constitute the highest revenue of any crop in the country (Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, 2017). In areas of Northern Uganda like Lira, soya beans, cabbage, and beans are highly produced. The food crop sub-sector increased from 12.1 percent to 13.6 percent FY 2016/17, representing the highest contribution in the agricultural sector (Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, 2015).
