Ugandans unaware of port imporvements

Traders from Uganda have raised concern over the cost of importing goods through the Dar es Salaam Port, which they claim is too high when compared that of importing through Mombasa Port.

This was revealed yesterday by the Uganda traders’ representatives who toured the most important Tanzanian port to inspect improvement which have been undertaken.

Speaking during the tour, the head of Uganda traders’ delegation, Mr Lukymuzi Wangi, said most of traders in Uganda prefer Mombasa to Dar es Salaam, mainly because of the latter’s lower charges.

According to Mr Wangi who led the delegation of Uganda business community members that accompanied President Yoweri Museveni in his two-day State visit, only 30 per cent of cargo destined to Uganda is imported through Dar es Salaam, while 70 per cent are imported through Mombasa.

However, Mr Wangi acknowledged that there are some improvements in service delivery at the port as well as road network. He noted that most traders in Uganda aren’t aware of the improvements at the Dar Port. For example, Mr Wangi noted, most of Uganda traders still think that most of Tanzania roads are tarmacked.

“Having toured your port, we have realised that there are some improvement in service delivery; when we go back to Uganda, we’ll speak to our colleagues and convince them to use Dar es Salaam Port,” said Mr Wangi, adding:

“What a trader needs is lower cost of doing business, lack of bureaucracy as well as security. I am sure that if these are guaranteed, many Ugandan traders will prefer the Dar es Port to that of Mombasa.”

For his part, Tanzania Ports Authority Deusdedit Kakoko said the authority plans to construct a dry port in Mwanza so that traders from Uganda wouldn’t have to travel to Dar es Salaam to clear their cargo. This will help lower the cost which traders are currently forced to incur, he said.

Additionally, Tanzania Truck Owners Association (Tatoa) Chairperson Angelina Mgalula commended the government for reducing non-tariff barriers, which include roadblocks. Ms Mgalula said a number of roadblocks between Tanzania and Uganda has been reduced from 56 to three.

In another development, President Museveni who ended his two-day state visit to the country commended Bakhresa Group of Companies for its contribution to the country’s economy and welcomed the company to invest in Uganda. Mr Museveni, who was concluding his visit by making a tour of the Bakhresa companies, hailed the group for engaging in import substitution and export promotion, hence saving foreign currency.

“You are good capitalists because you add value to welfare of the country. You are not like agent capitalists, who import commodities from outside therefore turning our countries into markets of merchandise from outside,” he said.

President Museveni, who was speaking during the tour at Bakhresa Flour Mills located in Buguruni before visiting another branch in Vingunguti, welcomed the company to invest in agro-processing in Uganda, saying the country aimed to increase production of maize and fruits.

He said Uganda produced four million tonnes of maize annually which, by exporting to some of that to neighbouring countries unprocessed, it was earning little revenue and that by-products which could be used to feed livestock are lost to foreign countries.

Expressing his concern over importers of merchandise, President Museveni said Uganda was losing $880 million to China and over $1 billion to India annually for the importation of products he considers “garbage”, which include carpets, curtains, chairs and human hair.

He said recently he met with Kampala traders who admitted of ruining local market by importing goods from abroad.

He further said that his party, the National Resistance Movement (NRM), believes in vertical integration that provided the processing of agricultural and mineral products with opportunities to do their job, saying Bakhresa fitted the Ugandan way of doing things. Briefing Mr Museveni, Bakhresa Group of Companies Chief Executive Officer Salim Aziz said the group have invested $50 million for wheat milling in Uganda and that fruits processing plant worth $35 million would commence production next year.

He further noted that investment at Buguruni Flour Mills plant amounted to $130 million with a daily capacity of producing 1,750 tonnes of wheat, maize and rice.