The government of Uganda has revealed that a number of interventions have been lined up in the upcoming NDPIV that will be implemented over the period FY 2025/26- 2029/30 to Spur the tourism sector growth.
Speaking at the 2nd Annual Tourism Development Programme Review Conference, Tom Butiime, the Minister of Tourism Wildlife and Antiquities, said the sector has faced a number of changes yet it has continued to progress and evolve while offering exciting travel opportunities to all.
He noted that during the NDPIV, government shall continue to invest in modernizing tourism infrastructure, diversify tourism products, and build the capacity of our work-force while putting in place measures to provide quality services that “maximize tourist satisfaction, expensive and length of stay.”
This is part of a broader government target to grow the economy by ten-fold within 15 years from the current GDP of about USD 50 billion to USD 500 billion by the year 2040.
The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Matia Kasaija noted that tourism development is one of the four key growth areas underpinned by the goal of ‘’full monetization and formalization of the economy, with a focus on increasing tourist arrivals by five-fold under the current spend-per-tourist and length-of-stay’’.
He said that during the period FY 2020/21 – 2024/25, public investment of about Shs2.9 trillion has been undertaken in the tourism industry.
Kasaija noted, “As a result of this sustained investment, Uganda’s tourism showcased exceptional resilience by achieving a recovery of 82.6% of pre-pandemic international arrivals, reaching 1,274,210 visitors by end of 2023 compared to 814,508 in 2022.”
“The compliance of tourism business with national and international service standards rose to 55% from 34%. International tourism receipts increased by 48% in 2023, rising from Shs2.57 trillion in 2022 to Shs3.819 trillion in 2023,” he said.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Doreen Katusiime, said tourism has remained a cornerstone of Uganda’s economy. She revealed that in 2023, tourism contributed 5.5% to Uganda’s GDP and directly supported 610,806 jobs, representing 5.7% of the county’s total employment.
The tourism foreign exchange earnings increased by 48%, from Shs 2,571 billion to Shs 3,818 billion contributing 11% of total exports and 50% of service exports.
According to Basil Ajer, Director Tourism at the Ministry of Tourism, In 2023, International tourist arrivals were 1.274 million which translated to 82.6% recovery compared to 1.543 million arrivals recorded in the year 2019.
He noted that the arrivals in 2023 are an increase of 56.4% when compared to 0.815 million in 2022.
He added that the Ministry and it’s agencies collected a total of UGX.156.5bn in FY2023/24, against a projected figure of UGX.142.766bn, translating into a 109 performance.
He attributed this to aggressive marketing efforts, improved infrastructure and facilities in protected area, Continued easing of payment procedures, enhancements in product offerings at UWEC, and in the protected areas, among others.