North America Edition
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James Kanyije, the CEO of KK Foods -exporters of fresh foods and vegetables-, has stated that a Covid-related reduction in exports has resulted in a limited amount of capital. Capital that is necessary to deal with required investments to meet growing demand and quality standards.
“Markets like Canada and the United States of America are yet to re-admit imports of fresh foods and vegetables from Uganda since coronavirus lockdown measures were put in place,” he said. To date, KK Foods is only feeding some markets in the European Union and the UK. The other potential markets – Belgium, Netherlands and Germany are available but the company is unable to fully meet their demand.
“Capital is a big problem,” he told The Independent, adding that they are yet to receive government support in form of loans from the Uganda Development Bank saying ‘there’s no money.”
He also said that the government needs to drop the idea of borrowers from UDB staking collateral to access money, since most of these businesses are known and have dealt with government before.
Those managing the economy must step in with practical solutions to make things work for everyone, experts say. Bank of Uganda, one of the frontline managers of the economy, on Feb.15, issued a monetary policy statement with mixed projections on performance of the economy.
Photo source: Bank of Uganda
