Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego, the Deputy Governor, Bank of Uganda
MPs on Parliaments National Economy Committee have cast doubt on the figures submitted by Bank of Uganda (BoU) showing that Uganda’s economy grew by 6.8% in the year ending June 2023, questioning why this purported growth isn’t reflected in the lives of average Ugandans whose purchasing powers they said was reducing daily.
This was during a meeting held between the Committee and officials from Bank of Uganda who had been summoned to update Parliament on the performance of Uganda’s economy and indebtedness.
During the presentation, Dr. Michael Atingi-Ego, the Deputy Governor, Bank of Uganda remarked, “The Ugandan economy has shown signs of resilience despite numerous shocks. Quarterly estimates by Uganda Bureau of Statistic indicated that the Ugandan economy grew by 6.8% in June 2023 from 5.6% in June 2022. This growth was driven by services and industry output which grew by 7.0% and 8.8% respectively.”
However, a number of MPs cast doubts on these figures wondering why this growth isn’t being felt in the pockets of Ugandans, with John Teira (Bugabula North) citing the numerous arcades that are empty down town and the small businesses are facing similar fate.
“The figures are so amazing, but as MPs of the people whose economic state we are so much aware of, I am failing to see a direct relationship between The improved figures and the real experiences of the people, the purchasing power keeps dropping everyday, if you go to the arcades in town, the shops keep closing everyday and small businesses are failing which contribute greatly to these figures, how do I relate this to the real life. The figures are so amazing,” said Teira.
Peter Ken Lochap (Bokora East) tasked Bank of Uganda to explain if Karamoja Sub-region is part of the growth that is being reported by the Central Bank.
He said: “In Karamoja, I am not seeing how this economy is being rated, is Karamoja part of this growth? If so, where is the evidence? Because in Karamoja, there are so many things, hunger, no water and dams but I am seeing the economy is growing where is evidence for us to go and tell the Karamojongs that the economy is growing?”
The same sentiments were shared by Jonathan Ebwalu (Soroti West Division) who warned the Deputy Governor against making such a statement in Teso region as this would attract anger among residents and wondered if the figures submitted by Bank of Uganda are Kampala based because the public isn’t feeling the reported growth.
“If you went and made this statement in Katakwi, Amuria, Soroti, people would ask you what kind of Governor you are. The economy has grown by 6.8% and you go and look at our people in the country side, people are extremely poor, in fact people are becoming poorer but your economy is improving by day, how is this translated to our people?” said Ebwalu.
The Deputy Governor in response said that the Central Bank is working to address the concerns raised in public about the growth figures released by first revising Bank of Uganda’s mission statements to read; prompting price stability and a sound financial sector in support of socio-economic transformation and institutionalizing environmental, social governance principles throughout the financial sector.
“We want the financial sector to ensure that in their lending operations, they are responsible for the preservation of the environment because 70% of our population relies on the environment for their production. You need to redirect your lending to the bottom of the pyramid. We are trying to tell the commercial banks that it is no longer about creating value for the shareholders, but creating value for the stakeholders and the stakeholders include the community and we believe this is what is going to increase income at the bottom of the pyramid,” explained Atingi-Ego.
