Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has always been praised by President Museveni for laying a platform that supports Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which in turn transform Uganda’s economy.
Several reports and analysts have clearly shown that if SMEs are managed well, their contribution to Uganda’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), will increase.
Currently, SMEs in Uganda contribute over 70 per cent of the economy and contribute above 25 per cent of GDP which is a sizeable portion. They also make up 67 per cent of Uganda’s business sector.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, over 85 per cent of work delivered in Uganda comes from SMEs, their work spans from service providers such as selling of goods, information technology, agriculture and furniture making among others.
While speaking at the official opening of the 2019 Taxpayers Appreciation Week at Kololo Airstrip, the URA Commissioner General Doris Akol said SMEs contribution to the total revenue collected has been increasing.
According to current URA figures, SMEs have contributed Shs7.57 trillion, Shs9.08 trillion and Shs9.74 trillion in the past financial years 2016/17, 2017/18 and 2018/19 respectively.
“SMEs are important for their contribution to employment, economic growth, innovations and the diversity of competition they bring to the markets. SMEs guarantee inclusiveness and sustainable economic growth,” Akol said.
However, despite accounting for a big percentage of Uganda’s business sector, SMEs still heavily rely on internal funds or retained earnings to meet their long-term financing needs which have significantly limited their ability to take advantage of new market opportunities, access new technology, and build internal capacity.
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