The central bank is counting on tougher capital demands to mitigate potential risks to the financial system, following a stormy year for the banking sector during which the regulator took over management of one of the largest lenders.
Uganda’s economy contracted by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2016/17 – the second decline in 11 quarters – with shrinking value in the agricultural sector responsible for the decline, according to estimates released by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics.
The inflation rate rose sharply in December to 5.7%, the highest rate in six months, mainly because of an increase in the price of food crops to 10.8%, according to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. Headline inflation in November was 4.6%.
The finance ministry has signed two loan agreements with the African Development Bank (AfDB) to finance the construction of the 23.7 kilometre Busega-Mpigi Expressway project and rehabilitation of its auxiliary road to Rwanda.
The European Union (EU) and the finance ministry signed an agreement to support the third phase of the financial management and accountability programme, which aims to improve accountability, and transparency in managing public resources.
There are big discrepancies in the salaries of the chief executives of parastatals, authorities and commissions arising from the legal frameworks which set up the entities, according to a report passed by Parliament last week
Uganda’s coffee exports in November 2016 were 408,027 60-kilo bags worth $50.41 million, a 64% increase in volume and 101% rise in value compared to the same period in the previous year, according to official figures.
Parliament on Wednesday approved two motions that allow the government to borrow $102.88 million for rural electrification projects. The government will borrow $91.5 million from the World Bank and $11.32 million from Kuwait.
The prospects for macroeconomic stability in the near to medium term are currently very good, according to the central bank governor. Economic growth in 2017 will be “close to the economy’s medium term potential growth of 5%,” he said.
This brief is a roundup of most important political and economic developments that happened in November 2016.