PARADOX OF PLENTY: Uganda’s Tourism Mathematics Does Not Add Up

A collage showing some of the crater lakes in Rubirizi, Kasese, Bunyangabu and Kabarole Districts in Western Uganda, many of which are rarely heard of. All of these, with the right private and public sector capital, can be transformed into various tourism assets to supplement this tourism resource-rich area. However, due to the uncompetitiveness of destination Uganda, there is limited investment being directed to tourism. According to statistics from Uganda's Investment Authority (UIA), the sector accounted for only 3.5% of all (domestic and foreign) licensed projects between FY2015/26 and FY2019/20) and 4.5% of all licensed investments by Ugandans. In terms of planned jobs from the licensed projects, the sector accounted for only 2.3%. The limited FDI is further exhibited in the low presence of international branded hotel operators. While some homegrown brands have emerged to fill the void, there is need to attract more FDI into the sector to both better the tourist experience as well as market the destination globally.