Tourism Becomes Uganda's Main Export

Tourism has for the first time become Uganda's biggest export earner with Workers’ remittances in the second position and coffee in third after it fetched $1.4billion in financial year 2013/2014, up from $1.1billion the year before. Remittances, which is the amount of money Ugandans living abroad send home, was roughly $800m during financial year 2013/2014. Although the African Development Bank expects this figure to reach $1bn this financial year. Meanwhile, coffee, Uganda's main traditional cash crop, earned about $415m for the period between April 2013 and March 2014, according to the Uganda Coffee Development Authority. Tourism was boosted by glowing reports of the country's attractions among international tourism catalogues. Uganda is regarded Africa's best destination for birders. The country boasts of more than 1,058 bird species, accounting for 11 per cent of the globe's total, and half of Africa’s.

Lonely Planet in 2012, a reputable online tour magazine ranked Uganda number one among the top ten countries to visit. After all it is the source of the river Nile that mythical explorers sought since Roman times. It's also where savannah meets the vast lakes of East Africa, and where snow-capped mountains bear down on sprawling jungles. Visit Uganda the Africa's condensed with the best of everything the continent has to offer packed into the small, but stunning destination. Celebrations to mark Martyrs day every third day of June continue to attract thousands of people, and there are plans by Uganda tourism board to market it as a tourism attraction. Cultural events such as the circumcision ceremony, Imbalu, in Mbale attracted thousands of people-we have 56 tribes with different cultures, heritages and all are unique.

Uganda hosted the Africa Travel Association conference in November that was a remedy to  boost tourism numbers. This was a huge annual world congress of tourism lovers, which attracted delegates from all over the world. It was a big boost. The delegates visited almost every pocket of this country. This was an opportunity for hoteliers, transporters, and entrepreneurs. Uganda Tourism Board embarks on an aggressive marketing to sell the country through advertising on international media networks like CNN and BCC.

However, there have been challenges facing the sector including insufficient funds to promote the industry. This financial year, Uganda tourism board was allocated Shs 5billion though this was too little for an industry that is now a top export earner for the country. Government should at least double their budget to Shilling 10billion annually. Meanwhile, Bank of Uganda's monetary report noted that the country's trade account continued to deteriorate. Trade deficit, which is the amount of money a country spends to import above what it earns from exports, grew to $2.34billion last financial year from a $2.12billion in 2012/13.

The deficits on the trade account and income account were more than offset the surplus on the services and foreign transfers. A widening trade deficit usually leads to the depreciation of the local currency as importers pay more for foreign currency, and ultimately put further pressure on the rate of inflation. Private transfers have also declined to $934m from $976m in 2012/13.