UGANDA, A COUNTRY OF MANY EPITHETS
Uganda, which was a British protectorate 1894 to 1962 is indeed a country of many epithets[1]. Poised to forge a future of its own as a nation, it seemed to have an insurmountable enthusiasm until fate steered otherwise.
From early on, Uganda seemed poised to a great future and was able to captivate some of the prominent figures of the time as expressed in phrases like; “The Pearl of Africa” popularized by Winston Churchill[2]. It already stood out against its East African counterparts, not because it had made any special efforts to that effect, but simply out of sheer climate luck – for lack of a better word.
Like a child who is "likely to succeed", everyone must have cheered Her on regarding the Democratic and Nation-building journey She had undertaken. It is from this point onwards that one wonders what probably might have gone wrong. There must be a logical explanation to what could've curtailed our envisioned dream. If I may borrow a line from Richard Ntaru's poem "The Pauper." “.. What brutal Force, What malignant element dared to forge your piteous fate?” This phrase is some sort of a rhetorical question that hums and resounds in most of the countrymen and women’s heads – at least subliminally[3].
Uganda’s Socio-economic and Political trajectory, achievements notwithstanding, have been marred by unfortunate events. Many things have put Her on the international scene but the Tyranical, Ruthless and gruesome Regime of Idi Amin Dada must arguably be the darkest and the most disdainfully remarkable incident of them all.
Since then, many Socio-economic and Political developments, Transformations and transitions have taken place. I am not a pessimist, neither do I see the glass as half-empty, but it seems we have grappled with many things, Human Rights issues coming right way on top. Well as you might all know, Human Rights are a weight of the world. This however, is no negation for the distance of journey in upholding some of them, just like most of other African countries.
Our Population has steadily increased to 39,032,383 in 2015 from the 2000 figure of 23,757,636. The rate at which we are multiplying puts us on track to vie for the world's highest population growth[4]. This is a double-edged sword in its own right when pondered upon especially vis-à-vis Labor force growth rate at only 4.7 per annum in 2009/10 which outstrips the economic growth rate itself[5].
Our demographic window has begun to improve in the recent past, though our fertility rates remain rather high as compared to our east African sister countries. It is no doubt that cost of healthcare will rise exponentially. There's some relief - goodnews, given the anticipated more than doubling of government revenue from the current oil reserve estimate is 3.5 billion barrels in the Albertine region[5], our Balance of Payments and Terms of Trade should be impacted positively but most importantly, our livelihoods must improve as well.
Our Population has steadily increased to 39,032,383 in 2015 from the 2000 figure of 23,757,636. The rate at which we are multiplying puts us on track to vie for the world's highest population growth[4]. This is a double-edged sword when pondered upon especially vis-à-vis Labor force growth rate at 4.7 per annum in 2009/10 since it outstrips the economic growth rate itself[5]. Our demographic window has begun to improve in the recent past, though our fertility rates remain rather high as compared to our east African sister countries. It is no doubt that cost of healthcare will rise exponentially. There's some relief - goodnews if you will. The anticipated more than doubling of government revenue is gonna be realized from the oil reserve estimates of 3.5 billion barrels in the Albertine region[5]. This is most likely to improve our Balance of Payments and Terms of Trade which will inoxorably raise our standards of living.
Our efforts as regards infrastructure investment in the recent past has not gone unnoticed. With a planned infrastructure overhaul of an $11 billion program over the next ten years through public investment and public-private-partnership arrangements, will come positive spillovers on agro-processing, manufacturing, and trade[6].
Our fight against the HIV virus has not gone unnoticed either[7]. Through the years, we have fared well from the onset of the scourge to date. Though our journey has been fraught with hard times, our commitment has not waned.
There are many things Uganda shall always be remembered for; Zika Virus, Source of River Nile, Corruption, Drunkenness, Jacob Kipilimo, Steven Kiprotich, the list goes on... Our Start may not be a desirable one but the onus is on us to pave a very bright future for the next generations.
Strikingly, a few words will remain indelible in the vocabulary world, courtesy of Uganda. “Rolex” “Some sort of Snack" and more recently, "Boda Boda” making its way into the Oxford Dictionary 9th Edition[8]. We have outlived our past achievements and now is the time to focus on the attainment of the “Middle Income Status” by a given contentious year ahead. No body promised that we would have a utopia as our home country – for no one really does. We can reminisce the past as we reach for our future.
It is sad and indeed an oxymoron that a country gifted by nature, whose backbone is agriculture and, the discovery of oil reserves not withstanding, would be struck by hunger in a very debilitating fashion in the recent past. Also, the fact that we remain high-ranking amongst corrupt countries of the world, ranking well in liquor consumption, high unemployment rates etc... all of which are working against our steering efforts to a brighter destination speak of a new strategic and synergistic vision casting. A glimmer of hope flashed by the 1986 Poster Child of Economic and Socio-economic transformation revolution seems waned, we need a fresh perspective, putting a demand on our lives at least, just ok or getting by is not enough in itself. We are more than broken down dreamers and I believe, there is lot of potential on the inside of us all.
As the saying goes, "Every Cloud has a silver lining" of which Uganda is no exception. In conclusion therefore, Even though the distance of our journey has be marred by many undesirable events, our chauvinism must not be dwindled. East West, home is best. We have to sift through our experiences and forge a desirable future for the next generation; we need to be renowned for noteworthy Epithets.
REFERENCES
[1] Thompson, G. (2003). Governing Uganda: British colonial rule and its legacy: Fountain Pub Limited.
[2] Cohn, S. R. (1998). Teaching in a Developing Country: Mistakes Made and Lessons Learned in Uganda. Journal of Legal Education, 48(1), 101-109.
[3] Ntiru, R. (1998). The Pauper (poem). A JOURNAL OF SOCIAL & RELIGIOUS CONCERN, 13(1).
[4] Eye on Earth. (2017). Uganda on Track to Have World's Highest Population Growth | Worldwatch Institute. from http://www.worldwatch.org/node/4525
[5] Hausmann, R., Cunningham, B., Matovu, J. M., Osire, R., & Wyett, K. (2014). How should Uganda grow?
[6] Ana Lucía, C. (2017). IMF Survey : Uganda's Ambitious Infrastructure Plan Set to Boost Economy. Retrieved May 26 2017, from https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2015/09/28/04/53/socar063015a
[7] Green, E. C., Halperin, D. T., Nantulya, V., & Hogle, J. A. (2006). Uganda's HIV Prevention Success: The Role of Sexual Behavior Change and the National Response. AIDS and Behavior, 10(4), 335-346. doi: 10.1007/s10461-006-9073-y
[8] Mwangi, W. (2017). 'Boda boda' makes it to Oxford English Dictionary. Retrieved May 26, 2017, from http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Boda-boda-makes-Oxford-Advanved-Learners-Dictionary/688334-3941080-q0jvlnz/
