The economy of Uganda has a great potential and appears poised for rapid growth and development.Uganda is endowed with significant natural resources, including ample fertile land, regular rainfall, and mineral deposits.<br>Chronic political instability and erratic economic management since the implementation of self-rule has produced a record of persistent economic decline that has left Uganda among the world's poorest and least-developed countries.The informal economy, which is predominantly female, is broadly defined as a group of vulnerable individuals without protections in regards to their work.Women face a plethora of barriers specific to gender when attempting to access the formal economy of Uganda, and research revealed prejudice against lending to women in the informal sector.The national energy needs have historically exceeded the domestic energy generation, though large petroleum reserves have been found in the country's west.
Top Sectors in Uganda
Agriculture in Uganda
Agricultural products supply a significant portion of Uganda's foreign exchange earnings, with coffee alone, of which Uganda is Africa's second largest producer after Ethiopia,accounting for about 17% of the country's exports in 2017 and earning the country US$545 million.Exports of apparel, hides, skins, vanilla, vegetables, fruits, cut flowers, and fish are growing, while cotton, tea, and tobacco continue to be mainstays.
Transport in Uganda
As of 2017, Uganda had about 130,000 kilometres (80,778 mi) of roads, with approximately 5,300 kilometres (3,293 mi) (4 percent) paved.[31] Most paved roads radiate from Kampala, the country's capital and largest city. Uganda's metre gauge railway network measures about 1,250 kilometres (777 mi) in length. Of this, about 56% (700 kilometres (435 mi)), is operational. A railroad originating at Mombasa on the Indian Ocean connects with Tororo, where it branches westward to Jinja, Kampala, and Kasese and northward to Mbale, Soroti, Lira, Gulu, and Pakwach. The only railway line still operating, however, is the one to Kampala.Uganda's important link to the port of Mombasa is now mainly by road, which serves its transport needs and also those of neighboring Rwanda, Burundi, parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan.
Communications in Uganda
The Uganda Communications Commission regulates communications, primarily "delivered through an enabled private sector." The companies it regulates include television networks, radio stations, mobile network operators, and fixed-line telephone companies
Mining in Uganda
Uganda's predominant mineral occurrences are gold, tungsten, tin, beryl, and tantalite in the south; tungsten, clay, and granite between latitude zero and two degrees north; and gold, mica, copper, limestone, and iron in the north.Uganda's extractive industry activities have been identified by the Natural Resource Governance Institute as focused on "extraction of cobalt, gold, copper, iron ore, tungsten, steel, tin and other industrial products such as cement, diamonds, salt and vermiculite".Limestone is sold in local markets whereas gold, tin, and tungsten are major exports.