Uganda should only borrow for transport, energy, health, education and agriculture infrastructure- Museveni

President Yoweri Museveni has directed that borrowing of funds for national infrastructure development should only be ascribed to railway construction, electricity generation, irrigation schemes, strategic roads’ building and to some aspects of education and health sectors.

Thi was during a Monday, September 16th meeting with the African Development Bank (AfDB) regional director in charge of the Eastern Africa Regional Centre, Gabriel Negattu, at State House in Entebbe.

“In the education sector, it is the issue of the government programme for the implementation of the construction of 280 secondary schools at sub-county level countrywide. At the university level, the focus should be on the construction of laboratories first and then main halls, which are optional. Let us do all this with respect to other hard-core issues,” he said, noting that this was necessary to clarify “for purposes of streamlining proper national economic growth”.

Also present in the meeting were Finance Minister Matia Kasaija, Higher Education State Minister John Chrysostom Muyingo and Education Ministry Permanent Secretary Alex Kakooza.

Museveni said construction of the railway is crucial because it will link Uganda to the neighbouring countries such as the DR Congo and South Sudan.

He also noted that there was need to increase electricity generation given that all that is available is consumed because of due to the dynamics of the internal economy in Uganda.

On his part, Negattu concurred with President Museveni, saying funds ought to be borrowed and managed for strategic sectors in the economy, advising government on the need to think broadly beyond Uganda while planning for infrastructure development.

“Think beyond Uganda and go to East Africa in order to create a centre for development and economic excellence in the region for the future,” he added.

Kakooza revealed that out of the 280 secondary schools to be constructed in the country, at between $60 and 70 million, 134 will be newly built with the rest requiring only refurbishment.