Minister Mbadi pledges to strengthen UNBS services to boost SME growth
The Minister of State for Trade, General Wilson Mbadi, has reaffirmed the government's commitment to strengthening the decentralisation of Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) services.
This initiative aims to reduce the cost of doing business for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and is part of a broader strategy to grow Uganda's economy from USD 49.5 billion in FY 2023/2024 to USD 500 billion over the next 15 years.
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Gen Mbadi made these remarks during his inaugural visit to the UNBS Northern region office in Gulu City and the One Stop Border Post (OSBP) in Elegu.
During the visit, UNBS Executive Director Eng. James Kasigwa highlighted the challenges the bureau faces, including limited financial and human resources, which hamper service delivery and the agency's potential to generate Non-Tax Revenue (NTR) for the government.
He requested the Minister's support to secure increased funding and staffing for UNBS, aligning with the government's priorities of export promotion, import substitution, and industrial growth.
Gen Mbadi, praised UNBS for its efforts despite resource constraints and committed to advocating for increased funding and staffing to further decentralize UNBS services.
In the financial year 2023/2024, UNBS certified over 5,000 products and supported more than 1,600 MSMEs.
The Minister emphasised the importance of expanding UNBS's regional presence, proposing the establishment of offices in all ten Agro-ecological zones and planned industrial parks across the country to enhance product quality and expedite MSME certification.
Currently, the UNBS Northern region office provides certification, testing, and market surveillance services to the business community in West Nile, Lango, Acholi, parts of Karamoja, and Masindi district.
UNBS also operates regional offices in Mbarara for the Western region and Mbale for the Eastern region. However, certain critical services like calibration and legal metrology are not yet available at these regional offices.
The UNBS decentralization agenda aims to improve service delivery efficiency by reducing the cost of doing business, allowing MSMEs across different regions to access UNBS certification and testing services without traveling to the UNBS Head office in Kampala.
Over 90% of enterprises in Uganda are MSMEs, with 60% located in rural areas.
The agenda also aims to facilitate the certification and growth of enterprises while enhancing compliance with standards for MSMEs in rural areas and boost the competitiveness of locally manufactured products to support export promotion and import substitution, aligning with the Parish Development Model and the National Development Plan IV.
General Mbadi and Eng. Kasigwa visited the UNBS offices at the Elegu OSBP, where UNBS conducts import inspections to prevent the entry of substandard products into the market.
