Economy of Uganda

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.

Economy of Uganda
Kampala, the financial centre of Uganda
CurrencyUgandan shilling (USh)
1 July – 30 June
Trade organisations
AU, EAC, COMESA, WTO
Country group
Statistics
GDP
  • $36.484 billion (nominal, 2020 est.)
  • $113.476 billion (PPP, 2020 est.)
GDP rank90th (nominal, 2017)
GDP growth
  • 3.9% (2017) 5.9% (2018)
  • 6.1% (2019e) 6.5% (2020f)
GDP per capita
  • $916.156 (nominal, 2020 est.)
  • $2,752 (PPP, 2020 est.)
GDP by sector
  • Agriculture: 71.9%
  • Industry: 4.4%
  • Services: 23.7%
  • (2017 est.)
3.2% (2019)
19.1% (31 December 2017 est.)
Population below poverty line
  • 21.4% (2017 est.)
  • 41.7% on less than $1.90/day (2016)
42.8 medium (2016)
  • 0.525 low (2021) (166th)
  • 0.396 low IHDI (2021)
Labour force
  • 16,833,878 (2019)
  • 48.0% employment rate (2017)
Labour force by occupation
  • agriculture: 71%
  • industry: 7%
  • services: 22%
  • (2013 est.)
Main industries
sugar processing, brewing, tobacco, cotton textiles, cement, steel production
External
Exports $3.339 billion (2017 est.)
Export goods
coffee, fish and fish products, tea, cotton, flowers, horticultural products, gold
Main export partners
  •  Kenya 17.7%
  •  UAE 16.7%
  •  DR Congo 6.6%
  •  Rwanda 6.1%
  •  Tanzania 4.8%
  • (2017)
Imports $5.036 billion (2017 est.)
Import goods
capital equipment, vehicles, petroleum, medical supplies, cereals
Main import partners
FDI stock
$10.909 billion (2016)
−$1.212 billion (2017 est.)
$7.163 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
Public finances
Government debt
$11.2 billion ($3.8 billion, domestic) (2018)
–4.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Revenues$3.98 billion (2017)
Expenses$7.66 billion (2017)
Economic aid$3.68 billion (2017)
Credit rating
Standard & Poor's: B
$3.654 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
Main data source: CIA World Fact Book
All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars.

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.

After the turmoil of the Amin period, the country began a program of economic recovery in 1981 that received considerable foreign assistance. From mid-1984 onward, overly expansionist fiscal and monetary policies and the renewed outbreak of civil strife led to a setback in economic performance.

The economy has grown since the 1990s; real gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an average of 6.7% annually during the period 1990–2015, whereas real GDP per capita grew at 3.3% per annum during the same period. During this period, the Ugandan economy experienced economic transformation: the share of agriculture value added in GDP declined from 56% in 1990 to 24% in 2015; the share of industry grew from 11% to 20% (with manufacturing increasing at a slower pace, from 6% to 9% of GDP); and the share of services went from 32% to 55%.

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