Africa-Press – Uganda. The Minister of Science and Technology, Ms Monica Musenero, has said government will support Katwe artisans since the future of import substitution for Kiira Motors lies in their hands.
“Our target is that by 2030, at least 65 percent of the parts of the Kiira buses will be produced locally and we are targeting you people of Katwe,” Ms Musenero said on Thursday during a tour of innovators in Kampala.
Kiira Motors Corporation, is a brainchild of Makerere University, supported through the Presidential Initiative for Science and Technology Innovation.
The corporation aims at championing value addition in the Uganda domestic automotive industry for job creation and diversification of the economy.
The company has so far produced electric and solar vehicles including salon cars and buses.
Ms Musenero also revealed that the government is building an industrial value chain. “I came to Katwe to create, build the industrialisation of the nation through science and technology.”
“My starting point is to identify the innovators. I have had exhibitions, visited universities but I realised that many of our innovators such as you people in Katwe never appear in any of those areas. You are hidden here and that’s why I have visited Katwe,” she added.
Ms Musenero announced that she has launched countrywide tours to document all available innovations.
On Thursday she toured Kayiira Diesel Garage on Salaama Road in Makindye Division and Naris Technical Services in Ndeeba and Kim Engineering in Rubaga Division.
Ms Musenero said her visit to the various innovations was revealing.
“But the problem is they are working on subsistence level. We will have to connect them to better skilling so that they produce more refined products. We must industrialise our nation,” she said.
The minister said they will work out mechanisms with the Cabinet to ensure the innovators are equipped with machines in order to improve their level of production.
As part of government’s effort to develop innovations, the minister also promised to build the capacity of Uganda’s artisans to form sizable groups through which assistance and capacity building will be channeled.
“Government will add more technology to build the industrial sector of Uganda. Our intention is to enable import substitution, to empower our people,” she pledged.
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