According to Joseph Enyimu, Commissioner for Economic Development, Policy, and Research at the Ministry, listing minerals will not only formalize the trade but also attract both local and international investors, boosting economic growth and value addition in the extractives sector.
In June 2024, Bank of Uganda begun buying gold from local miners in a bid to boost its foreign reserves. But an expert warns it risks being entangled in the illicit gold trade in the Great Lakes region.
Godfrey Nyakahuma, Kabale Resident District Commissioner, says that the company has been granted permission to establish the plant in Kyaase village, Buhara sub-county, where it already has a crushing plant.
Umeme says it leaves behind a $700 million revenue business growing at an average of 10%. It however warns that Uganda will run out of power in the next three years if more generation capacity is not built.
Uganda Radio Network has through interviews with artisan miners, and experts in mining policy and regulation discovered that almost two years since the law was assented to, the formalization of the artisan miners has not gone on as expected.
Simon Avuku, the chief of Metuli chiefdom, said the public within the sub-county was denied access to the profile of the company, such as the license and proof of registration, causing suspicion about the authenticity of the company.
Buyers reminded that Uganda is not a cheap supermarket for gold. Criminal networks with connections in the DRC and South Sudan play an increasingly active role in fake-gold scams in Nairobi and Kampala.
Gold mining in Amudat is illegal to the extent that the government does not officially recognize the district in its mineral databases. As a result, the district has never received any revenue from mining activities. The gold extracted from the area is smuggled into Kenya, and this trade is attracting people from as far as Rwanda and Tanzania. Chinese too loom around buying gold and engaging in large-scale illegal mining.
On Wednesday night, M23 rebels released a statement signed by their coordinator, Corneille Nangaa Yobeuo, appointing Robert Mugisha as the overall head of the Finance Department.
According to the statement, all operational mining personnel are being evacuated from the mine site with only essential personnel remaining for the care, maintenance and security of the property.
The former Kasese Municipality mayor, who is also the state minister for National Guidance and ICT, Godfrey Kabyanga, said that during the glorious days of the mines, it employed more than 5,000 people. He is hopeful that more opportunities will now be available for the local population.
James Byagaba, the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors at UNMC, says that as part of efforts to solve the problem of unemployment in the country, the government has an interest in revamping the factory.
"Beside the revenues unlocked to advance energy transition, petroleum will provide gas to replace the use of biomass energy that has been responsible to the destruction of the environment and health effects to users of firewood for cooking," said Minister Nankabirwa.
According to reports from GIZ, there will be responsible for capacity building at district and sub-county levels, providing office and field equipment, and ensuring that the Ministry of Lands, Housing, and Urban Development integrates land registration data into the Land Information System for certificate printing.
The experts suggest that while PSAs are good, the National Mining Company of Uganda currently lacks expertise to manage, warehouse, quantify, value and to report minerals. They suggest that unlike in the oil and gas sector , PSAs in the mining sector are very risky.
