~ Area & location: 236km2 (similar to Great Britain) in Equatorial Africa, bordered by Rwanda, Tanzania, Kenya, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo
~ Population: totally 28.2 million, of which 1.2 million live in the capital Kampala
~ Climate: ave max 25-28C, ave min 16-18C in Kampala
~ Currency: Uganda shilling (1€= 3500USH)
~ Mineral resources: copper, cobalt, limestone, salt, alluvial gold, oil, fertile land
~ Major exports: coffee, fish, tea, tobacco (also banana, maize, rice, potato, cotton)
~ GDP: US$1,400 per capita (Finland US$36,500 per capita)
~ Human development: average life expectancy 45.7yrs, HIV infection rate 8-10%, access to safe water 45%, access to electricity 4%
~ Education: primary school completion 38%, adult literacy 65%
Now, let's move on to my objective observations on Ugandan economics. As I keep acquiring more insight I may later on add or change some viewpoints.
Despite its natural resources Uganda is a third world country. Sure downtown Kampala lacks a variety of stylish stores and entertainment, but still poverty is most visible in its slums and outskirt villages. People thrive to survive with very little property - living in shaggy crowded shelters, cooking over campfires and bathing outside with water buckets. Rubbish and dirt are basically all over (pics1&2). I have visited some of my students' homes and I would not voluntarily spend any nights in them.
Nevertheless people seem to be more or less enjoying their lives. Not being accustomed to highly comfortable living standards and excess possessions, they seem quite satisfied with what they can get. When I gave my host family's 3-year-old son a small car toy, he and his friends kept playing just with it for days. In comparison, when I gave a similar gift to a kid back home, her interest lasted for a few minutes. The more accessible stuff is to us, the less satisfaction it brings along. However, I must note that here people do not generally take good care of their rare valuables. They are being left to lay around, getting dirty and eventually lost. So yesterday when our students played with their brand new Legos (naturally a Danish donation) I gave them a serious talk on how to guard every single little part (pic3).
Unemployment is a major problem and even experienced workers struggle to find decent jobs. Not even education guarantees a good career. To me it seems that some people can spend all their days just sitting around and chatting. I quite have not figured out whether or not such passivity is their own choice of laziness or adaptation to non-changeable situation. Anyways the culture here is more laid back and people never seem to be in a hurry.
A majority of employed people work long hours with minimal income, often not receiving their wages regularly. From talking to people, I have gotten the impression that they prefer running their own small businesses rather than working for or together with someone else. When ever I suggest partnership, for example acquiring shared milk processing equipment amongst neighboring cow farms, I get the response that it would lead into cheating and arguing. This is too bad, since investments in technology and operational scale of economies would enable people to further process their products, thus adding value to them and raising sales income.
So instead of large stores there is an endless number of small shops here - supermarkets, hair dressers, drug stores, furniture factories, paint shops, restaurants, repair workshops (pic4)... Some of them are sort of chain stores, but most just lack originality for no see able reason. Everywhere used phrases are "cheap quality" and "we care". The most common name for a shop/bar/salon is "God is able" (pic5). As these shops buy their stock from a handful of wholesalers their selection is all the same.
Over 90% of Ugandans work at agriculture related fields. Many people grow their own vegetables and fruits, selling extras at road side stalls. I tried digging potatoes at our backyard and recognized it as good practical exercise (pic6). Owners of larger farms sell their products either at central markets or through wholesalers to be distributed in Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda. Some people also sell prepared fast food - chapatti (pancake) and rolex (pancake with fried egg) - out of their stalls. Last month we got a meal of chapatti and beans for 0.3€ (pic7).
Money is a major constraint here and it is being brought up at conversations much more often than I am used to. The HCF currently struggles to get funding to feed our children, build beds for the dormitories and finish a water tank project. My teaching friends aspire to become a doctor and an accountant, but their dreams may be left unrealized because of not being able to afford university tuition fees. People do have ideas and ambition but they often lack initial capital to utilize them. I think that one key to enhance economic growth here would be to support bright people in their studies and startup businesses.
Most people have never traveled outside of Uganda and they imagine European countries as wonderlands. They believe there is no poverty, violence and social problems but everyone is rich and happy. This morning my host family mother was surprised at me knowing how to mop a floor, since she thought back home I would have servants or machines doing it. I try to explain that even though Finland is a welfare country, life is not perfect there and anyways happiness is not tied only to money. Still, I have increasingly learnt to appreciate our social support system, medical care, infrastructure, access to water and electricity, free education, low corruption rate, and the list goes on...
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