Amuru leaders reluctant to offer land to Uganda Investment Authority
AMURU – Leaders in Amuru district are reluctant to give land to the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) for establishment of an industrial park.
This comes at a time when several districts in Lango and West Nile have offered hundreds of acres of land to the Uganda Investment Authority.
Michael Lakony, the LCV Chairperson Amuru District, claims that UIA does not have a clear plan on why they want the land, and what they want to do on the pieces of land especially when the district has been embroiled in series of land conflicts and disputes especially with the government agencies and individuals.
Lakony says, what baffles him is the fact that UIA wants the district to first offer land before they can do an investment. Why do they want the district to give them land before they can give a clear investment plan?
According to Lakony, having consulted with the district representatives in Parliament, the Ministry of Investment hasn’t given any clear plan to them on the floor of Parliament, which makes it tricky for them as the district to offer land for what they don’t understand.
Gilbert Olanya, the Member of Parliament for Kilak South in Amuru district says, the Uganda Investment Authority should hold consultative meetings with the district leaders and other stakeholders before demanding for any land.
Olanya says, according to Evelyn Anite, the Minister for Investment, the land will be planned and earmarked for industrialization and recommendations to potential investors.
Nebbi, Oyam and Lira districts are the latest districts to offer hundreds of acres of land to the Uganda Investment Authority.
Evelyn Anite, the Minister for Investment says, the major reason why districts are to offer land for industrialization to UIA is not aimed at grabbing land but to boost the government’s primary investment promotion intention which is majorly aimed at creating investment and employment opportunities for Ugandans.
Anite says, the government is majorly working on creating a bank of land for investment with the target of setting at least 25 industrial and business parks across the country in the next five years, which is also in line with the presidential directive of local governments providing land to UIA on grounds that the government will no-longer buy land for industrial parks.
“The government, according to President Museveni, is not buying land for the establishment of industrial parks because the local governments have plenty of land. The plan is to have at least 25 industrial parks across the regions of the country so that jobs are created for Ugandans through the investors who will inject their money in the already established parks,” Anite explained.
Several districts across the regions of Uganda have in recent times offered thousands of acres of land to Uganda Investment Authority for the establishment of industrial parks.
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