The opposition has rejected the government’s proposal to reduce the tourism sector budget by Shs135 billion in the 2025/26 financial year, warning that such a move would weaken Uganda’s ability to compete with regional rivals Kenya and Tanzania.
Leading the protest, Shadow Minister for Tourism Karim Masaba presented his Alternative Ministerial Policy Statement for 2025/26 before Parliament as sectoral committees prepare to scrutinize ministerial policy statements next week.
The government plans to reduce the tourism budget from Shs311 billion in the 2024/25 fiscal year to Shs175.9 billion in 2025/26, leaving a funding gap of Shs288 billion.
Masaba warned that this cut would significantly hinder the sector’s growth and its contribution to national revenue.
“Uganda has immense tourism potential, but government inefficiencies, underfunding, and lack of strategic planning have hindered its growth,” Masaba stated.
He emphasized that proper investment in marketing, infrastructure, conservation, and community empowerment could position Uganda as a leading global tourism destination.
“By investing in marketing, infrastructure, conservation, and community empowerment, Uganda can emerge as a leading global tourism destination, creating jobs, increasing revenue, and preserving natural heritage for future generations,” he added.
Masaba further defended his proposal, noting that despite Uganda’s ranking among the world’s best tourist destinations, it attracts fewer visitors than other similarly ranked countries and even some with lower rankings.
He attributed this to several challenges, including limited tourism products, poor marketing strategies, inadequate tourism infrastructure, low-quality services and high accommodation cost
“The causes of the low number of tourists and short length of stay are: limited tourism products, poor marketing strategies, poor tourism infrastructure, low-quality services, and expensive accommodation. Nevertheless, tourism is still the highest foreign exchange earner. With the right investment, it has the potential of reviving the economy,” Masaba argued.
Masaba has proposed an increase in budgetary allocation for tourism development to enable Uganda to compete with regional counterparts.
“The current budget allocation is insufficient to promote Uganda as a global tourism destination. Massive investment in infrastructure is required to improve accessibility to tourism sites,” he said.
He also emphasized the need for more funding in conservation efforts to protect Uganda’s biodiversity and called for prioritization of community-based tourism to ensure local participation and benefits.
“More funding is needed for conservation efforts to protect Uganda’s biodiversity. Community-based tourism must be prioritized to ensure local participation and benefits,” Masaba proposed.
