Diary Industry offers Ugandans competitive advantage

That yet another Ugandan Dairy company: Jesa has begun curving inroads into the regional market clearly demonstrates the competitiveness building up in Uganda’s diary sector.
Jesa Dairy recently passed the hazard analysis and critical control test in what is seen as a step to assert its presence in the regional मार्केट।

Ugandan milk processors continue to make forays into regional market dominated by Kenyan firms that dwarf their Ugandan counterparts in terms of experience and technological output in what is seen as is testimony that the Uganda’s competitive advantage in this regard is unrivalled।

It further underlines the benefits the Customs Union has brought to some sectors of the economy even as the manufacturing sector is still faced with high production costs especially arising from transport and electricity costs।

But more importantly it is a testimony to the growth of Uganda’s Dairy industry that was virtually non-existent before 1995। The industry was previously shambolic with good percentage of milk produced going to waste.

However, the deliberate government effort to encourage investment in the erstwhile underexploited industry with emphasis on value addition has seen the industry grow by leaps and bounds to become the flagship of Ugandan products in the region.
While other Ugandan manufacturers are struggling to break ground in the regional markets, Ugandan milk processors are enjoying favourable presence on supermarket shelves in countries such as Tanzania, Kenya, and Rwanda।

Actually I haven’t seen any Ugandan product with more ubiquitous presence on Supermarket shelves in Tanzania, Kenya, and Rwanda than Uganda milk products. Don’t forget that Ugandan dairy processors have done little to market these products in the regional markets.
The mere presence of Ugandan milk products in such markets has itself marketed them beyond their national boundaries। However, this calls for a more aggressive approach to market the products beyond regional borders.

While marketing would improve on market share, the government needs to constantly engage other EAC Partner States to create a better business environment in the region.
Trade in EAC is currently besieged with Non-Tariff Barriers (NTB) which have quickly become an obstacle to trade। These barriers oftentimes present themselves in form of protectionist measures such as standards, police roadblocks, business registration, customs and administration procedures.

Sameer Agriculture is currently has in the past had problems exporting powdered milk Kenya because of such न्त्ब्स

Although, there are NTB National Monitoring Committees established in each of the 5 Partner States to coordinate the monitoring and removal of NTBs, the Committees have not been effective due to lack of technical capacity to facilitate reporting and removal of NTBs.
In a recent study done by the East African Business Council, NTB’s ranked highest among the list of barriers to doing business in the region। It is therefore important that governments remain committed to eliminating such barriers to trade.

Milk producers in Uganda will become the eventual winners in the regional market once such barriers are eliminates.