New Dawn for Uganda's Tourism: Muhereza Kyamutetera takes the helm as CEO

 

Uganda Tourism Association appoints Muhereza Kyamutetera as CEO to lead post-pandemic revival 

The Uganda Tourism Association (UTA) has appointed Muhereza Kyamutetera as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective October 1, 2024. This appointment arrives at a crucial time for Uganda's tourism industry, which is still recovering from the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The MAN OF THE WEEK is Muhereza Kyamutetera. On #RystarGents this week we unveil this great business journalist who has transformed into a chief executive officer of a critical entity in Uganda's tourism sector.

Kyamutetera brings over 20 years of experience in strategic and business development, marketing communications, and leadership, spanning various sectors, including tourism, financial services, energy, and ICT. 

His deep understanding of the industry and a profound passion for "Destination Uganda" sets the stage for his commitment to enhancing Uganda's tourism potential.

"I am excited to infuse my professional experience with my passionate love for Destination Uganda," Kyamutetera said, expressing his readiness to lead the sector toward growth.

Yewagnesh Biriggwa, the President of UTA, highlighted the board's excitement for Kyamutetera's appointment, noting that he brings a fresh and diverse skill set that will be essential in tackling the challenges and opportunities ahead. She emphasized that this appointment was a key achievement for the new UTA board, which has set ambitious goals for its first 100 days in office since its election on June 20, 2024.

As CEO, Kyamutetera's focus will be on fostering collaboration between the private sector, the government, and development partners to elevate the tourism sector’s role in Uganda's national development agenda. He aims to drive UTA’s mission to create a professional, competitive, and inclusive tourism industry.

UTA, which serves as the umbrella organization for Uganda’s tourism sector, encompasses various key industry groups, such as the Association of Uganda Tour Operators, the Uganda Safari Guides Association, and the Uganda Hotel Owners' Association, collectively representing over 2,000 enterprises.

Kyamutetera's leadership is expected to energize the sector and bolster efforts to not only recover but also expand Uganda’s tourism footprint. 

The focus will be on increasing both the volume and value of tourism in the country, enhancing revenues for tourism enterprises, and improving household incomes nationwide. 

This new leadership transition comes as Uganda continues to draw global tourists with its breathtaking natural beauty and rich cultural heritage.

🎤RYSTAR QUOTES: IN HIS OWN WORDS:                                    

IN HIS OWN WORDS: MUHEREZA KYAMUTETERA 

In addition to my current roles elsewhere, I have been appointed (and I have accepted) to the position of Chief Executive Officer at the Uganda Tourism Association (UTA)

@UTAUganda

is the umbrella organization that brings together tourism trade associations in Uganda. Our purpose is to build a professional, competitive, thriving, and inclusive tourism sector for our member associations, thereby sustainably contributing to Uganda's national development agenda. As I step into the role of CEO, I am acutely aware of the critical juncture we find ourselves in. Among the 4 major players in the tourism industry⏤ Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda, we are the only country that is yet to recover our precovid-19 visitor numbers fully. While international tourist receipts grew by 48.5% in 2023 from UGX.2,751.5bn in 2022 to reach UGX 3,818.6bn (USD 1.025 bn), this is only 83.4% of UGX 4,580.4 billion recorded in 2019.

While tourism contributed USD 2.8 billion (5.5%) to Uganda’s GDP in 2023, this is USD300 million less than the USD 3.1 billion contribution in 2019. Urgent action is needed to address this situation. Many reasons explain this slowed recovery and what many believe to be performance-below-potential, but the major one is the government's suboptimal investment into a sector that many believe has a more significant potential to accelerate Uganda's economic growth than many other sectors.

For example, while total NDP III planned funding for the sector for the first financial years (2020/21-2023/24) was supposed to be UGX2.049 trillion, only UGX826.5 billion was released- an equivalent of just 40%. During FY2023/24, UGX 260.599 billion was approved for the above MDAs, but only UGX 258.675 billion was released. The sector also needs more access to suitable and affordable medium to long-term funding. With such a funding gap, the sector can only do as much. With slow post-pandemic recovery, it is no wonder that the sector has the highest Non-Performing Loans to Gross Loans Ratio of 12.1% as of May 2024, according to the Bank of Uganda. Nonetheless, we remain optimistic.

We thank the government for continued investment in other sectors that support the tourism sector, such as roads and electricity. We also welcome the government's renewed enthusiasm for the sector. Tourism is one of core sectors being focused on as a key driver of growth in the medium to long term. The government has repeatedly said it targets increasing sector earnings from USD1 billion to USD5 billion by 2028. But we wait to see the radical shift in policy and investment needed to make this possible. I look forward to infusing my professional experience into my passionate love for Destination Uganda and to being an essential bridge between the private sector, the government, and our development partners as we jointly work to increase the volume and value of tourism to Uganda and ultimately increase tourism enterprise revenues and household incomes.

🎤RYSTAR QUOTES: IN HIS OWN WORDS:                                      

PHOTO CREDIT: All 📸photos used in this blog post are courtesy photos 

Profile compiled by Rhyman Alphred Agaba 

Editor of this publication.

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