Remerciez-le!

Remerciez @Admin pour avoir partagé cet document gratuitement, de la manière la plus simple, en partageant sur les réseaux sociaux.

Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008

Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 1 SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES (SME) BUSINESS GUIDE SUPPORTED BY MARCH 2008 Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 2 Foreword The Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) is proud to introduce this first Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide. Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) are the backbone of the Ugandan economy. They contribute to job creation and poverty reduction. SMEs need to be supported to grow from small enterprises to medium and large businesses. This guide provides information and contacts on business licensing, access to finance, entrepreneurship skills training, business development services, and taxation/incentives. I wish to especially thank the Icelandic International Development Agency (ICEIDA) which has funded not only this guide but also entrepreneurship skills training and business development support for SMEs. Uganda Investment Authority has partnered with Makerere University Business School, Management Training and Advisory Centre and Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association Limited to deliver these services. To my fellow entrepreneurs, I encourage you to use this Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide to increase the profitability of your business. Patrick Bitature Chairman Uganda Investment Authority Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 3 Table of Content I. INTRODUCTION...................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. II. OPERATING ENVIRONMENT FOR SMES...........................................................6 III. GUIDE IN BRIEF .....................................................................................................8 1.0 MODULE ONE: PROCEDURE FOR ESTABLISHING AN SME IN UGANDA..........9 1.1 SECTOR SPECIFIC PERMITS OR LICENSES....................................................19 2.0 MODULE TWO: ACCESSING BUSINESS FINANCE .......................................28 3.0 MODULE THREE: ACCESSING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FOR SMEs.............................................................................................................................38 3.1 CAPACITY BUILDING, TRAINING AND BUSINESS COUNSELING SERVICES 38 3.2 EXPORT MARKET ACCESS ...............................................................................52 3.3 TRADE, RESEARCH, PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND INITIATIVES FOR SMES ...................................................................................................................................53 3.4 BUSINESS VENTURE SUPPORT .......................................................................64 4.0 MODULE FOUR: OTHER BUSINESS SUPPORT SERVICES: ..............................70 4.1. LEGAL SERVICE, ARBITRATION AND JUSTICE ..............................................70 4.2 BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS................................................................................72 4.3 AUDITING SERVICES .........................................................................................77 4.3 PRACTICAL TAXATION TIPS AND INCENTIVE REGIMES FOR SMES............78 5.0 APPENDIX: USEFUL CONTACTS..........................................................................80 5.1 APPENDIX 1: UTILITIES............................................................................................80 5.2 GOVERNMENT MINISTRIES.......................................................................................80 5.3 PROFESSIONAL/ BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS................................................................81 5.4 DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS............................................................................................84 Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 4 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS: ADB African Development Bank BDS Business Development Services BUDS Business Uganda Development Scheme. CDE Center for Economic Development CICS Competitiveness and Investment Climate Strategy. ETP Entrepreneurship Training Programme. GDP Gross Domestic Product ICEIDA Icelandic International Development Agency MFI Micro Finance Institutions MCP Master Craftsman Programme. MSME Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. MTAC Management Training and Advisory Center MTCS Medium Term Competitiveness Strategy. MTTI Ministry of Tourism, Trade and Industry MUBS Makerere University Business School NAADS National Agriculture Advisory Services. NEMA National Environment Management Authority. NGOs Non Governmental Organizations NUMA Northern Uganda Manufacturers Association NVTI Nakawa Vocational Training Institute. NWSC National Water and Sewerage Corporation PEAP Poverty Eradication Action Plan. PFSU Private Sector Foundation Uganda. PIRT Presidential Investors Round Table PMA Plan for Modernization of Agriculture. PSFU Private Sector Foundation Uganda PTA Preferential Trade Area RBPU Regulatory Best Practice Unit. SME Small and Medium Enterprises. UBOS Uganda Bureau of Statistics. UGT Uganda Gatsby Trust. UIA Uganda Investment Authority ULAIA Uganda Leather Allied Industries Association. UMA Uganda Manufacturers Association UMI Uganda Management Institute UNBS Uganda National Bureau of Standards USSIA Uganda small scale Industries association. Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 5 I. INTRODUCTION This SME Business Guide is developed by Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) and funded by the Icelandic International Development Agency (ICEIDA) to support entrepreneurship development in Uganda. The SME Business Guide provides useful information on Business Development Services available to existing and potential local entrepreneurs in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector. It provides user guide information for SME who are looking for capacity development support services. The Guide provides general information current as at the time of production and will be revised annually. While every effort has been taken to ensure accuracy of information provided in this document, it is not intended to be a comprehensive statement of the law, or a substitute for professional advice. Uganda Investment Authority cannot take responsibility for any errors of fact or opinion herein, and accepts no liability for any damages incurred through use of the information contained in this publication. i. OVERVIEW The Ugandan economy is supported mainly by MSMEs contributing about 90% of the private sector production. SMEs are the prime source of new jobs and play a crucial role in income generation, especially for the poor. However MSMEs by the sheer limitation of their size and resources are highly dependant on Business Development Services (BDS) to provide capacity building and support their business growth in areas such as training, advice, information, business planning, marketing, technology, communications and other services. BDS complement credit and micro-finance programmes, and assist small enterprises with growth potential to become medium-sized enterprises. To increase the quality and efficiency of production capability, one key factor identified is the capacity of the entrepreneurs behind the business operation. In addition, the other critical element for promoting enterprise development is a suitable enabling environment for business creation, survival and growth. This refers among other things, to policy and regulatory issues, infrastructure, financial and business development services. ii. KEY ISSUES AFFECTING SME GROWTH IN UGANDA The inherent challenges faced by SMEs in Uganda include; limited access to finance; lack of entrepreneurial skills; lack of general skills in management, marketing and financial planning, lack of business plans; lack of business records; deficient corporate governance; short-term business outlook; poor banking and borrowing history; and a culture that disrespects business contracts. SMEs are also confronted with fierce local and international competition, limited access to BDS; limited access to information on market opportunities and sources of competitive technology. These limit substantially the productive capacity and competitiveness of SMEs in Uganda within the context of globalization. It is against this background that this document has been produced, to bridge the existing information Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 6 gap between BDS providers and consumers. The Business Guide provides the basic source of information to both local and foreign SMEs by pointing out the various BDS providers in Uganda. II. OPERATING ENVIRONMENT FOR SMEs i. DEFINITION OF MSMEs1. A Micro Enterprise is defined as an enterprise employing maximum 4 people; annual sales/revenue turnover of maximum Ugandan Shillings 12 million and total assets of maximum Ugandan Shillings 12 million. A Small Enterprise is defined as an enterprise employing maximum 50 people; annual sales/revenue turnover of maximum Ugandan Shillings 360 million and total assets of maximum Ugandan Shillings 360 million. A Medium Enterprise is defined as an enterprise employing more than 50 people; annual sales/revenue turnover of more than Ugandan Shillings 360 million and total assets of more than Ugandan Shillings 360 million. ii INCENTIVES OFFERED TO SMEs Government of Uganda has provided non-fiscal incentives to stimulate business growth in Uganda as demonstrated by the various initiatives to enhance private sector competitiveness. Fiscal incentives on the other hand, are provided for under the Finance Bill, a document that is produced by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and contains all fiscal related incentives and provisions and is revised annually. A summary of key incentives is included on Page 68. Iii RELEVANT GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES FOR SME DEVELOPMENT A number of initiatives, policies and programmes have been put in place to enhance the development of enterprises in Uganda. Some of these initiatives include; a) Plan for Modernization of Agriculture (PMA) This offers improvement opportunities for agriculture business and direct hands-on support through extension services, through the National Agricultural Advisory Service (NAADS) that was created to coordinate extension service provision to subsistence farmers. 1 Draft MSME Policy and Strategy for Uganda (2007) produced by Commonwealth Secretariat, UK. Small and Medium Enterprises Business Guide Uganda Investment Authority © 2008 7 b) Business Uganda Development Scheme (BUDS under PSFU) BUDS-SSE is a cost-share grants project, co-funded by the IDA of the World Bank. It is implemented by the Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) through the Business Uganda Development Scheme. The project supports the acquisition of know-how through training programs to increase the capacity and performances of SMEs, other support include technology acquisition and support to private initiatives in rural electrification using renewable energy. c) Microfinance Outreach Plan Microfinance Outreach Plan is a major initiative of Government of Uganda and Stakeholders in the microfinance industry intended to expand the outreach of financial services to rural areas. It aims at developing systems, structures and services that strengthen the microfinance industry and raise well-performing MFIs to higher tiers, capable of providing more and improved services to micro and small enterprises through the Matching Grant Facility Capacity (MCAP). d) UNIDO Master Craftsman Programme (MCP) The Master Craftsman Programme (MCP) is being implemented by Uganda Small Scale Industries Association (USSIA). Northern Uganda Manufacturers Association (NUMA), Uganda Gatsby Trust (UGT) are partner organizations in the programme as well as institutions like Nakawa Vocational Training Institute (NVTI), Uganda Leather Allied Industries Association (ULAIA), and Textile Development Agency (TEXDA). The programme provides support and development of entrepreneurs in skills uploads/Industriel/ sme-guide.pdf