Retired Colonel Dr Kiiza Besigye started his presentation by expressing the great honour for the opportunity to address an august gathering that was focusing on investment and investment. He thanked the chairman and the organising committee.

He confirmed what others before him had said, that truly Uganda was the best country an investor could come to   and he continued to stress the point the description of the “Pearl of Africa” made by Sir Winston Churchill which was something that was deserved and an honest observation by him. He said that he had been at different countries and five continents but Uganda was a truly unique country that one could find endowed with natural resources and great and wonderful people.

However, he maintained that Uganda required strong institutions in order for investment to make sense.

Quoting from a book on leadership and institutions, Dr Besigye said that Spain was the first state to colonise countries but they had weak institutions, while the British who came later built institutions. “Today Spain is like the third world country of Europe” said Dr Besigye.

“Uganda is a fantastic country, but we do not have strong institutions, why would investors go to state house instead of an investment authority? This fuels corruption which Uganda will need to sort out systems first,” he said.

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