The National Resistance Movement (NRM) Vice Chairperson for Western Region, Engineer Asiimwe Jonard, has described Uganda’s FY2026/27 national budget as a strategic framework aimed at repositioning the economy toward knowledge, innovation, and large-scale industrial transformation.
Speaking after attending the budget presentation, Asiimwe said the fiscal plan reflects a deliberate national shift from reliance on raw materials to a system where knowledge and technology are central drivers of growth.
He noted that sustainable wealth creation will depend on how effectively the country commercialises research and scales innovation across key sectors.
“Today, I attended the presentation of the FY2026/27 Uganda National Budget, which reinforces a defining national proposition: sustainable wealth is created when knowledge is commercialised, innovation is industrialised, and technology is deployed at scale,” Asiimwe said.
He emphasised that Uganda’s economic agenda is increasingly anchored on the full monetisation of production systems through commercial agriculture, industrialisation, digital transformation, and expanded access to regional and international markets.
According to him, science, technology, and innovation are now at the centre of productivity and competitiveness in the modern economy.
Asiimwe further argued that the most valuable resource in today’s global economic environment is no longer limited to natural endowments, but the capacity of a nation to generate and apply knowledge effectively.
He said countries that invest in research, innovation ecosystems, and skills development are better positioned to achieve inclusive and sustained growth.
“The most strategic resource of the modern economy is no longer raw material alone, but the capacity to generate, apply, and scale knowledge for national development,” he noted.
He added that the budget should not be viewed only as a financial statement, but as a blueprint guiding Uganda’s productive sectors toward transformation.
He highlighted areas such as precision agriculture, agro-industrialisation, and digital platforms linking enterprises to wider markets as key pillars expected to drive economic expansion.
“This budget is therefore not merely a fiscal statement; it is a blueprint for transforming Uganda’s productive sectors into engines of prosperity,” Asiimwe said.
He pointed out that converting innovation into enterprise, research into industry, and ideas into measurable socio-economic impact will be critical in determining the success of the country’s development agenda.