KAMPALA, UGANDA – In a determined effort to bolster Uganda’s domestic leather industry, the Uganda Manufacturers Association (UMA) has engaged the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) in high-level talks to advance the enforcement of a Presidential ban on the export of raw hides and skins.

The meeting, led by UMA’s Policy and Advocacy team with the URA Commissioner General, addressed the urgent need to ensure that this critical raw material is retained within the country to support local tanneries and leather goods manufacturers. This strategic intervention is designed to revitalize a local sector currently estimated to be operating at a mere 20% of its potential capacity due to a scarcity of inputs.

This advocacy push is a cornerstone of the Buy Uganda, Build Uganda (BUBU) policy, aiming to transform the nation from an exporter of low-value raw materials into a producer of high-value, finished goods.

The Core Challenge: A Starved Local Industry

For years, Uganda’s leather value chain has faced a significant paradox. While the country produces a substantial volume of hides and skins as a by-product of its livestock industry, a large portion of these are exported in their raw, unprocessed state. This has led to a situation where local tanneries and manufacturers of leather products—such as shoes, bags, belts, and upholstery—are starved of the very raw material that exists in abundance within their own borders.

This raw material flight forces local businesses to operate far below their capacity, stifles investment in new processing technology, and ultimately leads to Uganda importing expensive finished leather goods that could have been produced domestically.

The Presidential Ban: A Lifeline for Value Addition

The Presidential directive to ban the export of raw hides and skins was instituted as a strategic measure to break this cycle. The policy’s objective is to ensure a consistent and affordable supply of hides for local tanneries, thereby catalyzing growth along the entire value chain. A fully operational local leather industry promises significant economic benefits, including:

• Job Creation: From tanning to manufacturing and retail, a revived sector would create thousands of skilled and semi-skilled jobs.
• Increased Revenue: Producing and exporting finished leather goods generates significantly more revenue and foreign exchange than exporting raw hides.
• Skills Development: It fosters expertise in tanning, leather craftsmanship, and design.

Closing the Enforcement Gap with URA

The focus of the UMA-URA engagement is to translate the policy directive into effective action on the ground. The Uganda Revenue Authority, which manages all customs and border points, plays the most critical role in implementing the ban. UMA’s advocacy is aimed at collaborating with and supporting URA to close any existing loopholes and ensure a watertight enforcement regime that prevents the illegal export of these essential raw materials.

This determined push by UMA highlights a crucial aspect of industrial policy: a directive is only as powerful as its implementation. By ensuring the raw hide export ban is fully enforced, Uganda can take a definitive step towards building a competitive and thriving local leather industry, turning a local resource into a cornerstone of its manufacturing sector.