The top eight business stories of 2021 (Pulse picks)

1.  The curious case of the grasshopper dealer: Paul Mubiru, a Kampala trader, actually sold grasshoppers (Nsenene) aboard a Uganda Airlines flight. A video of Mubiru, 27, selling the formerly hopping delicacy from a sapphire blue plastic bag on a Dubai-bound flight from Entebbe went viral. The passengers on the plane were buzzing around the trader, who priced the grasshoppers upwards of Shs 10,000 ($3), as he turned a healthy profit before getting thrown behind bars. With such profits, well, at least he had bail money.

2. Alleged Debt Trap: We are still in Entebbe. Uganda's only international airport was reported to have been taken over by China after the Export-Import Bank of China, also known as EXIM Bank, reportedly seized Uganda’s Entebbe International Airport over the failure of the Ugandan government to repay a $207 million loan. However, the Uganda government clarified that Entebbe International Airport had not been mortgaged to China. “We would like to make it categorically clear that the allegation that Entebbe International Airport has been given away for cash is false. Government cannot give away a national asset like an international airport,” Mr. Vianney Luggya, the spokesperson of Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), said. 

3. Uganda vs Kenya: In November, the East African Business Council (EABC), the umbrella body for the region’s business community, called for a peaceful end to the fractricdcal Uganda-Kenya trade war. This followed the continued ban on exports of Ugandan poultry products, especially eggs, into Kenya. The ban had been in place for almost a year, having been announced by Kenya earlier in the year to allegedly protect her domestic farmers. Ugandan exports to Kenya are worth 465 million dollars, with the value of dairy products, eggs, honey, and other edibles to Kenya being 56.41 million dollars in 2020. With the ban on dairy products slowly being lifted, Uganda can now return all her eggs to the one basket of good trade relations with Kenya. 

4. Superalia: Bank of Uganda (BoU) pledged to pay city businessman, Mr. Sudhir Ruparelia, the costs he had incurred in defending a Shs 397b case regarding the closure of his bank, Crane Bank. This was after BoU finally conceded defeat in a Shs 397b case it had appealed against the property mogul and his Meera Investments Limited (MIL). In the withdrawal of the appeal, BoU stated that it would pay the costs of the appeal in the Supreme Court and in the lower courts to Sudhir and MIL. After which, Sudhir remained the richest man in Uganda, plus Shs 397b. 

5. We don’t give a Ham: The Supreme Court dismissed an application in which tycoon Hamis Kiggundu, popularly known as Ham, had sought an order of judgment on claims that Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) Uganda and DTB Kenya had made admissions on some of the issues in his appeal. Although Kiggundu had won in the High Court where Justice Peter Adonyo had ordered DTB to refund his Shs120bn debited from his companies’ accounts, the Court of Appeal set aside this ruling, paving way for a legal battle in the Supreme Court and the end to Ham’s champagne-popping court victory. 

6. Better Safeboda than sorry: Google announced its first investment from the Africa Investment Fund which was launched by Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, at Google for Africa in October. The undisclosed sum was invested in Ugandan bike-hailing startup, Safeboda. The SafeBoda app was launched in 2017 to connect passengers to their community of safer and trusted bike riders. SafeBoda has grown to serve over 1 million customers, expanding its transportational super app offering rides, parcel delivery, food and shop, payments, savings and other financial services. That reminds me, my Safeboda has arrived. I will see you later, at number seven.

7. You’re Fired: The top management at Uganda Airlines, including the CEO, Mr. Cornwell Muleya, were shown the door after Works and Transport Minister Gen. Katumba Wamala delivered a firm “toka hapa” on orders from the State House. Government had, a week before, extended the contract of Mr. Muleya, who was serving in acting capacity. But, in a plot twist worthy of Hollywood, he was axed along with the financial director; head of safety and human resource director. A new acting CEO, Captain Steven Wegoye, was appointed to oversee a transition to the next episode of Uganda Airline’s version of the TV show, The Apprentice.  

8. Seyas or Shares? MTN Uganda announced it was selling 20% of its shareholding in MTN Uganda to the public by listing on the local stock exchange. Every Ugandan had an opportunity to own shares in MTN Uganda as the company officially opened the Initial Public Offer (IPO) to the public. A total of 4,477,808,848 ordinary shares were offered to the public and the price of 1 share was Shs200. Somebody bought some shares for me, let me call him: “The telephone number you have called is not available at the moment please try again later…” Eh!