62,000 Ugandans attained formal jobs in April 2023 – report

At least 62,000 Ugandans attained formal jobs in the month of April this year, data by the Ministry of Finance indicates.

According to the Microeconomic indicator dashboard (MIND) update for the month of April 2023 released the Ministry of Finance, formal employment, as per the PAYE register, registered a 10.57% increase from 588,656 employees in March 2023 to 650,881 employees in April 2023.

This comes amid the continued economic recovery spurred by reduction in inflation to 6.2% according to latest data from Uganda Bureau of Statistics.

However, the Finance ministry report indicates that the number of migrant workers decreased, dropping from 7,588 workers in January 2023 to 1,902 in February 2023; further reducing to 1,471 in March 2023 and 1,248 workers in April 2023.

The ministry attributes the reduction to the removal of the Labour desk at Entebbe Airport, which has substantially impacted on data collection.

The data is now collected by Immigration Officers under Ministry of Internal Affairs.

According to the report, new business registrations increased marginally by 0.8%, up from 4,230 in February 2023 to 4,264 in March 2023, before declining by 7% to 3,964 in April 2023.

“The increase between February and March 2023 is attributed to mass awareness campaigns carried out in the districts of Zombo, Mbarara, and Mbale. However, due to the Easter and Ramadhan periods, fewer individuals registered their businesses in April 2023,” the report adds.

According to the report, the trade balance deficit reduced by 15.38% from US$ 297.7 in February 2023 to US$ 251.9 in March 2023, largely on account of increased export earnings from US$ 349.4 million in February 2023 to US$ 674.5 million in March 2023.