FDC Leader Praises Museveni's Industrial Hubs as State House Warns Against Trainee Extortion

What the report says

Nile Post reported that Busia Municipality Mayor Sadik Amin Agele, a senior Forum for Democratic Change figure, endorsed President Yoweri Museveni’s Presidential Industrial Hubs initiative during a Bukedi sub-region stakeholders’ meeting at the Bukedi Zonal Industrial Hub. Agele said the programme was helping vulnerable young people gain practical skills and pathways to income, and urged opposition leaders to back government projects that benefit citizens rather than reject them on political grounds.

According to the report, Agele also pledged to help secure land in Busia for a Common User Facility, described as part of the industrial hubs programme and intended to support production, processing, marketing and exhibition of locally made goods. Eng. Raymond Kamugisha, the Director of Presidential Projects and Industrial Hubs, represented State House Comptroller Jane Barekye and said government plans include a Common User Facility in Busia Municipality and a second zonal industrial hub for Bukedi in Tororo District.

The proposed location of the second hub drew competing views from local leaders. Butaleja District officials said they had land ready and wanted to host the facility, while Tororo District LCV Chairperson John Okea argued Tororo was better placed because of its central location and accessibility for trainees from across the region. Kamugisha later said the second hub would be established in Tororo, while Busia would host the Common User Facility.

Nile Post also reported that State House warned district officials against demanding money from applicants seeking admission to the programme. Kamugisha said enrolment is free and warned that officials involved in illegal charges could face arrest, following complaints from former trainees alleging that some local officials, particularly in Kibuku District, had asked for payments to place applicants on admission lists.