By Moses Ndhaye
The 2019 top 100 Mid-sized companies will this evening be recognized at the annual gala dinner organized by Monitor Publications Limited.
The event follows the Top 100 Mid-sized Companies Index Survey whose results were released yesterday in Kampala.
Ms Elizabeth Namaganda, the head of marketing Nation Media Group (U) says the survey, now in its 11th year, aims at helping SMEs (the engine of Uganda’s economy) understand the market, position themselves, grab opportunities and compete better.
Under the theme; “SMEs shaming the future of the business landscape”, the survey report among other things; highlighted challenges affecting operations of Small and Medium Enterprises in Uganda.
The 2019 Top 100 Mid-sized Companies Index Survey on the performance of SMEs carried out by audit firm KPMG and the Daily Monitor indicates that 47% of the sampled companies said high taxes significantly affected the growth of their respective business.
Releasing the report in Kampala on Thursday morning, the director Tax and Cooperate Affairs at KPMG Mr. Peter Kyambadde, said taxes such as corporate tax levied at 30% was unreasonably high.
He said 67% of the companies surveyed across the country where operating on bank loans whose interest rates are prohibitive and do not allow for their growth.
The report further indicates that the sector is still grappling with the challenge of sub-standard goods either being imported into the country or manufactured locally.
Mr. Kyambadde however, urged the operators to embrace the digital transformation through which they will access wider market for their products.
The survey sponsored by KPMG, the Daily Monitor, DFCU bank, the Uganda Investment Authority and the Ministry of Science Technology and Innovations among other partners targeted companies with annual turnover of between Shs360m- Sh26bn.
