The government has launched a digital platform to help small informal businesses streamline financial record-keeping and transition into legally compliant enterprises.
The Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury, Dr. Ramathan Ggoobi, unveiled the simplified E-Accounting tool on Thursday in Kampala. Dr. Ggoobi currently serves as the Acting Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) developed the software under its Informality Management for Compliance and Revenue Mobilisation (IMCORE) Programme. The initiative targets the country's vast informal sector to unlock access to formal credit and state procurement contracts.
Dr. Ggoobi emphasized that micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) form the baseline of Uganda’s economic activity. He noted that the informal sector contains over 1.8 million small operations. The Ministry of Finance reports that these businesses generate 54.5 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product. Furthermore, the informal ecosystem accommodates 92 percent of total national employment, primarily supporting women, youth, and refugees.
The Finance Secretary explained that chaotic financial documentation historically cuts short the lifespan of most startup enterprises. He stated that the new software will offer a unified portal to handle both legal registration and tax formalization smoothly.
“Without proper records, businesses cannot assess performance, financial institutions cannot trust them and tax compliance remains inconsistent,” Dr. Ggoobi stated.
UNCTAD Economic Affairs Officer Elena Botvina officially handed over the completed digital platform to the Ministry of Finance following a successful trial phase. She described the accounting software as an affordable and accessible innovation designed to remove complexity from everyday asset and liability reporting. Botvina noted that the system allows small traders to evaluate cash flow realities without hiring expensive professional auditors.
The system will support better cash management, improve expense tracking, and help businesses increase revenues, Botvina explained.
During the initial pilot phase, 30 informal enterprises in Kampala utilized the digital software to track daily sales. An additional 490 small business owners tested the interface to check its data entry security. Technical teams confirmed that 241 businesses have already registered permanent operational profiles on the live portal. The government plans to roll out nationwide digital training clinics to help rural merchants adopt the technology.
