Uganda’s Taxi Operators Begin a Two-Day Strike, Minister Okurut Says

By Fred Ojambo ~ Ugandan taxi operators have started a two-day strike in the capital, Kampala, over high duties, bringing transportation to a standstill, said Information Minister Mary Karooro Okurut.

Leaders representing drivers and conductors backtracked on an agreement last night to call off the strike ahead of talks with Vice President Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi and a separate meeting with President Yoweri Museveni tomorrow, Okurut said in a telephone interview from Kampala today.

The taxi operators are protesting high duties levied by the Uganda Taxi Operators and Drivers Association, a private entity contracted to manage commuter taxi operations in Kampala, Okurut said. The Ugandan government is taking the strike seriously and is seeking to restore transportation because the taxis are widely used for travel in the capital, said Okurut.

Retail traders went on strike last week in Kampala over the impact that accelerating inflation and a weakening currency are having on their businesses.

To contact the reporter on this story: Fred Ojambo in Kampala at fojambo@bloomberg.net