Botswana I Ethopia I The Gambia I Ghana I Kenya I Malawi I Mauritius I Namibia I Nigeria I Senegal I South Africa I Swaziland I Tanzania I Togo I Uganda I Zambia I Zimbabwe Uganda grew steadily in 2005, adding 4% to real GDP largely through increases in exports – including its main agricultural exports, such as coffee.
The buoyant economy has benefited one of Uganda’s leading banks, DFCU Bank; while its main rival Standard Chartered’s total net income fell by 34% in 2005, income from DFCU’s major business streams grew by 41%.
The bulk of this growth resulted from growing quality earning assets at DFCU, which was listed in 2004 in what was the most successful IPO ever in Uganda, raising $10 million and giving the company a solid capital base from which to expand. Bank profit attributable to shareholders rose by 37% in 2005 and the bank has invested heavily in new branches and outlets, ATMs, software and new products.