Private sector investors in need of long-term credit financing for infrastructure development have an opportunity to access funding from the PTA Bank courtesy of the emerging oil and gas sector.

A forecast that projects the possibility of Uganda experiencing double digit economic growth due to the nascent oil and gas industry as well as growth in the services and industry sectors have prompted the development according to the story that was reported in the Newvision

The PTA Bank president, Admassu Tadesse, notes that higher growth requires higher financing, but access to finance remains a serious challenge in Uganda, with private sector credit access in neighbouring Kenya twice outstripping credit access in Uganda.

“This is where PTA Bank with other financiers has an important role to play,” adds Tadesse.

The bank’s overview of Uganda reveals emerging opportunities in the sectors of oil and gas, infrastructure, manufacturing, agriculture, banking and financial services.

This is spurred by expected projects in construction of an oil refinery and pipeline, as well as investment by independent power producers in renewable energy.

There are also planned mechanisation of commercial agriculture, construction of storage and processing facilities, irrigation equipment, airports, housing and inland ports through public-private partnerships.

The PTA Bank, which has been in existence since 1991, has recorded an annual 35% asset growth in the last three years and a growth in core capital with a balance sheet standing at $2b.

This is expected to rise further following the entrance of China and the African Development Bank as institutional investors in the PTA Bank, which serves the regional economic blocs of COMESA, SADC and EAC, with a combined GDP of $840b.

The bank has in the past financed projects in Uganda in the sectors of pharmaceuticals, financial services, agribusiness, real estate, manufacturing, insurance, transport and logistics and telecommunications.