Uganda’s Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) issued a letter last week to stakeholders providing their explanation for why Managing Director, Dr Emmanuel Iyamulemye Niyibigira had left his post.
It came to a natural end
Letter from UCDA Management
Except that there was nothing natural about it. The UCDA was unable to form a Board, and therefore unable to vote to extend the contract. It sometimes happens that Boards are unable to form a quorum – the numbers necessary to pass a vote – but I’ve not heard of an organisation being unable to form a board before.
The managers say they are working tirelessly to address the situation. But that tireless effort might better have been deployed a little earlier to ensure the authority, which controls the biggest export commodity in the country, could have retained some leadership.
Now, the UCDA is rudderless and looks incompetent. If there are politics in play, they should be removed quickly, so the organisation can reassert confidence. Something the letter (attached below), fails to do.
