An Audit of Records and Information Management Practices and ICTs Utilisation among SMEs in Northern Uganda

(ProQuest: . denotes formulae omitted.)1.1 BACKGROUNDIn Africa, Uganda's economy is among the ones with great development potential. Endowed with significant natural resources, including ample fertile land, regular rainfall, and mineral deposits, it appears poised for rapid economic growth and development at independence (Okello-Obura 2011). However, chronic political instability and erratic economic mismanagement produced a record of persistent economic decline that left Uganda among the world's poorest and least-developed countries (United States, Bureau of African Affairs 2007). Despite that, the Government of Uganda has been implementing an ambitious and successful programme of macro-economic adjustment and structural reform since 1987 - with strong support from multilateral and bilateral creditors and donors (Okello-Obura . et al 2007, Okello-Obura 2011). The government's continued implementation of appropriate fiscal and monetary policies - and its programme of substantial economic liberalisation - has maintained high growth, low inflation, a steadily improving balance of payments and an increasingly vibrant and diversified private sector (Uganda Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development 2012). During the 2003/04 financial year, Uganda's economy registered strong growth of 6 % compared to a growth rate of 5.2 % in 2002/03 (Central Intelligence Agency 2004). Solid growth in 2003 reflected an upturn in Uganda's export markets. In 2007, Uganda's growth rate reached 8.9% (Uganda, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development 2008). In 2013, Uganda saw the consolidation of macroeconomic stability and a gradual recovery of economic activity, with estimates putting annual real gross domestic product (GDP) growth at 5.2%, up from 2.8% in 2012. This recovery in economic activity has benefited from a fiscal and monetary policy stance focused on containing inflationary pressures, while ensuring debt and exchange rate stability, thus providing an enabling macroeconomic environment for growth. Growth prospects, however, continue to be hampered by a relatively unfavorable investment climate for the private sector, as well as by capacity constraints in public sector investment and management (African Development Bank Group 2014). Remarkable growth is being witnessed to a large extend due to the vibrancy of the private sector dominated by Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs). SMEs play a significant role in the economy in terms of balanced and sustainable growth, employment generation, development of entrepreneurial skills and contribution to export earnings (Macintosh 2003; Saeed 2002). Although Beyene (2002) ; Mutula and Brakel (2006) argue that there is no universally accepted definition for SMEs in Africa, this study adopts the government of Uganda's classification of SMEs as business firms employing 5-50 people (small scale) and 51-500 people (medium scale) (Kasekende and Opondo, 2003; Schiffer and Weder, 2001, p. 13; Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 2003, Okello-Obura 2011, 2012). It is estimated that SMEs in Uganda constitute 90 percent of the private sector, with 80 percent being located in urban areas and, are largely involved in trade, agro-processing, and small manufacturing (Hatega, 2007). SMEs contribute approximately 75 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) and employ approximately 2.5 million people, signifying their importance in the economic development of Uganda (Okello-Obura. et tal 2008). A UBOS report (2011) on the Census of Business Establishments 2010/2011 illustrated that 30% of 458,106 enterprises were small and medium enterprises and the sector employed over 1 million people.The Uganda's continued growth and the expansion of the SMEs have created a vibrant private sector and active government departments. Ultimately there are a lot of business documents being generated in both private and public sectors today than before, calling for efficient and effective information management. …