By Joseph Mary Buwule
Anita Rukundo Tayebwa, the newly appointed Honorary Consul of The Bahamas to Uganda, has pledged to promote tourism cooperation between the two countries, with particular focus on attracting high-spending visitors and increasing Uganda’s tourism earnings.
Rukundo made the remarks on Thursday evening in Kampala after presenting her credentials to Foreign Affairs Minister Adonia Ayebare.
She said Uganda had much to learn from The Bahamas, which, despite its smaller geographical size and population, attracts significantly more international visitors and earns more from tourism.
According to figures she presented, The Bahamas received more than 12 million international visitors in 2025, compared with approximately 1.6 million visitors to Uganda.
She also cited tourism receipts of US$5.27 billion for The Bahamas against Uganda’s estimated US$1.62 billion during the same period.
Rukundo said Uganda needed to improve how it markets its tourism attractions internationally, particularly to visitors willing to spend more.
“We hope to bridge the gap between The Bahamas and Uganda. We hope to promote tourism. With this relationship, we hope to attract more people to come and visit Uganda,” she said.
She identified destination marketing, hospitality, resort development, tourism investment and visitor experience as areas where Uganda could draw lessons from The Bahamas.
Rukundo also plans to work with tour operators and government agencies in both countries to develop tourism packages that would allow visitors to experience attractions in Uganda and The Bahamas.
“We are looking at how we can have the private sector get into The Bahamas and vice versa. With the ministry’s support, we are assured we will be able to achieve this,” she said.
Foreign Affairs Minister Adonia Ayebare welcomed her appointment and urged her to use the position to identify practices that could help Uganda improve its tourism performance.
“The figures speak for themselves; we will count on you to tap the best practices from them. Uganda will benefit immensely from your representation,” Ayebare said.
Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa expressed confidence in his wife’s ability to deliver, citing her experience in managing family businesses.
“The public doesn’t know that she is the mover behind the scenes, running the businesses. I know her potential when it comes to execution,” he said.
Tayebwa said his wife had previously expressed interest in helping Ugandan tour operators attract wealthy international visitors, particularly those interested in mountain gorillas, chimpanzees and other wildlife attractions.
He noted that The Bahamas had built a tourism industry that attracts both large numbers of visitors and wealthy travellers.
“The Bahamas is very unique in many ways. On top of having big numbers in terms of tourism, they also attract ultra-wealthy and high-value tourists,” he said.
Tourism investor Amos Wekesa urged Rukundo to pay particular attention to water-based tourism, arguing that Uganda had yet to fully exploit the tourism potential of Lake Victoria and its other water bodies.
Wekesa said Uganda could earn more from tourism by investing in facilities and activities that attract visitors to its lakes and rivers.
King Ceasar Mulenga, the Honorary Consul of Vietnam to Uganda, welcomed Rukundo’s appointment, saying it presented an opportunity to strengthen trade and relations between the two Commonwealth countries.
“I have no doubt you will strengthen trade and people-to-people bilateral ties between our two Commonwealth nations,” he said.
