ENGO, a Chinese phone manufacturing company plans to operate in Uganda. The expansion to Uganda positions ENGO in a fast-growing consumer market to locally manufacture and assemble phones, iPads, laptops, and computers.
The signing and groundbreaking event was presided by the Minister of Information, Communication and Technology, Frank Tumwebaze, ENGO executives, and other government officials. The Executive Director of ENGO Holdings Limited, Ares Chow Yu Qing said that the firm’s trademark would be Simi Mobile.
See also: E-Commerce Platform PayPorte Relaunches Website Months After Shutdown
The project has been projected to cost $15.5 million over a period of five years. The company targets an initial production of 1 million mobile phone gadgets before the end of 2019. They plan to produce 100 000 gadgets per month and 1 million computers per year.
In the early stages of production, ENGO will rely on imported materials from China for the domestic manufacturing of devices. Experienced hands from Ethiopia will be hired until they get ready a workforce in Uganda.
The establishment of the manufacturing plan will reduce Uganda’s import duties on computers and mobile devices. Several other Chinese firms are setting up manufacturing industries in Africa. A-Link Technologies has set up a $500 000 phone assembling plant in Rwanda which produces 200 mobile phones per day.