In the United States, the cultural issues flare up all the time, but seem to have settled into some form of equilibrium. Twelve out of 50 states recognise some form of same sex unions, marriage or otherwise.
Nearly all states now allow gay couples to adopt children. Federal law provides some protections for same sex couples but strictly excludes recognition of same sex couples for all the other federal benefits in matters of marriage, taxation, inheritance, succession and immigration.
Uganda's policy landscape is very fragmented, so is our politics. There is a benefit in this. The relative autonomy in decision making interpreted by a liberalised political, economic and social environment tend to mask some of the more pressing problems in society. The plight of the farmers is masked by a strong public relations bonanza- highlighting a few successful farmers across the country. Massive inflows of foreign aid mask falling government expenditure in critical areas like agriculture and the environment.
In 2010 after several false starts, a group of pioneers labouring in different corners of Uganda's vast farm sector achieved a major milestone placing Ugandan coffee in one of the largest storefronts in the United States.
The Sam's Club Stores are the upscale shopping front for the Wal Mart Stores- the world's biggest retailers. These clubs are thousands of square feet of shopping real estate, 600 in total littered all over the country. Wal Mart, the parent, runs another 4,800 shopping centres. The Wal Mart "effect" on the US economy is a multiplier far beyond its $180 billion in annual sales.
For all the years of neglect and under-investment, coffee remains Uganda's most important export. A robust coffee recovery to its 1970 levels can turn around. It is one product where Uganda enjoys a comparative advantage. It does not carry the adverse environment impacts now being felt after a short time in new economy ventures like fishing (now linked to over-fishing on Lake Victoria), flower growing whose flow of chemicals have turned parts of Lake Victoria into a cesspool, or cotton whose lint which requires a lot of chemicals to maintain quality and protection from tropical pests.
Coffee has some democratic elements to it. More than 500,000 households grow coffee. Coffee is grown at the last count in more than two thirds of Uganda's districts. At the last count, new coffee is blooming in areas traditionally zoned for cotton like the sub regions of Acholi and Lango that, with irrigation, could turn into major coffee producers.
Uganda's coffee does not enjoy brand visibility. Smaller coffee producers like Rwanda (about $50 million and producing one sixth of Uganda's output) have yielded better returns in programming quality, and spending wisely on promotion in the American market. It would seem that a strategy that avoids or harms the American opportunity would be foolhardy. The American coffee market is a marketing dream. The American consumes about 1.66 coffee cups per capita.
In 2003, this proposition translated into about $6.8 billion at the sales registers. Convincing skeptical American business people that Uganda is ready for anything is a tough sell. Uganda coffee, up to this point, still shows up at the bottom of the heap in the lower grades. Savvy producers dump their worst coffee and market it as Ugandan blacks highlighting the caffeine content and low prices in ways that other coffee producers like Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya and Ethiopia would never countenance.
So as the Bahati Bill publicity starts to fade-- in Uganda many big things have a short shelf life-- the American press continues to highlight the Bahati Bill as detailed last week. It comes at a time when Sam's Club is carrying a major first for Uganda; Uganda Mountain Coffee- a blend of three of Uganda's best coffee(s): Bugisu AA, Okoros, and Drugars grown by farmers in Mbale, Nebbi and Kasese.
In America, we have two forms of governance: The common public sector dominated by government and elected officials and the private sector dominated by markets, private enterprise and social groups. The latter rules for the most part.
The American public first receptive to the experiment-the coffee is carried in 75 stores in more than 20 states- starts to point out that the coffee is from Uganda where the government (never mind it is a private Bill) promise execution or life in prison for private sexual conduct.
American retailers have a host of legal exposure they contend with everyday for business decisions they make. One of the rules of thumb is to drop merchandise that riles consumers and increases its exposure. For the farmers, this will be a tragedy. In Nebbi, a small farmer coop made a 64 per cent premium over the general market price by shipping coffee to Wal Mart. How can this be arrested?
*Mr Ssemogerere, an Attorney and Social Entrepreneur, practices law in New York