Many young corporates harbour dreams that would satisfy their heart’s desires. They would like to have nice cars, trendy phones, beautiful TV sets, durable furniture, name it!

But their meagre salaries are only enough for their daily essential needs. So, they keep dreaming! 

However, PayLater Uganda has come to make these dreams a reality by introducing an online buy-now-pay-later model of property acquisition.

Started in 2021, this e-commerce platform has made it easy for Ugandans to purchase commodities ranging from electronics to kitchen appliances to smartphones to furniture, car tyres to beauty products at their own pace and convenience.

“It is a fact that most Ugandans cannot afford to buy genuine commodities in one go. So, we introduced this digital lease-to-own platform where they can pay in installments and acquire the property of their dreams,” says Aaron Kasozi, the PayLater CEO.

Convenient 

Kasozi says that they have about 15 approved suppliers of genuine branded products. So, if someone wants a product, they just visit www.paylaterug.com  where all product categories are listed. 

The customer just needs to create an account, generate password and then apply for a product of their choice. Then the system picks customer details such as employment, how much they earn, next of kin, residential address, among others.

“Once the application is received, we have to vet the customer through the Know-Your-Customer system where they are asked for a copy of national ID, bank statement and other documented income sources and work ID. If a customer passes the credit rating process, then we can go to the next step,” he says.

Once vetting is done, the customer is contacted and written to formally to tell them whether they qualify for a product or not.

“If they qualify, we sign a contract with the client and we engage the supplier and the customer pays the initial deposit. We break down the value of the product into six equal installments to ensure that the client pays up within six months,” Kasozi says, noting that only digital payments are accepted through FlexiPay, Visa, Mastercard and mobile money. They don’t accept cash at all.

Kasozi further explains that they work within a 30% rating whereby if someone earns Shs 1m per month, they should only qualify for a product where they will need to make monthly remittances of Shs 300,000.

To reduce risks, Kasozi says they work hand-in-hand with the credit reference bureau but also mainly focus on people in employment where due diligence can easily be done. So far, more than 300 people have been able to own different products through this platform.

“It is very promising. We have had over 190,000 website hits and every month we get over 800 applications. Unfortunately, most of them do not qualify,” he said, before complimenting the 40Days40FinTechs initiative for extending a helping hand to startups that normally do not have the resources for marketing, customer education and awareness.

40-Days 40-FinTechs

PayLater is the 11th participant in Season Three of the #40Days40FinTechs initiative that seeks to shine a light on the unique stories about innovations that are enabling ever more people to join the digital economy space.

The initiative is run by HiPipo in partnership with the Level One Project, Mojaloop, ModusBox, and Crosslake Technologies with support from the Gates Foundation.

According to the HiPipo CEO Innocent Kawooya, initiatives such as PayLater are testament to the rising cases of adoption of online trading and other digital financial services.

“PayLater is a well-thought-out initiative because it touches the nerve of many young people. Many people are looking out for genuine products that they can acquire conveniently and PayLater provides just that,” Kawooya said.

He further called on digital innovators and FinTechs around East Africa to embrace 40 Days 40 FinTechs as Season three covers physical destinations in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda. The Observer

JUBA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan President, Salva Kiir on Wednesday launched the construction of 890 kilometers of road linking the capital, Juba to the northern city of Wau to boost economic growth in the East African country.

Kiir said during the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of Juba- Mundri-Yambio-Tambura- Wau in Juba that his government had resolved to invest in transport infrastructure, and enhance the seamless movement of cargo and skilled manpower in the world's youngest republic.

"As a landlocked country our access to regional markets depends on good roads and bridges, internally our access to production areas is another key area that will be served," Kiir remarked.

He clarified that construction of the road will be fully financed by the government through the sale of crude oil though the total cost and timeline for implementing the project were not disclosed.

Simon Mijok Mijak, South Sudan Minister of Roads and Bridges said the government was developing a cohesive policy and planning framework to transform road transport into a successful, sustainable, and effective way that will link the Africa Road network.

Some of the ongoing road construction projects include the Juba-Bor Road, Juba Terekeka-Rumbek-Wau Road, and Juba-Torit-Kapoeta-Nadapal road.

The country's economy is currently struggling to recover from high inflation caused by civil strife that erupted in December 2013 and took a toll on the oil sector. South Sudan depends on oil revenues to finance 95 percent of its fiscal budget. - Xinhua

Heads of State of the East African Community met at a high level meeting, which was hosted by President Uhuru Kenyatta

By NANGAYI GUYSON

Kampala, Uganda - The leaders of East African countries on Monday agreed to send regional troops to Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and demanded an immediate cessation of hostilities.

The declaration was made by the Kenyan President at the conclusion of a meeting of the seven East African Community (EAC) members on Monday in Nairobi, Kenya, focused on the security situation in this extremely uneasy region.

In a statement, he stated that the regional force should work with the DRC army and administrative authorities to try to stabilize and maintain peace in the country.

The Kenyan president said, "The heads of state asked for an urgent implementation of a cease-fire and for the cessation of hostilities to commence immediately.

Numerous armed organizations, the most of which are a result of two regional wars that took place a quarter century ago, blight the mineral-rich DRC's east.

Antagonism between the DRC and Rwanda has returned as a result of the recent uptick in tension in the east. Kinshasa accuses Rwanda of being to blame for the upsurge of the March 23 Movement (M23) rebellion, which is responsible for the deaths of at least 26 Congolese soldiers in an attack in January.

Kinshasa charges Kigali with aiding this primarily Tutsi uprising, which Kigali refutes.

The M23 was defeated in 2013, but returned to fighting in late 2021, accusing the Congolese government of breaking a deal to demobilize and rehabilitate its fighters.

The conference was attended by the presidents of Burundi, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania's ambassador to Nairobi in addition to Kenya's Uhuru Kenyatta and the Congo's Felix Tshisekedi and Rwanda's Paul Kagame.

During the summit, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni posted on Twitter, "Problems affecting the area like the crisis in Congo require a joint approach by all regional members of the East African Community."

The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels, who are charged with massacring tens of thousands of civilians in eastern Congo and launching raids in Uganda, are being fought by Congolese forces with the assistance of Museveni's troops.

The United States listed this group, which has Ugandan roots, as one of the "terrorist groups" connected to the Islamic State's jihadists last March.

Despite Kinshasa's indication that it would not accept Rwanda's participation, the Kenyan president called for the deployment of a regional army in the eastern DRC after the M23 took Bunagana, a border station between the DRC and Uganda, last week.

The DRC joined the EAC in 2022, and Rwanda is a member of it. The presence of Rwanda in the regional force was not immediately obvious, and neither the size nor the date of the force's launch were mentioned in the statement from the Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta.

The DRC-Uganda border post that the M23 seized on June 13 has since reopened, according to an announcement made on Monday.

Since the large influx of Rwandan Hutus suspected of massacring Tutsis during the 1994 genocide nearly 30 years ago in eastern DRC, relations between the DRC and Rwanda have been strained.

Thousands of families have been impacted by the turmoil and bloodshed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the humanitarian situation has gotten worse as a result.

People have suffered very terrible repercussions as a result of violent battles between groups: many have been killed, injured, or traumatized; villages and farmland have been torched; and there has been a significant amount of population relocation.

First Congo War

DRC has had always faces hostilities from its neighbors because of its rich minerals and a country Like Uganda is facing charges by UN for invading DR Congo.

the First Congo War (1996–1997), sometimes known as Africa's First World War, was a civil war and international military conflict that mostly erupted in Zaire (the modern Democratic Republic of Congo).

The dispute came to a head with a foreign invasion that installed rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila in Mobutu Sese Seko's stead.

Later, Kabila's shaky government ran afoul of his friends, paving the way for the Second Congo War, which lasted from 1998 to 2003.

Dr Congo which was then known Zaire was a failing state by 1996 after years of internal strife, a dictatorship, and economic decline.

The Rwandan genocide, which had crossed its boundaries, as well as persistent regional disputes and resentments unsolved since the Congo War had all contributed to the destabilization of the country's eastern regions.

Second Congo War

In February this year, the Democratic Republic of Congo was awarded $325 million by a U.N. court as compensation for harm done to people, property, and resources during Uganda's invasion of the DRC's Ituri region in the late 1990s, during the Second Congo War.

The EAC was established in 2000 with the purpose of facilitating international trade by removing tariffs among its member nations.

In 2010, it created a common market.