Today, we got the opportunity to see and listen to Mr.
Patrick Bitature. He is now a very wealthy entrepreneur who grew up in Uganda
and is looking to move forward not only his business but also the progress of
the country itself. Mr. Bitature felt that one of the main keys to success was
not only creating temporary success but enabling long-term success through the
support of education, improvements/changes within ourselves and using small successes
to build upon one another to reach goals that you have set for yourself. This will
allow you as a person to establish roots, which like a tree, will enable you to
have continued growth. All of these concepts that Mr. Bitature mentioned to
help improve ourselves, can also help whole countries improve. By treating
business in the right way, job growth, and helping others, he felt that any
country, specifically Uganda, can be moved forward. It will enable countries
and people to help not only their selves but others as well. Mr. Bitature said
that a country is “only measured by how we look after the weakest in our
society.” This meeting was held on the site of his Protea Hotel in Kampala,
Uganda. We also had the pleasure of visiting one of his work sites in order to
see a project he is working on and his vision for the future. It was an honor
to be able to spend this time with Mr. Bitature and learn from all of the
experiences and advice that he shared.
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Mr. Bitature has been a wonderful partner for the program over the years. Do you think that an someone starting out today has an easier or more difficult path compared to him? What changes in the Ugandan Economy and culture support your thoughts?
ReplyDeleteHow was he able to gain his start and become wealthy? What makes him different from the others?
ReplyDeleteDr. Root - I think individuals starting out today have it harder because there are so many other necessity entrepreneurs trying to start out as well. From our experience at the small markets so far - it seems that each store owner has a very similar product offering, making it difficult for them to differentiate their shops to gain a competitive advantage. In my opinion, the greatest opportunity in Uganda currently is for opportunity entrepreneurship - those individuals who can see a need in Uganda and capitalize upon it.
ReplyDeleteTalking with Patrick I also learned that he has invested in education for women because when they succeed, so does their entire village. He has built dorms and schools as well as partnering with CURE International to build a specialized children's neurosurgery hospital in Mbale. Through his efforts, he is helping thousands of people around the country by creating jobs, providing services, and educational opportunities.
ReplyDeleteListening to somebody as successful as Mr. Bitature was a very unique opportunity. I found it especially interesting that most of the advice he gave, particularly for success, was very ordinary and common place. He stressed hard work and perseverance, but gave no secret formula. Coming from a man like this is very telling- it shows that people can rise up from nothing and create something that helps thousands of people every single day. This is very inspiring for the next generation of Ugandan entrepreneurs.
ReplyDeleteDr. Root - I would say that it may be just a bit harder to start out in the same way that he did. I think that because many of the needs in the community are being looked into and maybe even met on a large or small scale it would be hard to find the one area to start and then expand to create the empire that he has.Now, you can go down the street and find so many different stands selling sugar cane and other produce which created Mr. Bitature's start in business. However, as Carly, Taylor, and Graham has mentioned he has gone on to become so much more than a business man. He has many projects that help communities everyday.
ReplyDeleteboblink - He started out bringing sugarcane in from other countries and distributing it through out his community. He did this because he saw a lack of it in his community and thought that he would be able to fill it. He now has business ventures in the property, energy, and many other sectors. As for what makes him different, well I feel that my classmates have mentioned some of the many ways.
ReplyDelete