Greenthos Capital partnered with CFA East Africa Society to host a webinar on managing inter-generational wealth, the Ugandan Context. The panelists were Gloria Kambedha, CEO & Founder and Alison Kwikiriza, Legal Consultant. This article is a short recap of the entire webinar. You can watch the recorded version of the webinar below:
During the Webinar, the speakers focused on:
- Greenthos Capital’s value proposition
- Estate planning: The Ugandan context.
- The legal landscape of succession planning in Uganda
- Trusts and trustees
OUR VALUE PROPOSITION
- Diverse skillset with professionals with tax, law and finance expertise
- Savings for customers: We help our customers save time and money that are associated with passion on intestate.
- Perpetual Succession: Our corporate structure means clients can be assured of service for time to come.
- Due to our corporate governance structure, we are able to offer neutrality, confidentiality & professionalism in the way we deal with our clients’ affairs.
ESTATE PLANNING: THE UGANDAN CONTEXT
Uganda is an entrepreneurial country. Sole proprietorships account for 94% of businesses and only 17% of indigenous businesses have been operating for at least 2 decades or more (UBOS report). The implication for this is that when business owners pass on, the value that they have built over the years vanishes with them. The commonest way Ugandans do estate planning is through administration by the administrator general. However, Ugandans are getting more knowledgeable about managing their affairs through wills and trusts. The cultural set up including norms and traditional beliefs implies that trusts may be more relevant for estate planning. The challenges with Will administration also makes trusts a reliable estate planning vehicle.
THE LEGAL LANDSCAPE
Succession Planning regulatory framework in Uganda is premised on the following laws
- The Constitution of the Republic of Uganda.
- Statutes – Succession Act Cap 162, Trustees Act Cap 164, Limitation Act Cap 80
- Case Law
- Common Law & Doctrines of Equity
- Customary Law
TRUST & TRUSTEES
A trust is a fiduciary relationship in which one party, known as a trustor, gives another party, the trustee, the right to hold title to property or assets for the benefit of a third party, the beneficiary. There are two types of trusts: Testamentary trusts and living trusts. Testamentary trusts are created by a will while living trusts are created in the lifetime of the trustor by a trust deed and can either be revocable or irrevocable. To create a trust, the trustor needs to consider the trust property, trustees, and beneficiaries of the trust.
Duties of a trustee
Greenthos is a corporate trustee. The duties of a trustee include the following:
- Fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of another person or entity.
- Investment, administration, and distribution
This article is not exhaustive, to dig deeper into this conversation, watch the recording of the webinar on our Youtube Channel. You can also subscribe and hit the notification button to know when content goes up there. We have an active blog where our experts write about estate planning. Visit our news and resources section to learn more.
