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Empowering local people key to development: Ugandan President

— Photo: Special Arrangement

Ashwani Kumar, Minister of State (Industry), with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni at the Commonwealth Business Forum in Kampala on Wednesday.

KAMPALA: Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni opened a three-day Commonwealth business forum here on Tuesday with promotion of intra trade and international trade high on the agenda.

The forum that attracted over 1,000 business executives from 30 of the 53 member states is to be followed by two other forums, the Youth Forum and People’s Forum, ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) starting on Friday.

Mr. Museveni said empowering the local population is key to development in Commonwealth societies, citing China and India which used their massive population to develop amidst key challenges in world trade.

He said Africa and other Commonwealth societies can tap the existing markets as well as intra-trade to spur development.

Regarding the unfavourable world trade, Mr. Museveni said the Commonwealth countries can jointly lobby at the World Trade Organisation negotiations.

Don McKinnon, Secretary General of the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat said while many countries preach free trade, they do not practise it.

“Many countries think globally at the WTO but act domestically when they are at home,” he said. — Xinhua

Dr. Ashwani Kumar, Minister of State (Industry), leading a business delegation from India to the forum, used the occasion for meetings with the heads of governments of Uganda and Rwanda. Dr. Kumar met Mr. Museveni and President Paul Kagame of Rwanda. He reiterated India’s desire to reinforce its special and historic relationship with countries in the African continent.

Mr. Museveni told Dr. Kumar that he was looking forward to his visit to India next year and that he hoped to have extensive discussions with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, visiting Kampala from Thursday for the CHOGM meeting.

In a conversation with Mr. Kagame, Dr. Kumar expressed deep appreciation for the President’s leadership in restoring political and economic stability to Rwanda after years of violence. He told both leaders that India looked forward to increasing its economic engagement with East Africa.

Dr. Kumar also exchanged views with the Foreign Minister of Nigeria who expressed deep appreciation for the leadership of Dr. Manmohan Singh and recalled his recent visit to Nigeria.

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