Uganda's Museveni, France's Macron to Push Trade, Investment Collaboration
6Uganda President Yoweri Museveni on October 25, 2021 met the French Minister for External Trade and Investment Franck Riester who delivered a message from President Emmanuel Macron.
President Museveni welcomed President Emmanuel Macron of France decision to send a trade and investment delegation to Uganda, describing it as the correct way of boosting their bilateral cooperation.
The President on 25th October received and held a meeting with the French Minister delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness Mr. Franck Riester who led a delegation comprising of 12 small, medium and large-scale enterprises which have expressed their interest in investing in trade, investment, construction, ICT and health sectors in Uganda.
"I am pleased that President Macron has sent an investment delegation to Uganda. This is the correct way to go. Uganda has land, natural resources and labour. We have got capital but not too much. From Europe we need capital and entrepreneurship. Uganda has about 5,000 industries in operation. We are aiming at prosperity for our nation and prosperity means having income, jobs, producing goods and services," he said.
President Museveni said this also involves the marketing of goods and services and that if the European companies come and produce goods and services they would have access to a market of 41 million in Uganda alone.
"There is also a market of 200 million in East Arica and 1.4 billion people in the African continent," he said. The President assured the French Foreign Trade Minister and his delegation that Uganda was endowed with the AGOA market in the United States of America where we call sell 6,500 products tax-free including the European market and the tax free market in China for a wide range of products.
Museveni said while we have all these lucrative markets, the target is to create jobs for Ugandans and creating a middle class where people would have purchasing power.
He was pleased to note that the two countries have got several sectors where they can work together in the production of goods and services including in agro-processing, infrastructure, solar and hydro- electric power production.
The French Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic attractiveness Mr. Franck Riester expressed his sympathy to President Museveni and Ugandans at large over the recent bomb attack in Komamboga, Kampala and said his country was ready to work with Uganda in eliminating terrorism.
He expressed their interest in building capacity with Ugandan enterprises and work towards the export of goods and services.
Minister Franck Riester said that President Macron is interested in investment collaboration with Uganda and noted, that their oil company, Total was committed to be a socio-economic partner in its oil industry.
"It is very important and good to note that the people affected by the oil project in Uganda were being taken care of by both the Uganda Government and Total," he said.
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