Afro-Indian Investment Summit: President Museveni applauds the Indian Community’s investment in Uganda, woos more.
Drake Nyamugabwa
The Afro-Indian Investment Summit 2022 that is held at Speke Resort Munyonyo from 17th -18th November 2022, is a centennial celebration of various investments of the Indian community in Uganda themed “Investing in Uganda for inclusive prosperity” showcasing Uganda’s investment opportunities, create business networks & linkages and identify new investment opportunities.
While addressing the guests His Excellence @KagutaMuseveni welcomed the investors and expressed his gratitude to the Indian community for their investments in Uganda.
The President who was the Chief Guest after inspecting stalls that have been set up at the event to showcase Indian investments and different projects in Uganda said that Uganda government has negotiated various markets in different destinations which he said will avail markets for the produced goods in Uganda.
"We have also negotiated markets of the USA, EU and China. So, producing here will enable you to access those markets” he said
The President narrated that after the arrival of Indians in Uganda, they were welcomed as business people up to the village levels until they had challenges with the former governments.
“When Indians came, we the wealth creators welcomed them and starting from my Village Ntungamo where there were 4 Indian families who were shop keepers” he said
While giving reason why he advocated for the return, the president said, “Properties of Indians were returned because of 3 major reasons; It's Immoral to own a property that wasn't yours (ekisirani), Not strategic (why should you take someone's property), Totally unnecessary"
The Secretary General of Indian Business Forum Uganda, Mohammed Reddy, called upon the Indian community to invest in Uganda and tap the opportunities that exist and those expected to come from the oil and as sector.
“We want to invite all potential investors to come and explore Uganda since it has a lot of resources now that even the gas and oil sector is growing on a high pace” he said
While sharing experience with the attendees of the Afro-Indian Investment Summit, Dr Sudhir Ruparelia as one of the big investors of Indian origin have invested into a wide range of sections in Uganda yielding lots of success and lessons.
In his remarks, the Board Chairman Uganda Investment Authority, Rwakakamba Morrison in above picture, mentioned the ICT as one of the fertile areas of investment in initiatives like cyber school technology and mobile apps among others adding that Uganda’s ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area has removed barriers to inter and intra Africa trade which he said makes a perfect launch pad into the wider African market.
“Our ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area, which removes barriers to inter and intra Africa trade makes us a perfect launch pad into the wider African market whose population is 1.3 billion and expected to stretch to 2bn people by 2050” he said
He enumerated bankable return figures of investing in Uganda, particularly in the agriculture, mining and ICT sectors adding that the stable political and economic environment is enabling investing in Uganda attractive, profitable and provides significant benefits.
