President Yoweri Museveni has led his government officials to sign an MoU with Vietnam to establish partnerships in the areas of education, agriculture, Information Communication Technology and Foreign Affairs .
Gen. Jeje Odongo the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uganda and his Vietnamese counterpart Bui Thanh Son signed on behalf of their respective governments . Under this agreement Ugandan officials who hold diplomatic and official passports will not be required to get visas before travelling to Vietnam .
Earlier the Ministry of ICT Dr. Chris Baryomunsi and his counterpart -the Vietnam Minister of Information and Communication , Nguyen Mahn Hung signed a Memorandum of Understanding on information and communications. Other MoUs signed included that of Education and Agriculture which was signed by Mr. Frank Tumwebaze.
President Museveni with Ugandan Business leaders
Following the bilateral talks- President Museveni assured his hosts that Uganda and Africa was moving forward despite some challenges and was happy to note that increased cooperation between the two countries in the areas of , agriculture, ICT , education and health, will help to build capacity of the citizens for social -economic development .
Museveni called upon the Vietnam leadership to boost trade between Uganda with a market of 43 million people, East African market of 300 million and the African market of 1.3 billion people.
President Museveni invited the Vietnamese President Nguyen Suan Phuc to visit Uganda when the country hosts the Non-Aligned Movement summit which will be held next year. The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major super power bloc.
“I’m confident that Uganda will achieve more in its five-year plans of 2020/2021 to 2024 /2025 and realizing Uganda’s vision 2040 towards transforming Ugandan society from peasant to a modern and prosperous country,” President Phúc said.
“This is truly an important foundation for political trust and cooperation for shared development between the two countries. The traditional bond of friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Uganda has witnessed very positive growth of late especially in the political, economic, trade and investment domains,” he added .
President Nguyễn informed the Ugandan delegation that Vietnam continues to spread its cooperation with African friends including Uganda in the lead up to the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between countries next year.
President Museveni paid tribute to the late Vietnamese Revolutionary leader and President Ho Chi Minh who died in 1969.
He laid a wreath at his mausoleum located in the center of Ba Dinh Square near the presidential palace which serves as the resting place of the former leader Ho Chi Minh whose embalmed body lies in state, protected by a military honour guard watching over him.
Ba Dinh Square is where the late Ho Chi Minh read the declaration of independence on September, 2 1945, establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
Today, President Museveni visited the FPT Corporation – Vietnam’s leading IT firm, and the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences. He officiated at the opening of the Vietnam-Uganda Business Forum and Trade Exhibition, where Ugandan business leaders including the Equity Group Managing Director and CEO , Dr. James Mwangi made presentations .
Among the Ugandan dignitaries accompanying the president include Finance Minister Matia Kasaija, Harriet Ntabazi for trade, Uganda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Adonia Ayebare and Betty Bigombe, the Ambassador (designate) to Asian Pacific countries.
The visit, the first by a head of State between Vietnam and Uganda, is regarded as an important milestone in the bilateral ties of the two sister countries .
