Minister Odongo Meets European Union Envoy

Uganda’s foreign affairs minister Gen Jeje Odongo met with the Head of Delegation of the European Union (EU) to Uganda Attilio Pacifici to “discuss matters of regional and international interest for the mutual benefit of both parties”, the ministry said in a Wednesday statement.

The European Union and the East African nation have been cooperating in wide-ranging areas of development since the commencement of diplomatic relations in 1975.

For instance, according to Uganda Coffee Development Authority, Europe is the main destination for Uganda’s coffee, taking a 61% import share as per June export figures.

The Union is also Uganda’s biggest trading partner outside of Africa.

In 2018, Uganda recorded a positive trade balance with the EU, exporting goods worth $560 million to the EU market while importing goods worth $530m from the EU.

Uganda exports on average $60.7million out of the $100bn of EU’s annual average imports, Amelia Kyambadde, Uganda’s former trade minister, said last year.

Uganda’s major imports from the EU are machinery, transport equipment, chemical and related products, miscellaneous manufactured articles and manufactured products.

Through the European Development Fund, the Union, by the end of 2020, had pumped 558 million euros into supporting sustainable development, good governance and the inclusive green economy.

On average, the EU commits 140 million euros annually to development cooperation, according to Trademarkea.com.

“If you consider not only direct EU funding but also our member states, 11 of which are present here locally, we are Uganda’s biggest development partner,” reads the website.

“In 2017 alone, we provided more than 900 million euros (Shs3.7 trillion) of development cooperation aid and humanitarian assistance to Uganda.”

Globally, the EU is a major source of FDI accounting for 30% of global inflows, according to figures compiled from 2010 to 2018.

EU companies mainly from Dutch, French, German, Italian, Danish, Belgian and Swedish are already actively investing in Uganda in the various sectors of the economy.

The sectors in question include; energy, services (tourism, construction, professional transport and logistics, manufacturing, food processing, metal and basic manufacturing.