By Kampala Post Reporter
The talks to end the diplomatic row between Uganda and Rwanda is underway at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kigali.
The Ugandan team is headed by Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kutesa while that of Rwanda is led by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Olivier Nduhungirehe. Among others on the Ugandan delegation is Internal Affairs Minister Gen. Jeje Odongo. Also in attendance are delegations from Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The talks follow a pact signed by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Paul Kagame of Rwanda last month in Luanda, Angola, to ease the tensions between the two countries. The signing of the pact was witnessed by the host, Angola President João Lourenço, and DR Congo’s Félix Tshisekedi.
“The MOU provided for the establishment of an Ad Hoc Commission for the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding. A meeting for the Ad Hoc Commission will be held in Kigali, Rwanda on Monday 16th September 2019,” Uganda government spokesperson Ofwondo Opondo said in a press statement last week.
The talks are expected to lead to the opening of the Katuna border which has been closed since February this year, jeopardizing trade flow between the two nations. According to Bank of Uganda, between March and July 2018, Uganda exported Shs323 billion worth of goods to Rwanda (that is formal trade). This dropped to only Shs23 billion in March and July 2019, the period the border between the two countries has been closed.