PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has disclosed that the current soaring oil and food prices were predicted by former Cuban President Fidel Castro, 10 years ago.
The President who completed a two-day State visit to India yesterday told Indian businessmen: “Castro who is always castigated by the West predicted this phenomenon 10 years ago. He told me that if Western consumerism of the few is not addressed, what will happen if the Chinese join the group? And it has happened.”
A statement from State House said Museveni, accompanied by his wife Janet and scores of ministers, travelled to India for the first-ever Afro-India summit.
The President said the phenomenon was linked to the movement of large populations who are living an affluent life previously enjoyed by a few in Europe and North America.
Food riots have broken out in several African countries, Indonesia, the Philippines and Haiti. Thirty-seven countries face food crises, the UN Food and Agriculture organisation (FAO) said in its latest World Food Situation report.
On Friday, FAO chief Jacques Diouf predicted food riots in developing countries will spread unless world leaders take major steps to reduce prices for the poor. He said despite a forecast 2.6% hike in global cereal output this year, record prices were unlikely to fall, forcing poorer countries’ food import bills up 56% and hungry people to the streets.
Besides the food crisis, there has been an unprecedented rise in the global oil prices, sparking off panic.
“Millions of Chinese and Indians drive cars, hence the demand for oil. Where are the international think tanks if they are serious?” asked Museveni.
Museveni explained that new entrants have strained the available oil and food resources. “When I hear some people telling us that we should create a green belt, I just doze because I do not want to listen to non-serious issues. We have created this green belt in Uganda. Our researchers have produced high yield seeds. What we need is to set up processing industries and put the food on the market,” he remarked.
Museveni told the businessmen in different meetings that his government did not want to set up parastatals because experience had shown that they are inefficient, while private companies do better.
The President met people who want to invest in agro-processing and energy.
Ravi Jaipuria, whose company is involved in milk processing, told the President that his company wants to set up a modern farm.
If this is implemented, he said, the farm will offer training services to the farmers. He said with increasing production of milk, the company wants to give milk to schools at low prices.
He noted that some unscrupulous milk sellers in Kampala mix water and other items in the milk, which he said is a health hazard.
