Jinja to host Mayor of Wuhan for business forum

Oct 13, 2016

The twinning programme was initiated by the Ugandan Embassy in Beijing under the Great River Basins initiative that promotes cooperation among cities that lie along major rivers.

Wang Yong, the Mayor of Wuhan, the capital of China's Hubei Province will next week lead a delegation of Chinese officials to Uganda for a business forum in Jinja Municipality.

The forum scheduled to take place on October 19 seeks to explore opportunities for investment cooperation between Jinja and Wuhan which signed a twinning pact two weeks ago.

Jinja Municipality Mayor, Majid Batambuze and Yong signed a memorandum in September to promote city-to city development cooperation and exchanges.

As part of the agreement, Jinja and Wuhan will share experience in the fields of trade, investment, tourism, education, technology, culture and sports.

Leaders and departments of the two municipalities will share experience, maintain regular contact and discuss issues of mutual interest, according to the terms of the agreement.

The twinning programme was initiated by the Ugandan Embassy in Beijing under the Great River Basins initiative that promotes cooperation among cities that lie along major rivers.

 

Wuhan lies along the middle reach of the Yangtze River, the third longest in the world and cradle of Chinese civilization. It is also a thriving economic powerbase of central China.

Its position as a major transport hub has given rise to a large number of enterprises in the areas of infrastructure, energy and mineral resources, mechanized equipment, ICTs and agriculture.

Jinja, which sits along the northern shores of Lake Victoria and next to the source of the White Nile, is one of Uganda's industrial bases and home to thriving tourist attractions.

Some of the major industries in Jinja include Kakira Sugar Works, Nile Breweries, BIDCO palm oil factory and Kiira EV Project, the first car manufacturing facility in Uganda.

Under the twinning program, Jinja could benefit from the diverse experience in industry and services sectors in Hubei, including optoelectronics, photovoltaics, electric power and hospitality.

By the end of 2015, Hubei had more than 620 enterprises and institutions investing overseas, with total investment of $6b in over 70 countries and regions all over the world.

China has been encouraging home-grown enterprises to go global and establish international links, including with Africa under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

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