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Trade state minister Gen Wilson Mbadi has settled into his new role after taking office on Thursday.

His predecessor, Harriet Ntabazi, handed over the office to the former Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) — along with some handy advice.

“I want to thank you for accepting this job. It is a task that needs commitment, time, consciousness on everything, and then research," she said.

Mbadi, 61, served as army commander for a little under three years — from June 2021 until March this year when he was appointed minister by President Yoweri Museveni in a Cabinet reshuffle.

The ministerial reforms were announced last month on March 21.

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While witnessing the swearing-in of Mbadi and other newly appointed ministers at State House Entebbe six days after their appointment, Museveni tasked them with fighting corruption and mobilizing masses on wealth creation.

The other new ministers who took the oath at State House were Lilian Aber (state for relief, disaster preparedness and refugees), Dr Kenneth Omona (state for northern Uganda), Florence Wamala Nambozo (state for Karamoja affairs), Phiona Nyamutoro (state for minerals) and Balaam Barugahara (state for youth and children).

Meanwhile, during Thursday's handover at the trade ministry's headquarters in Kampala, Mbadi received a warm welcome from the ministry staff.

Permanent secretary Geraldine Ssali also thanked his predecessor Ntabazi "for her enormous contribution to the ministry".

"We also gladly welcome the new minister, Gen. Wilson Mbasu Mbadi," she posted on social media platform X.

Ssali was keen to point out to the ministry's mandate: to formulate, review and support policies, strategies and programmes that promote trade, sustainable industrialization, technology transfer so as to generate wealth for poverty eradication.

She said all these can be achieved by working with other ministries, government agencies and development partners.