NAM delegates enjoy cultural gala after long day of meetings

It is not just meetings characterized by speeches, and working groups at the 19^th Non-Aligned Movement Summit being held at the Munyonyo Convention Centre.

The guests have time to wind down in the evenings. After all it is said too much work without play will make the NAM delegates very dull. 

NAM opened on 15 and ends on 20 January 2024, at the Munyonyo Commonwealth Resort. The theme of the NAM summit is: ‘Deepening Cooperation for Shared Global Affluence’.

At least 58 ministers from NAM member states are present at the summit. About 29 heads of states from the member countries will spend two to three nights in Uganda hotels as they attend the summit.

At the summit, some of the sessions are open to the media and broadcast live on TV while others are closed. However, the outcome of closed sessions is presented to the public through media briefings. 

At the end of the third day of long meetings on Wednesday 17^th November 2023 of the summit, delegates were transported to another shore of Lake Victoria to the Serena Hotel, Kigo for a cultural festival.

The Munyonyo Convention Centre is also located on the shores of Lake Victoria. Some critics of NAM have likened the summit to a ‘talking club, ‘Nyege Nyege festival’. This is not true. The whole day the conference is not dedicated to entertainment, drinking deer and merry-making. 

The state minister for foreign affairs, Okello Oryem said delegates undertake serious discussions which lead to practical action. The resolutions from the summit dubbed: ‘the Kampala Declaration’ are to be presented to the UN and member states of the UN for their action.

The issues will focus on global security, peace, actions against climate action, development, global access to finance for developing countries among others. 

“NAM is not like a club where people go to drink beer and talk without follow-up action. The summit is serious business,” Oryem told the media. 

During the cultural festival, many ministers from Uganda were present including Ruth Nankabirwa the minister for energy, Rukia Nakadama the second deputy prime minister, Musa Eweru, the state minister for works. 

The guests many dressed uniquely, and smartly were entertained by various cultural troops amidst tight security. They had a sumptuous meal, mouth-watering cuisine, washed down by various drinks of their choice. The guests had moments to dance and sway, swing their bodies to the drum beats and songs played through- out the evening.