2012 critical for Uganda, UK

 

This year is set to be a significant year for both the UK and Uganda.  The UK will host the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, whilst we will stand with Uganda to celebrate the 50th

 

Anniversary of independence in October.  

 

The eyes of the world will be on London during July and August 2012; watching the greatest athletes of a generation performing their amazing sporting feats. 

 

Uganda will play its part.  But there is more to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games than sport; the Games will attract 14,700 athletes, 20,000 journalists, 4.6 million more visitors and will be worth around £21b to the UK economy. The games will represent a once in a generation opportunity to showcase the best of Britain to the world. 

 

The UK continues to be one of the best places in the world to do business.  According to the World Bank, it takes just 13 days to set up a business in the UK, compared to the world average of 35 days. It ranks the UK seventh in the world for ease of doing business. 

 

According to Transparency International, the UK is one of the most transparent countries in the World. In 2010, the UK retained over $1 trillion of Foreign Direct Investment Stock.  

 

The World Wide Web was developed by a Briton in Switzerland. Almost every mobile phone in the world (95%) has a piece of UK technology; the ARM microchip.  The UK remains one of the world’s leading manufacturing nations.

 

The UK government is committed to growing its trade and investment links around the world. In Uganda, the UK is the largest cumulative investor: between 1998 and 2010 over £1b has been invested. We want to retain this position and increase British investment flows to Uganda. 

 

We are pleased that British firms are playing leading roles in Uganda’s financial sector and helping Uganda to extract and refine its oil reserve.

 

We also want to increase our bilateral trade, from its strong base of £150m in 2010. We believe firmly that trade is not just important in its own right for the prosperity of our countries, but for strengthening our relationship further. 

 

This relationship goes beyond business. The UK is committed to a dynamic and mutually beneficial relationship with Uganda, based on shared history, enduring friendship and vital political, commercial and cultural interests. 

 

We are committed to Uganda’s development and are the second biggest national provider of development assistance. We plan to provide £390m from 2011-2015. We want to see this funding help Uganda move towards a prosperous stable democracy with increased economic growth, where the most vulnerable people are able to get the opportunities they need. We respect the progress that Uganda has made so far and look forward to Uganda consolidating progress on democratic space, governance and accountability, as well as economic growth. 

 

Our strong relationship was demonstrated earlier this year when both countries took leading roles at the London Conference on Somalia; we hope this will be a turning point in Somalia’s history.

 

The conference agreed to inject new momentum into the political process, to help Somalia to develop its own security forces through AMISOM and to help build stability at a local level. We committed an additional $15m to the UN Trust Fund for AMISOM on top of the $6m that we contributed in 2011.   

 

Uganda’s contribution to this conference and to stabilising Somalia through AMISOM is invaluable. As a result, we will redouble our efforts to support the people of Somalia and those in the region in their search for a better future for their country.   

 

2012 is a year when together we should seize the opportunity to make our relationship stronger; increase our bilateral trade and investment, open new markets promote development and sustain progress on democratic values. I look forward to working with Uganda to achieve this goal.