What did Museveni achieve in the US?
Uganda is such a small community and a small market, it is easy for somebody to make inroads here. Getting to be known is no big deal
By Mary Karooro Okurut
Uganda is such a small community and a small market, it is easy for somebody to make inroads here. Getting to be known is no big deal. We are only 22 or so million people on a small piece of land that is a tiny fraction.
In comparison, the US is a half a continent and has a whopping 300 million people across three or four time zones. You can have breakfast and begin work on one coast, while on the other coast some people are still making up their minds about when to wake up.
Huge place, huge population. They don’t care too much about who is visiting the White House, especially if it is an African leader.
Yet President Museveni has been able to capture the attention of one of the world’s largest markets, the United States. One of the largest in the sense that not only does it have a lot of people, but also has people with varying degrees by high purchasing power. This is unlike some Asian countries that have a lot of people, almost all of them paupers who reek of poverty from every pore and have to live on handouts.
It has been like weaving a fabric; putting the stitches together until finally recognition has dawned on America, that Uganda is a country whose leadership has a vision to transform itself from a beggar to a trading partner.
Last year, President Museveni concentrated on the goal, ‘Trade not aid’ for Uganda in particular, and Africa in general. Now on his most recent visit, the tone was slightly different.
He planned to make Uganda more visible in the American market so that its potential for investment, trade and tourism is recognised. While talking about tourism, Museveni was articulating not the attraction of wildlife, but also the people and their cultures.
Second was to open the American society to the fact that Africa is the major donor of the west, contrary to popular belief that the west is the biggest donor to Africa.
Gripped, the American audience listened attentively to this new philosophy. Museveni gave the example of coffee, explaining that we grow it here then export it raw. That leaves the various tasks of processing coffee in the hands of the west; with the result that Africans inadvertently end up creating jobs for the west. The tasks of de-husking, roasting and making into finer consumable coffee are all jobs given away — while we still cry about unemployment.
Third, he wanted to tell Americans that his vision of Uganda is to transform it from a pre-industrial to industrial status. He regretted that after 45 years of independence no country in Africa has been transformed from pre-industrial to industrial status.
Has the President achieved anything substantial from his American visits? Yes, he has.
First, he helped make Uganda more visible in the west, the place with the biggest economy. Investors do not venture into the unknown; so visibility of a country is a pre-requisite to attracting them. When the investment portfolio increases, economic growth and development are the result.
The President met several investors and discussed the possibility of marketing Ugandan coffee in the US, as well promoting the Uganda garment industry for the AGOA market.
Secondly, AGOA was pushed ahead. President Bush endorsed extending AGOA beyond the current 2004 expiration date. Possible AGOA expansions include simplifying and clarifying product and origin definitions currently subject to narrow and exclusionary interpretations by the customs service.
The new deal will encourage the provision of technical assistance to African and US businesses interested in trade and support African compliance with US phytosanitary standards for agriculture.
It will enhance textile and apparel benefits for least developed African countries by allowing some use of non-African, non-US fabric in duty-free apparel beyond the current 2004 cut-off date. It will also protect AGOA incentives for investment to promote a vertically integrated fibre, yarn, fabric and apparel industry in Africa.
The new arrangement will also create a “short supply†standard for yarn and fabric not produced in the US but which would be allowed duty-free access, if produced in Africa. This will exempt African textile and apparel production from economic impact criteria for the US Export-Import Bank and Overseas Private Investment Corporation support.
Finally it will address transportation cost and scheduling issues that affect the competitiveness of African goods in the US market.
Thirdly, Africa in general (not just Uganda in particular) stands to benefit from President Museveni’s interaction with President Bush. Uganda’s ability to turn around its AIDS epidemic — 5% of Ugandans now have AIDS compared with 15% a decade ago — served as inspiration for Mr. Bush’s AIDS bill.
Uganda’s success, the New York Times quoted White House officials as saying, persuaded him that money on AIDS in Africa could be well spent.
Consequently, on May 27, this year, President Bush signed into law, legislation that provides $15b over the next five years to fight AIDS in Africa and other countries.
America has also chosen to adopt the Ugandan model in the fight against HIV/AIDS — abstinence as the most important defence, as well as faithfulness in relationships and use of condoms.
The First Lady, Janet Museveni, has also been doing her lubimbi in promoting US-Uganda relations.
In May this year, she was in Washington D.C where she met USAID boss A. Natsios and Dr. Anne Patterson, head of USAID Global Health.
Mrs. Museveni highlighted the need for improved nutrition among grassroots women, seeking funding for manpower who could reach the women in the remotest corner of the country with a message of balanced diet, immunisation programmes and safe delivery methods. This yielded a commitment from the USAID boss to support her efforts.
On the second leg of her trip to raise funds for Migyera Vocational Institute, senators and congressmen sought her out to learn more about the now popular Uganda model of ABC that has turned round the AIDS epidemic in Uganda. They wanted to know how it could be replicated in other countries.
In Chicago, the First Lady featured in an interview on public radio where she told a wide listenership about the Uganda ABC model and her efforts to save orphans.
The icing on the cake is that on his last visit, President Museveni was accorded a special tribute and honour of being the first African leader to embrace and endorse AGOA.
He also received a special award in recognition of his efforts in promoting trade between Africa and the developed world, through accessing international markets under the AGOA arrangement and the fight against AIDS.
However, while acknowledging the anti-AIDS honours, President Museveni pointed out that it was not right though “for a man to be rewarded for treating his family. It’s my duty and my obligation to do so,†he said.
Uganda is such a small community and a small market, it is easy for somebody to make inroads here. Getting to be known is no big deal. We are only 22 or so million people on a small piece of land that is a tiny fraction.
In comparison, the US is a half a continent and has a whopping 300 million people across three or four time zones. You can have breakfast and begin work on one coast, while on the other coast some people are still making up their minds about when to wake up.
Huge place, huge population. They don’t care too much about who is visiting the White House, especially if it is an African leader.
Yet President Museveni has been able to capture the attention of one of the world’s largest markets, the United States. One of the largest in the sense that not only does it have a lot of people, but also has people with varying degrees by high purchasing power. This is unlike some Asian countries that have a lot of people, almost all of them paupers who reek of poverty from every pore and have to live on handouts.
It has been like weaving a fabric; putting the stitches together until finally recognition has dawned on America, that Uganda is a country whose leadership has a vision to transform itself from a beggar to a trading partner.
Last year, President Museveni concentrated on the goal, ‘Trade not aid’ for Uganda in particular, and Africa in general. Now on his most recent visit, the tone was slightly different.
He planned to make Uganda more visible in the American market so that its potential for investment, trade and tourism is recognised. While talking about tourism, Museveni was articulating not the attraction of wildlife, but also the people and their cultures.
Second was to open the American society to the fact that Africa is the major donor of the west, contrary to popular belief that the west is the biggest donor to Africa.
Gripped, the American audience listened attentively to this new philosophy. Museveni gave the example of coffee, explaining that we grow it here then export it raw. That leaves the various tasks of processing coffee in the hands of the west; with the result that Africans inadvertently end up creating jobs for the west. The tasks of de-husking, roasting and making into finer consumable coffee are all jobs given away — while we still cry about unemployment.
Third, he wanted to tell Americans that his vision of Uganda is to transform it from a pre-industrial to industrial status. He regretted that after 45 years of independence no country in Africa has been transformed from pre-industrial to industrial status.
Has the President achieved anything substantial from his American visits? Yes, he has.
First, he helped make Uganda more visible in the west, the place with the biggest economy. Investors do not venture into the unknown; so visibility of a country is a pre-requisite to attracting them. When the investment portfolio increases, economic growth and development are the result.
The President met several investors and discussed the possibility of marketing Ugandan coffee in the US, as well promoting the Uganda garment industry for the AGOA market.
Secondly, AGOA was pushed ahead. President Bush endorsed extending AGOA beyond the current 2004 expiration date. Possible AGOA expansions include simplifying and clarifying product and origin definitions currently subject to narrow and exclusionary interpretations by the customs service.
The new deal will encourage the provision of technical assistance to African and US businesses interested in trade and support African compliance with US phytosanitary standards for agriculture.
It will enhance textile and apparel benefits for least developed African countries by allowing some use of non-African, non-US fabric in duty-free apparel beyond the current 2004 cut-off date. It will also protect AGOA incentives for investment to promote a vertically integrated fibre, yarn, fabric and apparel industry in Africa.
The new arrangement will also create a “short supply†standard for yarn and fabric not produced in the US but which would be allowed duty-free access, if produced in Africa. This will exempt African textile and apparel production from economic impact criteria for the US Export-Import Bank and Overseas Private Investment Corporation support.
Finally it will address transportation cost and scheduling issues that affect the competitiveness of African goods in the US market.
Thirdly, Africa in general (not just Uganda in particular) stands to benefit from President Museveni’s interaction with President Bush. Uganda’s ability to turn around its AIDS epidemic — 5% of Ugandans now have AIDS compared with 15% a decade ago — served as inspiration for Mr. Bush’s AIDS bill.
Uganda’s success, the New York Times quoted White House officials as saying, persuaded him that money on AIDS in Africa could be well spent.
Consequently, on May 27, this year, President Bush signed into law, legislation that provides $15b over the next five years to fight AIDS in Africa and other countries.
America has also chosen to adopt the Ugandan model in the fight against HIV/AIDS — abstinence as the most important defence, as well as faithfulness in relationships and use of condoms.
The First Lady, Janet Museveni, has also been doing her lubimbi in promoting US-Uganda relations.
In May this year, she was in Washington D.C where she met USAID boss A. Natsios and Dr. Anne Patterson, head of USAID Global Health.
Mrs. Museveni highlighted the need for improved nutrition among grassroots women, seeking funding for manpower who could reach the women in the remotest corner of the country with a message of balanced diet, immunisation programmes and safe delivery methods. This yielded a commitment from the USAID boss to support her efforts.
On the second leg of her trip to raise funds for Migyera Vocational Institute, senators and congressmen sought her out to learn more about the now popular Uganda model of ABC that has turned round the AIDS epidemic in Uganda. They wanted to know how it could be replicated in other countries.
In Chicago, the First Lady featured in an interview on public radio where she told a wide listenership about the Uganda ABC model and her efforts to save orphans.
The icing on the cake is that on his last visit, President Museveni was accorded a special tribute and honour of being the first African leader to embrace and endorse AGOA.
He also received a special award in recognition of his efforts in promoting trade between Africa and the developed world, through accessing international markets under the AGOA arrangement and the fight against AIDS.
However, while acknowledging the anti-AIDS honours, President Museveni pointed out that it was not right though “for a man to be rewarded for treating his family. It’s my duty and my obligation to do so,†he said.