Summary:

• A team of foreign relations experts from the Uganda Council on Foreign Relations has outlined key priorities for President Museveni during the upcoming NAM and G77 summits, emphasizing the need to champion African causes, address global issues, and counter Western interference.

A team of foreign relations experts affiliated with the Uganda Council on Foreign Relations (UCFR) has outlined key priorities that President Yoweri Museveni should advocate for during the upcoming NAM and G77 summits. Uganda is set to host these summits early next year, and the UCFR urges the President to leverage the platform to champion equal opportunities, shared values, and respect for the sovereignty of African nations.

The experts emphasize the significance of this opportunity in fostering global peace and stability, drawing parallels with former leaders such as the late Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and the late Col Muammar Gadaffi of Libya, who consistently advocated for African causes on the international stage.

The proposed agenda for the summits seeks to transcend criticisms directed at Uganda from the Western world, particularly the United States, following the enactment of the Anti-Homosexuality Act. Sanctions were imposed as a condition for the repeal of the legislation.

During a meeting held on December 15, 2023, at Fairway Hotel in Kampala, key figures such as National Planning Authority Chairperson Pamela Mbabazi, Ambassador Francis Katana, Executive Director of the Uganda Council on Foreign Relations, Ambassador Philip Odida, and the Acting Director of Regional/International Partnerships from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, discussed these crucial matters.

Dr. Jerome Kansiime, an international relations expert, stressed the need for Uganda, during its three-year NAM chairmanship, to take a stand against imperialism and the interference of Western powers in the affairs of developing nations. Participants in the discussion highlighted instances where Western powers use economic measures to exert influence, citing examples like the tensions between China and the US, NATO and Russia.

David Mafabi, the Senior Presidential Advisor on Special Duties, criticized the West for imposing cultural values under the guise of aid, pointing to the recent cancellation of the African Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA) agreement by the US.

The experts noted that these discussions were a continuation of a dialogue held on November 14, 2023, with the Nordic Africa Institute, focusing on deepened cooperation for shared affluence and prospects for Uganda’s upcoming chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement.

The upcoming NAM Summit, scheduled for January 15-20, 2024, at Speke Resort Munyonyo Convention Centre in Kampala, provides a crucial opportunity for President Museveni to address key issues, including aligning Uganda and Africa’s foreign-policy interests with those of NAM and G-77+China members, guiding the strategic foreign policy direction of 120 NAM members, and leading the pursuit of shared multilateral needs and interests globally. Uganda will assume the chairmanship of NAM for three years (2024–2027) and G-77+China for one year (2024-2025).