Peter Nyanzi
10 June 2005
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has welcomed a new aid initiative being spearheaded by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, saying his government would cooperate in ensuring that it achieves its objectives.
A statement from State House yesterday said Museveni made the remarks while meeting two British Members of Parliament, Mr Andrew Mitchell of the Conservative Party and shadow Secretary of State for International Development, and Lord Ashcroff, a member of the House of Lords at Parliamentary Buildings on Wednesday.
Museveni said the planned increase in aid should be geared at improving competitiveness of the economies of African countries.
"Aid especially for post conflict economies like Uganda, should primarily enable lower costs of business for the country. For this to happen, aid should be used to improve physical infrastructure such as railways, roads, electricity and piped water," he said.
Museveni said efficient physical infrastructure would make it cheaper for investors to do business in the country and compete favourably in the international market.
Assurance
Museveni assured the MPs that he would champion the return to multi-party politics during the upcoming referendum, saying a return to multi-party politics would ensure cohesion among the Movement supporters and allow the minority that was opposed to the Movement to organise separately.
Mitchell said the British government respected the planned referendum and hoped it would maintain stability.
Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair who is currently on a visit to the US ahead of the G8 meeting next month, on Wednesday said there was a "real and common desire" among G8 nations to help Africa.
"We are trying to create a framework in which we deal with issues in Africa on the basis of a partnership with the African leadership that's prepared to embrace the same values of democracy and freedom that we embrace," he told reporters at a White House briefing.
Blair said more resources should be given to Africa to deal with trade issues, diseases such as HIV/Aids, and regional peacekeeping efforts.
But he added, "It is not a something-for-nothing deal. We also need to make sure that there is a commitment on the part of the African leadership to proper governance and to action against corruption."
US President George Bush has announced $674 million in additional funds to respond to humanitarian emergencies in Africa.
The US provided $1.4 billion in 2005 for humanitarian needs in Africa, mostly through the United Nations and nongovernmental organizations.
Bush and Blair announced plans to eliminate 100 percent of the African debt burden but only for countries prepared to make a commitment on governance, against corruption, democracy and the rule of law.
"African nations that are prepared to make that commitment are going to get help. What we're not going to do is waste our country's money," Bush said.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2005 The Monitor. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
