The senior presidential advisor on diaspora affairs, Abbey Walusimbi has revealed that the Uganda Europe Convention will be launched on Thursday, November, 9 at the office of the President Conference Hall in Kampala.
The convention is aimed at bringing together all stakeholders, including high-profile government officials, European embassies in Uganda, public and private sector players, to officially flag off and make an inception of the Uganda Europe Convention.
According to Amb. Walusimbi, the matchmaking event forms part of President Museveni's call for wealth and job creation in the four sectors of commercial agriculture, factories, services and the information communication and technology.
He said that in line with the president's message for mobilizing quality and sustainable investment and enhancing trade between Uganda and Europe, the convention is expected to realise the objectives of labour externalization by pushing boundaries of the industry and opening new labour markets for safe labour migration, diversifying the economy through innovations , strategic partnerships, growing the tourism sector, creating new employment opportunities for returnees and those back home, among others.
"Because the president has made it a focal point of his administration to increase the volume and value of our exports to Europe, especially traditional agricultural products, the Uganda Europe Convention will attract prominent industrialists to locate production facilities in Uganda, in a bid to add value to our products,"Ambassador Walusimbi said.
He affirmed that the convention is the next big thing in Uganda's journey to become a premier global tourism, investment and innovation hub, with very unique capacity for fresh ideas, untamed creativity and boundless energy.
"Uganda being an island of security and economic stability in the Great Lakes Region, with business incentives and duty-free quota-free exports to the European Union, potential investors should grab the low hanging fruits of new investment opportunities."
He emphasized that if the Ugandan diaspora community is empowered with business and entrepreneurial skills, it helps them start businesses, hence creating employment opportunities for those back home.
"Our people in the diaspora should take the wealth creation issue seriously. They ought to acquire modern skills that are transferrable, in order to create employment for themselves and for others."
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Amb.Walusimbi adds that the Uganda Europe Convention will be an avenue to call upon the Ugandan diaspora community, to foster value addition in the whole spectrum of Ugandan raw materials.
He also assured that government through the Office of the President in charge of Diaspora Affairs will fully participate in this effort, in a bid to bridge gaps, lift barricades, create opportunities, and enhance living and working conditions of the diaspora community.
On the other side, the founder of the Uganda Europe Convention, Paul Juuko Kingsley, noted that the main objective is to connect Ugandans in Europe and those back home, with a focus on bringing together all stakeholders for the improvement of the lives of Ugandans, on both sides of the continental divide.
The Uganda Europe Convention is a social network of Ugandans living on the European continent and those living in Uganda.
The event which aims to bring together all stakeholders for the improvement of the lives of Ugandans on both sides of the continental divide will run under the theme: "Enhancing Entrepreneurship and Innovation."
