Speech

By

H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni

Chairman NRM and President of the Republic of Uganda

Theme: GEO-POLITICS, REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND

NATIONAL INTERESTS

15th March, 2016

Kyankwanzi

Principle number two of the NRM is Pan-Africanism. Like all

the other three principles of the NRM, Pan-Africanism is for the
benefit of the Ugandan people as well as our brothers and
sisters in Africa. Pan-Africanism, in particular, addresses two
needs of our people, first and foremost. These are: prosperity
of our people in a modern context and strategic security
against all potential imperialists.

Prosperity, in a modern context revolves around the production

of goods and services in order to earn incomes, create jobs for
our people and expand the tax base.

In order to expand production, demand is very decisive. The

more buyers that buy what you produce, the more prosperous
your business and the whole country will become. When
somebody buys what you produce, he is supporting your
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prosperity your income, jobs for your people and he is helping

you to expand your tax base so that you support the welfare of
your people better (schools, health services, infrastructure,
pensions, etc).

Colonialism fragmented the African market. Prior to

colonialism, there was a market of this area stretching all the
way from Zanzibar to the River Congo at Nyangwe and up to
Juba (Gondokoro). It was not a common market because some
of the chiefs were quite extortionist. Others like Rumanyika of
Karagwe were very benevolent and were assistive to the traders.
The market, therefore, was not common but it was a market.

Colonialism, however, totally fragmented this market. Congo

went to the Belgians as did Rwanda and Burundi. South
Sudan went to the Arabs. We only remained with Kenya,
Tanganyika and Zanzibar. Since Independence, we have been
re-assembling the market. Under COMESA, I am happy to
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report, the old East African market is not only re-assembled

but it is now a Common Market (no taxes in it or reducing
them) and also expanded. The members of COMESA are:
Burundi, Comoros, DR Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea,
Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius,
Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia and
Zimbabwe.

These countries have got a combined population of 470 million

of people. This is a good destination for our goods and
services. It is already saving some industries that could not
survive and grow without this market. I can give two examples:
Maize and milk. By 1986, we were producing only 200,000
tonnes of maize per annum. We are now producing 4 million
tonnes of maize per annum but only consuming 1 million. The
surplus 3 million tonnes are absorbed by the EAC and
COMESA. The same story with milk. By 1986, we were
producing only 200 million litres of milk per annum. We are
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now producing 2 billion litres of milk per annum but Uganda

only consumes 800 million litres per annum. Where does the
rest go? It is absorbed by COMESA, by the EAC and the rest of
the world. Otherwise, we would, by now, have suffered from
over production of these products and the prices would have
collapsed. This market is now being expanded to include SADC
(Southern Africa) under the Tripartite arrangement involving
EAC, COMESA and SADC. This will have a combined
population of about 632 million people and a GDP of US$ 1.3
trillion.

The pulling of our markets does not only provide us with a

bigger market for our goods and services. It also enables us to
better negotiate for market access to other foreign markets e.g.
USA, EU, China, India, Japan, Russia, the Gulf, etc. This is
where the future of our prosperity lies. I normally tell you of
the Runyankore proverb that applies to this case. It says: Ija
turye kumwe, biri aine eki akurebireho The one who invites
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you for a meal expects something in return. The foreign

countries will allow us to access their markets sustainably
because they see that we have our own big market to offer
them in return. Our own big market, enables us to negotiate
for other big markets. Therefore, regional and continental
integration is necessary for our Prosperity.

Apart from Prosperity, regional integration, especially for the

EAC, is crucial because of our strategic security and survival
as a free people. During the school debate in which I
participated with the other presidential candidates on the 13th
of February, 2016, I pointed out how the Americans are
aiming at what they call four dimensional superiority whereby
they will be superior on land, in the air (air-force), at sea (the
navy) and in space (satellites and rockets). The question is:
How do we guard ourselves against such hegemonism? Can
Uganda, alone, even if we become a First World country by
2050, guard herself against such hegemonism? In the second
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World War, some of the developed countries such as France,

Holland, Belgium, Denmark or Norway were the first victims of
German aggression. Apart from economic integration, we,
therefore, need to have political integration wherever possible.
Political integration is possible where the populations are either
similar, linked or compatible. Where there is incompatibility,
political integration should not be attempted. We believe and
know that the East African Federation is possible and it would
create a centre of gravity for the Black race. Who is the
guarantor of the freedom of the Black race currently? I cannot
see anybody today. That is why Africa is being tossed around
by some actors. EAC, in its present state, is about the size of
India in land area with a population of 160 million people.
This is a good nucleus for a very powerful, in global terms,
African State that would be the centre of gravity of the African
peoples destiny as free peoples.

The conflicts that went on in Uganda, Congo-Kinshasha, South

Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi etc., although not planned, ended up
getting rid of the quisling of foreign interests and creating
conditions for Afro-centred thinking in these countries in
addition to the original EAC states of Tanzania and Kenya. It is
a great opportunity for the African people to have this
phenomenon.
Therefore, the geo-politics of this area revolves around the
three elements: prosperity for our people, strategic security for
our people and enhanced international credibility for the
African peoples. There are, however, some diversionary issues
being pushed by people that need more information. You hear
of the problems of landlocked countries or the problem of the
Nile River waters. These are non-issues. The Coastal States
benefit as much as the hinterland States by operating efficient
Ports. Goods that come through the Ports create wealth for the
coastal States as much as they are the wealth of the hinterland
States. The threat to the Nile waters is lack of electricity in the
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Tropics and lack of industrialization. It is the lack of these two

phenomena that causes the populations in the Tropics to cut
forests for fire wood and invade forests and wetlands looking for
more agricultural land to under-utilize using primitive
agriculture. Electrification and industrialization in the Tropics
would enhance the waters of the Nile rather than diminish that
precious resource. In any case, the 85 billion cubic metres of
the Nile water per annum is nothing to speak about compared
to the 3000 billion Cubic metres of water of the Congo River. If
this area is saved from the fatricidal conflicts in the Sudan and
the Congo, the peoples of this area could have a rational
discussion about the future of our dear continent including the
optimal use of these natural and human resources. Human
resources are, sometimes, more important than natural
resources. The big population of Egypt (88.8 million) and
Ethiopia (101 million) is very beneficial for the whole of Africa
as consumers and producers, including being producers of the
products of the intellect (engineering, manufacturing, etc.).
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There is alot of potential complementarity between the products

of a developed Tropics and North Africa (food, textiles, leather,
forest products, steel, electrical equipment, engineering
products, etc.), on the one hand and products of the intellect
on the other hand.
Some of the most prosperous countries in the world, do not
have natural resources China, Japan, South Korea, etc. The
human resource is itself a great resource (as consumers and
producers). Africa is lucky to have both the human and the
natural resources. Let us know how to use them optimally.

I thank you.

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15th March, 2016

Kyankwanzi

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