Officials from the two countries pose for a photo at Foreign Affairs headquarters in Kampala on Sunday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has reassured Somalia of “its unwavering support towards building of its institutions, especially the Somali Security Forces, to ensure that the progress and gains so far made are consolidated.”
Permanent Secretary, Vincent Bagiire Waiswa, made the reassurance Sunday during the Uganda-Somalia Joint Permanent Mission in Kampala.
“Our continued quest for peace in the region is manifest in our commitment to remain active in the newly formed African Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) that has now transitioned from AMISOM,” Bagiire said.
According to Bagiire, Uganda and Somalia enjoy a special bond of friendship emboldened by, among others, the commitment to maintain peace and stability in the region and the African continent as a whole; promotion of continental economic integration and the doctrine of African solutions to African problems.
As you are aware, Bagiire said, Uganda was the first country to voluntarily commit Troops to the pacification of Somalia and still remains the largest Troop Contributing Country to AMISOM.
In the last six years, the two countries have signed the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) – in August 2019 and a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (UNCC&I) and the Somali Chamber of Commerce and Industry on April 1, 2022.
While these achievements are applauded, Bagiire says that Article 5(2) of the Framework Agreement calls for the operationalization of the Joint Permanent Commission (JPC) and establishment of the Joint Permanent Investment and Business Council (JPIBC).
“Our gathering here today, therefore, is a concrete step towards the implementation of the afore-mentioned provisions of the agreement and a true testimony of the strong commitment by both countries to deepen their bilateral relations,” Bagiire said.
During the JPC, the two countries are expected to conclude three Memoranda of Understanding in the areas of diplomatic and political consultations; defence and trade.
Bagiire says that there is a lot of existing trade and investment activity taking place between Uganda and Somalia.
This, he says, is in addition to the people- to -people informal interactions that are ongoing at various social setups.
