Türkiye has become one of the most powerful partners for Uganda, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said on Monday.
In a message to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Museveni said Turkish-Ugandan relations have gained momentum in every field.
Museveni also congratulated Erdoğan and the Turkish people on the 99th anniversary of the republic.
At an event hosted by the Turkish Embassy in Uganda to mark the Oct. 29 Republic Day, Uganda's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Henry Okello Oryem said both countries enjoy diplomatic relations established over 50 years ago, as well as cooperation in military, education, economy, culture and technology fields.
"I wish to acknowledge the involvement of the government of Türkiye and its private sector in Uganda's development process.
"The two countries signed a bilateral trade agreement that has formalized the business traffic between the two countries. Other cooperation frameworks signed during President Erdoğan's visit to Uganda have facilitated the implementation of several joint projects in the field of education, agro-processing and value addition, infrastructural development, and ICT, among others," Oryem said.
"Uganda is a peace-loving country and cherishes an environment of stability, peace and security, for the country, the region and the entire world as a peaceful resolution of conflicts, and condemn all forms of terrorist attacks wherever they occur.
"We will never allow Uganda to be used as a base for terrorists nor to undermine the democracy and sovereignty of any other country," he stressed.
Turkish Ambassador to Uganda Fikret Kerem Alp stressed that Ankara has always attached importance to enhancing ties with the East African country.
Türkiye’s engagement with the African continent has been gaining pace over the years. Ankara has been stressing the desire to advance relations with the continent on the basis of a win-win relationship and equal partnership while observing mutual respect. Both sides have been vowing to tap into their greater potential when it comes to further expand and deepening relations.
To this effect, the number of Turkish Embassies in Africa has increased from just 12 in 2002 to 43 in 2021. Türkiye's trade with Africa totaled $5.4 billion (TL 80 billion) in 2003, which climbed to $25.3 billion by 2020 despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Türkiye's influence also covers the realm of defense, with Ankara inaugurating its first African military base in 2017 in Somalia.
The Turkish Embassy in Kampala and the Ugandan Embassy in Ankara were inaugurated in 2010. Relations between Türkiye and Uganda are developing steadily as a result of high-level visits between the two countries and the willingness of both countries to work together. Erdoğan visited Uganda on May 31-June 1, 2016. This visit was the first presidential visit to Uganda from Tuürkiye and served to bolster the ties between the two countries.
