KAMPALA — In a defiant and forward-looking State of the Nation Address delivered yesterday, Uganda President Yoweri Museveni stressed that no foreign entity has the power to intimidate Uganda.
“Uganda’s economy and society are moving forward, the mistakes by some actors notwithstanding,” Museveni stated.
“The foreigners interfering in our internal affairs are not a threat at all. There is no foreigner who can threaten us…nobody can threaten us.”
In his address, Museveni also called upon the East African Community to strengthen unity by fully adopting the Common Market Protocol and Customs Union Protocols.
This, he argued, would consolidate East Africa’s fragmented markets into a single, unified market. He further announced a directive halting the export of raw minerals, aiming to encourage local processing and value addition.
Highlighting Uganda’s economic achievements, Museveni pointed out that the country has attained lower middle-income status with a per capita income of USD 1182.
“We have just entered the ground floor of the middle income. Just the first floor…we are down there now,” he noted.
Speaker of Parliament Annet Anita Among echoed the President’s sentiments, stating that the State of the Nation Address was a moment to reflect on the country’s past achievements, inherent challenges, and the government’s legislative agenda for the upcoming session.
She emphasized Parliament’s commitment to realizing Uganda’s Vision, urging MPs not to be discouraged by the “noise and actions of detractors and enemies of Uganda’s progress.”
“We are aware that the call to leadership sometimes comes with the risk of being misunderstood, criticized, opposed, accused, sanctioned, or even rejected. But we owe it to our society to stand firm,” Among said.
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