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Wednesday, 14 November 2012

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President's new Africa policy

President Mahinda Rajpaksa should be saluted and appreciated for pursuing a policy of extending economic co-operation to the continent of Africa. This policy for which he deserves commendation and praise reflects on the foresight of President Rajapaksa and has never been pursued by any of any of his predecessors in previous governments. It should be noted that President Yoweri Museveni is the first Ugandan Leader to visit Sri Lanka in the last thirty five years.

Presently, Africa has been globally recognized as the most lucrative and attractive investment destination as each corner of the continent enters a new era of structured economic development leaving behind memories of bad leadership and civil strife.

Uganda and Sri Lanka share a lot of common recent political experience as both countries have successfully resolved civil wars and conflicts in their Northern regions and embarked on a defined roadmap of social and economic transformation.

Both President Mahinda Rajapaksa and President Yoweri Museveni have restored peace in the countries under their leadership and charted avenues of reconciliation and nation building.

Mr Kananathan the Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka for Uganda who is a close ally to both Ugandan and Sri Lankan governments indicated. It is way back in the 2007 when President Mahinda Rajapaksa came to Uganda to attend the Commonwealth Summit commended the vision and the leadership of President Museveni and informed that he should be invited to Sri Lanka to share the experience.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa welcoming Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni at the Presidential Secretariat. First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa and Ugandan First Lady Janet Kataha are also in the picture. Picture by Sudath Silva

He said, in Uganda where I have lived for almost the past three decades, President Museveni has successfully championed the journey of economic integration under the auspices of the East African Community. He attributed that President Mahinda Rajapaksa and President Yoweri Musevni has a lot in Common most importantly the Boldness of the decision making for the interest of the people. President Museveni has provided leadership and extended his government's resources towards achieving peace in the Great Lakes Region of Africa. In this endeavour, political conflicts were resolved in the region and a democracy established.

Presently peace, political order and democratic government are being restored in Somalia, the Horn of Africa, largely contributed to by a peacekeeping military force from Uganda. Mr Kananathan said President Museveni is one of the most respected leaders in the African Continent and considered as a Peace Maker of the region and a Blue - Eyed boy of the West.

Uganda itself, is rapidly undergoing social and economic transformation under the visionary leadership of President Museveni. Sri-Lankan investors are already well established in the Republic of Uganda and have already made a firm impression especially in the development of the energy sector.

The government should encourage the Sri Lankan business community to take advantage of the favourable economic environment in Uganda to invest in the energy sector and agro-processing industries, in particular because Sri-Lanka enjoys a comparative advantage in these areas.

Uganda has been attracting a lot of support from the European Union, China, Japan and the U.S. Encouraged by these positive developments, donor countries have become less reticent about attaching conditions to aid and trade with Uganda, as a means of encouraging good governance and democracy.

Uganda is now developing a strategy that will allow itself to convert its gains into long-term economic stability and sustainable growth.

Sources said, Kananathan, a prominent businessman in Uganda was instrumental in arranging this historic visit of the Ugandan Leader and soliciting the support from Uganda to Sri Lanka in the past in the international forum.

Rajapaksa's government should extend a hand of friendship and invites to the leaders of other African countries which would benefit immensely from an economic partnership with the government.


Why Africa is important to the rest of world?

Africa's post-colonial history has been a history of integration into the European economy and its markets. If Africa matters to Europe, it matters to the globalised world. Environmentally, Africa matters to the world because it has the greatest capacity for maintaining equilibrium in the biosphere and avoiding further depletion of the ozone layer.

Africa offers easy market access to Europe as well as to the U.S. and China, and can in some cases extend extraordinary investment opportunities with high rates of return.

Africa's historical links and its geography provide European investors with a comparative advantage over North America and Asia, including China. The political climate in the continent is gradually changing towards democracy, respect for the rule of law and the protection of human rights.

Africa has an abundance of natural resources. The continent ranks as the world's No 1 in its reserves of bauxite, chromites, cobalt, diamonds and gold. It is rich in palladium, phosphates, platinum group metals, titanium minerals, vanadium and zircon. African production accounts for 80 percent of the world's platinum group metals, 55 percent of chromites, 49 percent of palladium, 45 percent of vanadium and up to 55 percent of gold and diamonds.

Cooperation with China. The Chinese have signalled their readiness for a dialogue with the African Union on matters of mutual interest. Europe in particular should get involved in such a dialogue, putting forward proposals for Chinese participation in European initiatives.

The African continent should be considered as having a great future, economically and politically. Africa now has become a strategic international force, pioneering coherent and inclusive development plans for the world.

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