Brother's paean to a special relationship

China and Uganda have long made common cause, foreign minister says

Sam Kutesa has had plenty to do with China since becoming Uganda's minister of foreign affairs nine years ago, but even before then the lawyer-turned-politician had an intimate knowledge of the country, having visited it many times.

Kutesa is now back in Beijing to strengthen ties and improve economic relations between his country and China.

The countries' friendship is a long one, Kutesa tells China Daily at the Ugandan embassy. It dates back to 1962, when they established diplomatic relations on Oct 18, barely nine days after Uganda gained independence from Britain. In fact, the People's Daily published an editorial that very day commenting on the significance of the event, which made Uganda one of the earliest countries to form diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.

This has helped forge a "special relationship" between China and Uganda, Kutesa says.

"We experienced the common struggle for freedom together."

The close friendship would play an important role nine years later when China took its seat on the United Nations Security Council. The country's late leader, Mao Zedong, famously said: "It is our African brothers that have carried us in their arms back to the UN."

Uganda was one of the countries that did part of that carrying, with a "yes" vote at the decisive session of the UN General Assembly in October 1971.

Kutesa was a joint president of the UN Security Council in July, 2009, and will become president of the 69th General Assembly in September.

Most of the African politicians he has met have are very well disposed toward China, he says, because it has always insisted on speaking up for developing countries, and Africa in particular.

When Kutesa uses the term common struggle, he applies it to areas that are not necessarily political.

"The common struggle against poverty is also what binds China and Uganda together," he says.

Uganda has faced many economic difficulties over the years, even after independence, but after political stability was restored in 1985 the economy started to look up. Nevertheless, its GDP per capita in 2012 was $547.

Whenever Kutesa comes to Beijing, he detects change, he says. Change is also taking place in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, albeit more slowly, and he hopes the country's economy can grow much more rapidly.

Landlocked Uganda relies heavily on agriculture, which accounted for 24.2 percent of GDP in 2012, and employs about 80 percent of the workforce. The country has long labored under the burden of a significant trade deficit, largely due to underdeveloped manufacturing and other industries. In January its trade deficit reached $288.3 million, the Bank of Uganda says.

That brings us back to the reason for Kutesa's visit to China: his country's efforts to improve ties with major economies and promote Uganda's exports.

"We need to cover the trade deficit," he says. While his country is doing it tough economically, it is not devoid of significant assets. It can boast of its acclaimed Bugisu coffee and its bananas, although both need a push to become more competitive globally.

Uganda also exercises sovereignty over 45 percent of Lake Victoria, the second-largest freshwater lake in the world, which is rich in fish. After coffee, fish and fish products are the country's second-biggest export.

Kutesa stresses the importance of working closely with China, the world's leading manufacturer, whose economic structure complements that of Uganda, he says. While most Ugandans are thoroughly familiar with the label "made in China" few Chinese would ever have come across anything made in Uganda, although the latter's environmentally friendly products are becoming popular among well-to-do Chinese.

China and Uganda signed an agreement in 2010 under which 95 percent of its exports to China became duty free from July 1, 2012. Even before that fillip went into force, trade was growing, with a 40.6 percent increase recorded in 2011.

Another key to Uganda's economic growth is encouraging investment. As with the more resource-rich African countries, Uganda is not short of global investors, and as early as the 1990s foreign investment in the country was worth $4.85 billion.

Since then investment conditions have steadily improved, and several global ratings organizations have ranked it higher than other East African countries in terms of the ease of investing there. Doing Business 2014, issued by the World Bank, says Uganda is one of the countries that has made the most significant progress in improving the investment climate.

China is a latecomer to investing in Uganda, but Kutesa, with many of his compatriots, welcomes the interest.

There is a fundamental difference between Chinese and Western investors, he says. "China utilizes the resources it derives in local construction, which benefits both countries, while Westerners are long accustomed to digging them out and shipping them away."

Unlike Western multinational companies whose philosophy is "Produce in Africa and enjoy in Europe and America", Chinese companies often plow their profits into local infrastructure construction, he says.

China's Ministry of Commerce says Chinese corporations have been involved in projects including upgrading the Vurra-Oraba and Gulu-Atiak highways, and in January work began on building an expressway to connect Kampala and Entebbe International Airport. The road, a little more than 37 kilometers long and costing $476 million, is expected to reduce the trip from Kampala to the airport from 90 minutes to 30. Chinese companies are also building two hydroelectric power stations, Karuma and Isimba.

These projects have improved the lives of Ugandans, including creating jobs.

Kutesa says it is common for Chinese construction companies in the country to employ engineers and executives from China but to employ locals in other work so that they share the fruits of development.

Conflict between Africans and foreign investors, common in the continent, has thus been a rarity for Chinese companies in Uganda, Kutesa says.

"We are open to the world and we hope those who come can make it mutually beneficial," Kutesa says. China and its companies are particularly welcome in Uganda because they appreciate the importance of friendship, he says.

That is essentially why he disdains Western powers' habit of accusing China of engaging in neo-colonialism, he says.

"It is ridiculous that these former colonial powers describe China as colonialists," he says, laughing.

He opposes the practice of certain Western powers of preaching their values to the developing world and compelling African countries to accept their modes of development, he says.

"Every nation should be left to choose its own path of development We believe there should be African solutions to African problems."

That is particularly important for countries that regained their freedom from colonial powers, he says.

Sometimes disputes with the West are strange, he says, citing opposition among Western politicians to laws recently passed in Uganda relating to homosexuality. Ugandans had never dreamed that something relating to their customs would be problematic, let alone affect their relations with the West, he says.

Lake Victoria affords Uganda scenery that is beautiful and unique, Kutesa says, and the country wants to do more to draw on tourism to bolster the economy.

As part of that push, it has signed agreements with Rwanda and Kenya, making travel between the countries easier.

At least one thing that Chinese and Ugandans have in common is that they are very friendly, Kutesa says.

Ugandans are said to be the most hospitable people in Africa, he laughs, adding that this is the same as the Chinese, who always treat visitors warmly.

His feelings for China match his feelings for its food, he says.

"I'm not sure which is my favorite dish, but I like them all."

zhangzhouxiang@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 03/21/2014 page32)