Uganda, Nigeria discuss trade, bilateral relations

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Uganda’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Nelson Ocheger, has held a meeting with the Nigerian Minister of Foreign affairs Yusuf Maitama Tuggar to discuss trade between the two countries.

The meeting took place at the Minister’s office in Abuja.

The two leaders hailed the cordial bilateral relations that exist between Uganda and Nigeria, dating back to pre-Independence years.

They underscored the need to scale up this relationship by increasing interactions in business, trade, investment, tourism and knowledge sharing.

Ambassador Ocheger reiterated the government commitment to increasing interactions with Nigeria by creating an enabling environment for the private sector to do business.

Uganda Airlines commenced direct flights between Entebbe and Lagos, and will soon add Abuja to the route.

The High Commissioner said having direct flights is addressing some of the bottlenecks to doing business between the two countries.

The Minister and the High Commissioner also discussed the progress made to conclude the process of reviewing bilateral agreements between the two countries in different sectors such as Energy, Oil and Gas, Defense and Security Cooperation, Education and others.

The High Commissioner said Uganda was ready to host the Joint Permanent Commission (JPC) meetings in Kampala during which various bilateral agreements and MoUs will be signed.

To facilitate the participation of the private sector, the 4th Uganda/Nigeria Trade and Business Forum be held alongside the JPC.

The Minister said Nigeria was ready to share her decades-old experience in the Oil and Gas industry with Uganda.

He also underscored the need to leverage the developments in the air transport sector and other continental frameworks like the AfCFTA to promote meaningful engagements that enable the private sectors in both countries to thrive. Other areas of cooperation discussed include agro-processing, education and security.