The Minister for East African Community (EAC) Affairs Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga has launched the Roadmap to the 14th East African Business Forum and Expo at Mestil Hotel, Kampala.
According to Kadaga who also doubles as the First Deputy Prime Minister, the Expo will bring together Procurement Agencies, Entrepreneurs, Academicians, policymakers and corporate Institutions in the region.
“As the Minister in charge of EAC Affairs, I am excited to be a part of this event, which supports our ministry’s mandate to promote regional integration and cooperation,” Hon Kadaga said.
The expo due to take place in Uganda on 23-26th March 2023 at Kololo Ceremonial Grounds will include Business meetings, Conferences, Innovation, Networking, generate sales leads and building of valuable relationships.
“The intra-EAC trade, accounting for imports and exports in the 7 EAC Partner States, stands at just over $10.17 billion by September 2022, representing a 20% share of intra-trade to global trade,” Kadaga said.
She revealed that Uganda exports over $4 Billion to members of EA, making the EAC Partner States Uganda’s largest trading partners.
Kadaga reiterated government’s commitment towards recognizing the importance of regional integration and trade, promoting policies and initiatives that will help strengthen economic ties between our countries further.
The Forum will provide an opportunity for suppliers, manufacturers and service providers to generate sales and form partnerships.
“This event is significant because it will bring together business leaders, entrepreneurs, and policymakers from across the region to share ideas, build relationships, and explore new opportunities for growth and development,” she said.
Dr. Aloysious Byaruhanga, the Senior Manager Performance Monitoring at Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (PPDA) stated that the forum was first convened in Kampala in 2008 and since then, participants from East African countries have come together to discuss on merging issues.
According to Byaruhanga, the objective of the annual forum is to increase interaction and knowledge sharing between different actors in Public Procurement in the Region.
“The annual forum is important for advancing the agenda of integration of the East African Community,” Byaruhanga said.