Uganda, Iran Sign Four MOUs to Deepen Ties
Uganda has signed four Memoranda of Understanding with Iran following talks between President Museveni and his Iranian counterpart, Ebrahim Raisi .
President Raisi on Wednesday started a two-day visit to Uganda that saw him hold talks with his Ugandan counterpart.
The talks culminated into the signing of four MoUs in areas of visa waivers , agriculture cooperation, establishment of a joint permanent commission and general cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Uganda.
The respective ministers from both countries signed the MoUs.
Rare visit
The visit by the Iranian president to Uganda is a rare and first one in more than a decade.
The last Iranian president to visit Uganda was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who visited in 2010.
The latest visit by Raisi has been said as one meant to deepen ties but also forge new alliances by Iran, especially among African countries in an effort to reduce his country’s isolation, especially by the West.
In all this, Uganda seems to have a special place for the Iranian president since he is to spend two days in the East African country.
Raisi is on a three-day visit to Africa.
Previously, Uganda and Iran have enjoyed cordial relations.
While speaking at State House in Entebbe on Wednesday, President Museveni expressed Uganda’s readiness to continue with the cooperation and the good relations that have existed since the Islamic revolution.
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“We are always ready to cooperate with Iran and the best area of cooperation is trade. We can do a lot of trade together because Iran has got experiences that we don’t have. There are so other many areas of complementarity,” Museveni said.
Museveni also hailed Iran’s anti-imperialism position.
President Raisi hailed the ties between Uganda and Iran that date back many years.
Raisi said Iran attaches a big importance on the relations with Uganda that he said will continue to blossom.
He mentioned the setting up of the Iran House of Innovation and Technology in Uganda to construct technical and vocational training institutions that will aid in exchange of educational experiences, training and consultancy.
Raisi has become the third Iranian president to visit Uganda after Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 1996 and 2010 as the country continues to bolster economic and trade ties.
