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Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said MTN Uganda needs to sell shares on the local stock exchange to facilitate domestic ownership of the company and ensure more of the money it earns stays in the country. Joining CNBC Africa to discuss this MTN listing is Oscar Emasu, Research Analyst for Equity &#038; Fixed Income at Crested Capital.

Ugandan President wants MTN to list on local exchange

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A new artery has opened up in the heart of East African trade connecting the Ugandan capital Kampala with the port of Mombasa in Kenya. It comes in the shape of a 525 metre bridge across the Nile that was opened officially by Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni. Business leaders in Kampala say it will transform trade in East Africa.

Uganda opens fifth-longest bridge in Africa to ease trade in East Africa

Ugandan singer turned politician , known as Bobi Wine, is at the centre of a storm in the East African nation. Ssentamu has been <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-45282125">arrested and charged with treason</a> in a civilian court – shortly after a military court dropped a charge of illegal possession of firearms and released him from custody. The 36-year-old uses his politically charged songs to call for change in the country that President Yoweri Museveni has led for more than three decades. The Conversation Africa asked Jimmy Spire Ssentongo to try and make sense of what’s happening.
How would you describe the public reaction to the political crisis in Uganda?
The public reaction is mostly a mixture of anger and shock. It’s true that Museveni isn’t known to be soft on his opponents or perceived threats. Nevertheless many Ugandans didn’t expect him to stoop this low. Given Bobi Wine’s growing popularity, most people indeed expected the state to act. After all, it <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-11524243">routinely meted out retribution</a> against key opposition figure Dr Kiiza Besigye.
But it was nevertheless shocking that the state would reach the point of laughably <a href="https://allafrica.com/stories/201808170002.html">parading arms as evidence</a> against Bobi Wine for treason.
The sense of shock can also be read in the loud silence of most government officials. Just a handful are offering to be part of the collective responsibility for the international embarrassment. It has been left to the president to offer <a href="http://www.africanews.com/2018/08/23/i-don-t-have-the-power-to-free-bobi-wine-museveni-tells-ugandans//">explanations</a> on social media where he’s been more active than ever before.
The public anger needs no elaboration. It can be seen, it can be heard, it can be sensed in various expressions on social media, on the streets, in places of worship and on radio, TV, buses, taxis and in homes. It’s also clear that the state is aware of the potential for a violent public reaction to the brutality and poorly staged justification for blatant political persecution. In anticipation, there’s been a <a href="http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Army-police-deploy-ahead-Bobi-Wine-trial/688334-4724104-ayis36z/index.html">heavy deployment of police and soldiers</a>.
Since the passing of the <a href="https://ulii.org/ug/legislation/act/2015/1-6">Public Order Management Act (2013)</a>, demonstrators are treated as criminals. But in the heat of the current anger, this has not stopped people from defiantly using the limited space available.
Much of the anger has been channelled through social media. One simply needs to check the comments on the President’s <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PresidentYoweriKagutaMuseveni/">Facebook posts</a> to get a sense of the bitterness and public fury.
How serious a political challenge does Bobi Wine pose to Museveni?
This is best answered by understanding what Bobi Wine represents.
There’s a tendency to focus simplistically on Bobi Wine in terms of his moral, academic, and other experiential credentials. But this fails to place him contextually within Uganda’s political landscape.
Museveni is still popular among some section of Ugandans, who argue that in spite of his failings, he is still better than most of his seven predecessors. A lurking fear of “going back to the past” still plays in his favour. He has some achievements to show too.
But this narrative holds no sway with the younger generation, many of whom were born after 1986, the year Museveni became president.
Before entering formal politics, Bobi Wine enjoyed significant clout in the music industry. He entered the political arena through a defiant ghetto card with a relatively consistent background of politically critical music. Last year he stood for parliament, arriving on the political scene with a bang that surprised many. His <a href="https://allafrica.com/stories/201707140194.html">catch phrase</a> was:
<blockquote>Since parliament has failed to come to the ghetto, then we shall bring the ghetto to parliament.</blockquote>
The state’s panicky mistake was to react to his popular entry by openly persecuting him – initially through <a href="http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Bobi-Wine-music-shows-Police-Mukono-/688334-4144840-14drbe5z/index.html">banning his music shows</a>. Museveni showed early on that he’d noticed the young man had a following, by writing direct responses to him in the newspapers.
Then there was the ruckus in parliament over a vote to remove the age restriction on the presidency. Bobi Wine was among those who fought hard to stop it.
What seemed to draw Museveni’s attention even more was that candidates supported by Bobi Wine started to <a href="https://www.nation.co.ke/news/africa/Why-Bobi-Wine-is-a-pain-to-Museveni-and-Besigye/1066-4720342-format-xhtml-h6nat9z/index.html">beat those backed by Museveni</a> hands down.
Gradually Bobi Wine began to build a more conspicuous political identity around a very catchy slogan <a href="https://www.facebook.com/peoplepoweru/">“people power, our power”</a>, unmistakably dressing in red attire plus berets, emulating Julius Malema’s militant Economic Freedom Fighters party in South Africa.
It became clear that Bobi Wine was winning the hearts of youths as well as some earlier sceptics.
Given the widespread public desperation in Uganda, all many people want is a person who shows the potential of removing Museveni. All else is secondary.
In this sense Bobi Wine poses a real threat to Museveni, more so in consideration that young Ugandans, <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.UEM.1524.ZS">many of whom are unemployed</a>, constitute a huge percentage of the active electorate.
Museveni has confronted numerous challenges and won hands down. How do you see this challenge playing out?
It is not clear how this might end. It largely depends on whether the state remains adamant, and which other players join Bobi’s cause.
The “Free Bobi Wine” agitation is developing into a movement that could easily take on a broader form.
It is also expected that Bobi Wine’s stature would have been greatly boosted by his imprisonment. The state has contributed immensely to his political weight and appeal while at the same time proving itself a political villain and international laughing stock. He will no doubt be reading the public mood.
Nevertheless, I don’t expect that the state is going to relent. Museveni is not known to countenance any threat. We are yet to see more of this roughness as we get closer to the 2021 elections, where there is strong reason to believe that Bobi Wine might stand.
What are the prospects for a more open democracy in Uganda?
Most institutions that would count in a democratic dispensation – parliament, the judiciary and an electoral system – exist in Uganda. But the country continues to show more signs of a hybrid state slanted towards presidentialism. Much of the real power to bring about change rests in the hands of the person who may not want to see it happen.
There is therefore every reason to believe that an open democracy is highly unlikely under Museveni, except certain elements of it that don’t threaten his hold on power.<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/102138/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jimmy-spire-ssentongo-323333">Jimmy Spire Ssentongo</a>, Jimmy Spire Ssentongo is an Associate Dean (Research and Publication), School of Postgraduate Studies and Research at Uganda Martyrs University, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/uganda-martyrs-university-2670">Uganda Martyrs University</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/uganda-who-is-bobi-wine-and-why-is-he-creating-such-a-fuss-102138">original article</a>.

Who is Bobi Wine and why is he at the centre of a storm in Uganda?

KAMPALA, May 18 (Reuters) &#8211; Uganda has invited bids from private investors to develop and operate a new 95km highway between its capital Kampala and a town in the country’s east to ease congestion on the ageing existing road.
The estimated $1 billion project is part of the so-called northern corridor, a crucial East African transport artery that connects Kenya’s coast to a vast hinterland including Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan and eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
In the tender documents published on Friday, state-run Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) said the private developer will be “expected to design, build, finance, operate &#8230; and transfer the project back to government at the conclusion of the operational period.
In recent years the government of President Yoweri Museveni has been pumping huge amounts of money into roads, energy and other infrastructure projects, mostly financed by China, to boost the economy.
The country’s first expressway, built at a cost of $500 million, is due to be opened next month between the capital and its sole international airport, Entebbe.
The 95km toll road, packaged as a public-private partnership, will connect Kampala and Jinja, an industrial town in the country’s east, also famous as the source of River Nile. One section of the motorway will have eight lanes, another six lanes and a third will have four lanes.
The European Union, the French Development Agency and the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) have said they could offer funding for the project in a mix of credit and grants.
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Reporting by Elias Biryabarema Editing by David Goodman
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Uganda is spending $1bn to build 95km highway, this is why

By <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kealeboga-j-maphunye-171061">Kealeboga J Maphunye</a>, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-africa-1951">University of South Africa</a>
Some African countries have recorded democratic victories in the past 12 months. Ethiopia has a <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-ethiopias-new-leader-could-be-a-game-changer-94424">new leader</a> whose ascent holds great promise for change, despite the country’s <a href="https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/article/ethiopia-100-election">problematic 2015 election</a>. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/30/liberia-george-weah-salary-change-constitution-racism">Liberia</a> and <a href="https://www.news24.com/Africa/News/sierra-leones-new-leader-bio-starts-work-as-president-20180405">Sierra Leone</a> have new leaders.
But elsewhere on the continent, leaders continue to disregard their countries’ own constitutions and laws governing presidential tenure. The Democratic Republic of Congo’s Joseph Kabila has been in power <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/07/joseph-kabila-will-not-stand-in-next-drc-elections-aide-says">since 2001</a>. He refuses to go even though he was meant to step down in December 2016. In Uganda, Yoweri Museveni has clung to power since <a href="http://www.africareview.com/news/UG-lawmakers-pave-the-way-for-Museveni-stay-in-power/979180-4093204-ug1sqi/index.html">1986</a>. Denis Sassou Nguesso has ruled Congo for <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14121193">almost 30 years</a>.
Their refusal to step down at the appointed time flies in the face of several governance blueprints adopted as African countries shifted away from liberation politics to the new post independence <a href="https://theconversation.com/democracy-in-africa-the-ebbs-and-flows-over-six-decades-42011">struggle for democracy</a> in the early 2000s.
The <a href="http://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/organisation-african-unity-formed-and-africa-day-declared">Organisation of African Unity</a> was transformed into the <a href="https://au.int/">African Union</a> in 2001 with this shift in mind. The continent adopted progressive governance tools like the <a href="https://au.int/en/organs/aprm">African Peer Review Mechanism</a>. This was spearheaded by former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and South Africa’s Thabo Mbeki as a tool for African countries to review one another’s performance.
Numerous African countries adopted and agreed to uphold the terms of the African Union Charter on Democracy, <a href="https://au.int/sites/default/files/treaties/7790-treaty-0034_-_african_charter_on_democracy_elections_and_governance_e.pdf">Elections and Governance</a>. It came into force in 2012 and was designed to guard against undemocratic governance.
These plans promised a great deal. They were designed to usher in good governance, democracy and security. It was hoped Africa’s image as a continent of ignorance, poverty, disease, misrule and corruption could be erased.
The rhetoric pointed in the right direction. But not all African leaders were willing to be swept by this wave of democratic reforms. Some are quite simply addicted to power, as shown by their reluctance – if not outright resistance – to leave at the end of their legal terms.
Leaders continuing to overstay their welcome undermines Africa’s attempts at overhauling its leadership and negates the noble intentions of the AU’s founders.
<h2>Term limits</h2>
Term limits regulate leadership succession. They are meant to counteract leaders’ temptation to overstay their welcome. This helps to consolidate and legitimise democratically elected leadership.
Of course, they’re not enough. Regular transfer of power as seen in countries like Mauritius, Ghana, Botswana and Zambia, among others, cannot guarantee political and socio-economic stability. Other ingredients such as accountable, legitimate leadership are critical.
The benefits of frequent power transfers are evident in African countries that have them, such as <a href="https://www.news24.com/Africa/News/electoral-commission-confirms-senegal-ruling-coalition-landslide-20170805-2">Senegal</a>; <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-botswana-politics/botswanas-khama-steps-down-as-president-after-a-decade-at-helm-idUSKBN1H70DO">Botswana</a> and <a href="https://guardian.ng/news/mauritius-gets-new-pm-opposition-demands-new-election/">Mauritius</a>. Incumbents are kept on their toes because there’s a real chance they can be removed from power if they fail to govern properly.But regular transfers of power give citizens hope that new policies, programmes and approaches will be adopted by the new leadership. In turn, this could overturn numerous political, social, economic impacts of uninterrupted strangleholds on power in Africa.
Term limits have recently become controversial and divisive. Some leaders have used dubious constitutional amendments to extend their stay in power. Usually, governing parties and their leaders almost exclusively pass such amendments with minimal or no opposition participation. That’s what happened in Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and Congo Republic.
Similarly, despite constitutional provisions and regular elections, countries such as Angola, Togo, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea are virtually de facto one party or one leader repressive states wherein resignation, retirement and term limits are meaningless.
Leaders have different reasons for refusing to leave office. In some countries, the answer lies in a lack of succession planning to transfer power. In others, leaders blatantly refuse to resign because of their despotic and kleptocratic tendencies. They abuse their states’ minerals, oil and money with their <a href="https://issafrica.org/iss-today/african-leaders-take-the-blame-for-the-continents-resource-curse">families and friends</a>. Stepping aside would cost them these “benefits”.
For instance, the eventual departure of Angola’s Eduardo Dos Santos from office after decades in power has <a href="https://theconversation.com/stability-in-southern-africa-hinges-on-how-leaders-gain-and-lose-power-89980">left his family exposed</a>. His children stand accused of amassing billions during their father’s many terms.
Without strong constitutional safeguards and a democratic culture to counter the negative consequences of the <a href="https://mg.co.za/article/2012-04-13-anc-must-renew-itself-and-root-out-sins-of-incumbency">“sins of incumbency”</a> – as corruption associated with state power is often described by South Africa’s governing party, the African National Congress – can be menacing. It breeds <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Big-Men-Little-People-Leaders/dp/081477542X">“Big Men, Little People”</a>, to borrow a phrase from the title of a book by journalist Alec Russel.
<h2>Weaning leaders off power addiction</h2>
Perceptive leaders know when to leave office, whether through resignation or <a href="http://www.africanews.com/2018/03/31/botswana-president-ian-khama-steps-down-after-end-of-tenure//">retirement</a>. Botswana’s past and current presidents have established this practice despite the country’s continued <a href="http://www.thepatriot.co.bw/analysis-opinions/item/3585-single-party-dominance-not-good-for-democracy.html">one-party domination</a>.
With the emergence of a strong democratic culture, South Africa has experienced the opposite of such presidential power mongering. Two presidents were recalled by their political party the ANC, albeit for different reasons. Thabo Mbeki readily <a href="https://mg.co.za/article/2008-09-21-mbeki-resigns-before-the-nation">accepted his fate</a> when he was told to pack up and go, although he was not accused of any specific wrong doing. Jacob Zuma remained defiant and only stepped aside when faced with the very real prospect of a vote of <a href="https://mg.co.za/article/2018-02-13-anc-want-motion-of-no-confidence-against-zuma">no-confidence</a>.
<a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/01/nana-akufo-addo-sworn-ghana-president-170107124239549.html">Ghana</a>, <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-37086365">Zambia</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/namibia-grown-up-after-a-generation-into-independence-but-not-yet-mature-74571">Namibia</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/buharis-victory-in-nigerian-election-has-global-significance-39416">Nigeria</a>, <a href="https://www.constitutionnet.org/news/presidential-elections-malawi-towards-majoritarian-501-electoral-system">Malawi</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/magufuli-has-been-president-for-two-years-how-hes-changing-tanzania-86777">Tanzania</a> are other African states where regular transfer of power has occurred.
African voters are not blameless. They habitually relax their vigilance on leaders and fail to hold them to account after elections. This, coupled with winner-take-all election systems, renders some African countries vulnerable to autocratic, despotic and non-accountable leaders who would rather die in office than leave.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/94196/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />What, then, is the solution? It may be time for ordinary voters across the continent to begin to collaborate through non-governmental organisations and other cross-border institutional mechanisms to share experiences and begin to enforce durable continental democracy. Africa needs democracy from below.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kealeboga-j-maphunye-171061">Kealeboga J Maphunye</a>, Professor, Department of Political Sciences, University of South Africa (UNISA), <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-south-africa-1951">University of South Africa</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/weaning-african-leaders-off-addiction-to-power-is-an-ongoing-struggle-94196">original article</a>.

Why it’s impossible to wean African leaders off their addiction to power

By <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cobus-van-staden-427271">Cobus van Staden</a>, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/south-african-institute-of-international-affairs-1795">South African Institute of International Affairs</a>
China’s decision to <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-11/china-ties-future-to-xi-as-congress-scraps-president-term-limits">suspend presidential term limits</a> is still reverberating around the world. The announcement, made after a vote by China’s parliament in March, prompted some commentators to draw comparisons with “<a href="https://www.cfr.org/blog/axing-term-limits-china-boon-africas-would-be-despots">third termism</a>” in Africa, when leaders flout democratic conventions to stay in power as long as possible.
These concerns certainly resonate on a continent where leaders like Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of Congo, or Yoweri Museveni of Uganda are clinging to power. But there is also a wider question that must be asked: what does an extended tenure for Chinese incumbent Xi Jinping mean for Africa beyond the constitutional issue of term limits?
For the foreseeable future, Africa’s engagement with China will be shaped by Xi’s vision. This makes it important to unpack exactly what that vision is. That’s why the South African Institute of International Affairs – where I work and conduct research on China and Africa – has just published <a href="http://www.saiia.org.za/policy-briefings/china-era-xi-jinping-thought">a policy paper</a> identifying five key trends for Africa.
We did this by drawing on Xi’s own writings and public comments. The trends will open certain opportunities for Africa in its relationship with China, and close down others. It is important for the continent to take note of these trends because Xi’s extended tenure will arguably deepen their impact over the next decade.
<h2>1. Communist Party centrality</h2>
Dealing with China means dealing with the Communist Party of China (CPC). Xi rose to power by strengthening his control of the party and its control of the country. Throughout his writings he has emphasised that the CPC is key to Chinese decision-making from the local to the international level.
Part of the CPC’s strategy is to influence young Africans through education and training. To this end, thousands of African government officials, journalists and students receive training in China annually. In 2016, Beijing <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/africa-in-focus/2016/07/05/political-party-training-chinas-ideological-push-in-africa">increased the number of scholarships</a> for African junior politicians from 200 to 1000 per year.
More African students now study in China than in the <a href="https://qz.com/1017926/china-has-overtaken-the-us-and-uk-as-the-top-destination-for-anglophone-african-students/">US and the UK combined</a>. Xi routinely insists on the centrality of party doctrine in all university teaching. Since 2013 he has called for <a href="http://www.chinafile.com/document-9-chinafile-translation">the exclusion of so-called western ideas</a> from university curricula. Education and training shapes one’s worldview. As these African students return home, then, Communist Party doctrine will increasingly inform conversations on the continent.
<h2>2. The Belt and Road Initiative</h2>
President Xi’s long-term rule also ensures the future of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/where-africa-fits-into-chinas-massive-belt-and-road-initiative-78016">Belt and Road Initiative</a>. It is his signature foreign policy and investment initiative; a massive infrastructure project linking China overland to Europe via rail through Central Asia, and through sea routes to the Mediterranean and Europe via East Africa. It is already <a href="https://allafrica.com/stories/201803050166.html">funnelling large amounts of funding</a> to infrastructure projects in countries like Tanzania and Ethiopia.
Now that Xi has tightened his grip on power this initiative – which has been <a href="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-10/24/c_136702025.htm">enshrined</a> in the CPC constitution – is here to stay.
This opens significant opportunities for African development. However, infrastructure doesn’t come for free: African countries should take a hard look at how the initiative will affect the continent’s debt sustainability and local priorities.
<h2>3. UN reform</h2>
China has been <a href="http://www.china.org.cn/english/international/131439.htm">a long-term supporter of reforming</a> the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to allow wider representation from the global south. Beijing has not forgotten that it gained its own UNSC seat partly through African countries’ votes. In his address at the 19th Party Congress, <a href="http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/download/Xi_Jinping's_report_at_19th_CPC_National_Congress.pdf">Xi voiced support for</a> “the efforts of other developing countries to increase their representation”.
In theory, this could initiate a discussion about Security Council reform. There is little further indication that China is actively campaigning for it, but it is an area to watch.
<h2>4. Global military role</h2>
President Xi has repeatedly called for China’s military hardware, and the Chinese army’s combat-readiness <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/04/xi-jinping-tells-army-not-to-fear-death-in-show-of-chinas-military-might">to be boosted</a>. His extended term raises the possibility that the People’s Liberation Army will pursue a more prominent global role.
<a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/china-raises-2018-defence-spending-by-81-per-cent">Military budgets for 2018</a> have been raised by 8.1%, a three-year high. While China is still far behind the United States in total military spending, it is catching up.
This expansion directly affects Africa. China’s first overseas military base recently became operational in Djibouti, despite <a href="https://qz.com/1226148/rex-tillerson-in-africa-chinas-increasing-footprint-in-djibouti-worries-us-camp-lemonnier/">complaints from the United States</a>, whose Camp Lemonnier is mere kilometres away. <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201702160232.html">Djibouti also hosts</a> French, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, and German bases, and a Saudi base is under construction.
China has become <a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/2120754/chinese-troops-two-day-drill-prepare-peacekeeping">more involved in UN peacekeeping in Africa</a>. Its troops serve in South Sudan, Mali and Liberia, as well as in anti-piracy initiatives off Somalia. While these missions have contributed to African security, they also help to strengthen China’s profile as a global leader and to give Chinese troops valuable real-world combat training. This raises questions for Africa about an increasing Chinese military presence on the continent.
<h2>5. Internet governance</h2>
Xi’s first term has seen a significant tightening of China’s own internet regulations. The US NGO Freedom House now lists China’s internet as the <a href="https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2018/china">world’s most constrained</a>. Xi has called for further controls and for enhanced “internet sovereignty”: this shuns global internet governance conventions in favour of control by national governments.
There is little evidence that China is interested in exporting its internet governance to other countries. But some fear that <a href="http://www.saiia.org.za/occasional-papers/1292-balancing-cyber-security-and-internet-freedom-in-africa/file">repressive African governments will</a> seize on the theme of internet sovereignty to crack down on internal dissent.
<h2>Planning ahead</h2>
China is Africa’s top trade partner and a key foreign investor. Africa needs more local experts fluent in Mandarin, who can provide insights into the inner workings of this rising superpower.<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/94602/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />Barring unexpected upheavals, Xi Jinping is set to govern for a long time. Africa had better plan accordingly.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cobus-van-staden-427271">Cobus van Staden</a>, Senior Researcher: China Africa, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/south-african-institute-of-international-affairs-1795">South African Institute of International Affairs</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-chinas-president-xis-extended-tenure-means-for-africa-94602">original article</a>.

What China’s President Xi’s extended tenure means for Africa

Jared Jeffery | NKC African Economics
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni was conspicuously absent from proceedings in Kigali on Wednesday, March 21, where many of the continent’s leaders gathered to sign the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-42921 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/8718467280_85348ef4fb_o.jpg" alt="Ugandans brace for Museveni life presidency bid" width="1536" height="1024" />
The Daily Monitor, a Ugandan newspaper, reports that his absence was due to security reasons after his advance security team and its Rwandan counterparts failed to work out his itinerary. Meanwhile, the president’s press secretary, Don Wanyama, stated that the reason for the cancellation was confidential, before saying: “The president is here [in Uganda] because he has equally important matters to take care of.”
Mr Museveni is famously an enthusiastic proponent of pan-Africanism and would hardly give up the chance to wax lyrical about the prospects for such an ambitious agreement. Thus, it is likelier that Mr Museveni’s snub is another sign of the chilly relations between the neighbouring countries.
Relations between political elites in Kampala and Kigali are complicated, to say the least.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame spent his youth as a refugee in Uganda and was part of Mr Museveni’s National Resistance Army (NRA) when the latter took power from former President Milton Obote in 1986.
In fact, around a quarter of the NRA’s fighters at the time were Rwandan Tutsis and many were rewarded with high ranks in the new Ugandan army for their efforts – Mr Kagame was made acting chief of military intelligence.
Between 1990 and 1993, the Ugandan army supplied the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) with provisions and weapons as it carried out its attempts to topple former President Juvénal Habyarimana’s Hutu-dominated regime in Rwanda. Indeed, it is thought by some that the missile that downed Mr Habyarimana’s plane, the spark that set off the Rwandan genocide in 1994, was a Russian-made SA-16. The Russian military prosecutor’s office has said it sold the SA-16 rocket launchers found in range of the airport to Uganda in 1987.
With such an intertwined history of helping each other come to power, one would expect nothing but cordiality between the two regimes; however, it was not long before their two armies clashed.
During the 1998-2003 war in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Uganda and Rwanda backed opposing rebel groups. With the DRC once again teetering on the brink of conflict, there is a chance that their interests in the volatile eastern part of the country may once again not be aligned.
But the causes of the current chill in relations probably have more to do with domestic politics.
Rwanda’s Defence Minister James Kabarebe last October reportedly accused the Ugandans of offering a space for Rwandan enemies to conduct their operations.
According to The East African, this was a reference to exiled tobacco tycoon Tribert Rujugiro (PanAfrican Tobacco Group) who is close to Mr Museveni’s brother General Salim Saleh. A memorandum of understanding between Mr Saleh and Mr Rujugiro reportedly gives the general a 15% stake in M/S Leaf Tobacco and Commodities Ltd in exchange for ‘security’ (it is unclear what that involves).
Mr Rujugiro was a special economic advisor to Mr Kagame before going into exile in 2009.
Those in the Rwandan tobacco business appear to have a particularly difficult relationship with the government. It will be remembered that another tobacco tycoon, Assinapol Rwigara, died in a car accident in 2015 that his family claims was a politically-motivated assassination. Mr Rwigara’s wife and two daughters are standing trial for insurrection after his daughter Diane Rwigara attempted to run against Mr Kagame in last year’s presidential election.
Complicating matters further, on October 31 nine Ugandan police officers, a Rwandan ex-general and a Congolese national appeared in a military court in Uganda on charges related to the kidnapping of Mr Kagame’s former bodyguard. Lieutenant Joel Mutabazi was allegedly kidnapped five years ago and handed over to Kigali without the Ugandan government’s consent, and then sentenced to life in a Rwandan prison.
The case is confused further by the alleged threats against the Rwandan general, René Rutagungira, by Kayumba Nyamwasa (Mr Kagame’s former right-hand man and former lieutenant general in the Rwandan army who now lives in exile in South Africa and has had multiple attempts made on his life).
Mr Nyamwasa was reportedly trying to get Mr Rutagungira to join the Rwandan National Congress (RNC), an opposition group in exile. According to Mr Rutagungira’s brother, when he refused, Mr Nyamwasa used his relationship with the head of Ugandan intelligence to get the charges of espionage brought against those put on trial in October.
Mr Rutagungira claimed in court in December that he had been tortured by former Security Minister Henry Tumukunde and the head of Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) Abel Kandiho with the intention of forcing a confession that would link former Inspector General of Police Kale Kayihura to kidnappings in Rwanda and Uganda.
On March 4, Mr Museveni fired both Mr Tumukunde and Mr Kayihura. The reasons for their firing are still unclear, but some speculate that they are related to the tensions between Kampala and Kigali.
Mr Kayihura was close to Mr Kagame, having been the best man at his wedding, and there are rumours that Mr Kagame was backing Mr Kayihura to succeed Mr Museveni as president. Opposition frontman for Uganda’s Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) Kizza Besigye is among those that believe Mr Kayihura’s axing was due to his links with Kigali.
Mr Tumukunde, meanwhile, was pulling in the other direction and apparently working against Kigali.
Of the two leaders, Mr Museveni’s position appears more vulnerable. Countering resistance and rebellion will require a loyal security force, and Mr Museveni has had to work hard to shore up his support in the armed services over the past year or so. In November, he promoted over 300 officers in the intelligence and special forces divisions of the Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF). It was the third shakeup of the military in 2017, following reshuffles in January and May.
Mr Kagame, meanwhile, does not appear to have the same concerns over the loyalty of his troops, but those in exile could still cause a headache. He met with his South African counterpart ahead of Wednesday’s signing of the AfCFTA agreement and it seems that diplomatic relations are improving – something that may worry Mr Nyamwasa and others who have sought sanctuary in the Southern African country.
In November last year, Ugandan police raided the tabloid Red Pepper after it ran a story claiming Mr Museveni was plotting to overthrow Mr Kagame. In December, Kenyan newspaper The Standard claimed it had credible evidence that the Ugandan intelligence services (reportedly the CMI) were recruiting fighters for the RNC in refugee camps in Nyakivara and Bweyale Kiryandongo. The article claims Mr Nyamwasa’s cousin, Rugema Kayumba, does the recruiting and Mr Kandiho of the CMI oversees the project.
With rumours of plots by both sides, it is no wonder relations are chilly. Open conflict in the DRC, with proxy groups again put to use, could see them turn hot. Even if the worst does not come to pass, the mistrust will negatively affect regional projects and business between the two countries.

Museveni skips Kigali summit because of security concerns

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has signed a law that scraps a 75-year age cap for presidential candidates, a spokesman for parliament said on Tuesday, a move critics say will allow him to remain in power indefinitely.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-42997 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/uganda.museveni.wikimedia.jpeg" alt="Uganda elections: Museveni wins" width="600" height="450" />
Museveni, 73, has ruled Uganda for 31 years and could now stand again in the next election, due in 2021, despite increased public anger over corruption, human rights violations and poor social services.
Parliament, controlled by Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), approved the constitutional amendment on Dec. 22 amid heavy security deployments across the capital Kampala and outside parliament.
“It has been signed into law,” spokesman Chris Obore said, adding that the president had done so on Dec. 27.
Museveni’s move quickly drew criticism from his political opponents, religious leaders, human rights activists and even some members of the ruling party.
Protests in September by opposition activists against the proposed amendment were quickly put down with detentions, teargas and beatings. At least two people were killed.
Some legislators opposed to the law tried unsuccessfully at various stages to filibuster it and some were suspended from proceedings. During the final debate on the amendment last month, some lawmakers scuffled with police. [L8N1OJ23A]
Museveni is the latest of a growing list of African leaders who have either changed the law or used other tactics to thwart opponents and hold onto power long after their tenure has ended.
In Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, such moves have provoked instability.
Last month’s vote by parliament was the second time the Ugandan legislature has amended the constitution to allow Museveni to stay in power. In 2005 they voted to remove a limit of two five-year terms, which had blocked him from standing again.
Despite the growing cries of autocracy against Museveni, Washington has backed him as a strongman who has turned Uganda into a bulwark of stability in Africa’s troubled Great Lakes region.
The landlocked East African country is eyeing commencement of crude production in 2020 and the construction of a pipeline to export it via neighbouring Tanzania is underway.
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Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Maggie Fick and Gareth Jones
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Uganda’s Museveni signs law removing age cap for president

KAMPALA (Reuters) &#8211; Ugandan legislators voted late on Wednesday to amend the country’s constitution to allow 73-year-old leader Yoweri Museveni to extend his rule, potentially guaranteeing him a life-time presidency.
A provision in the current constitution limits the age of a presidential candidate at 75 years, which would have made Museveni ineligible to stand at the next polls in 2021.
At the end of Wednesday’s day-long House debate, which capped a protracted and violence-marred process to remove that age limit, MPs voted 315-62 in favour of the amendment.
“The bill passes,” said speaker Rebecca Kadaga after announcing tally results, prompting raucous celebrations from the mostly ruling party MPs who favoured the bill.
Earlier in the day, two lawmakers were dragged away and detained when they tried to enter parliament, as the divisive debate proceeded in the chamber.
Police had blocked some legislators from entering the building, and live television footage showed two of them being driven away in security vehicles. Both opposed the bill.
The legislators blocked by police were attempting to enter parliament to serve court documents on House speaker Rebecca Kadaga, who was presiding over the debate.
The document called on her to appear in court at 2:00 PM in respect of “the irregular suspension of our members of parliament,” independent lawmaker Wilfred Niwagaba told a local television station minutes before he was detained.
Six MPs &#8211; all opposed to removal of the age cap &#8211; were suspended from parliamentary proceedings on Monday for alleged disorderly conduct and refusing to heed the speaker’s instructions.
The bill to amend the constitution was introduced in parliament on October 4 by a Museveni loyalist, after two consecutive days of brawling in the debating chamber between those opposed and those in favour, supported by security personnel.
On the second day, security personnel who some MPs said were soldiers from an elite military unit entered the chamber and violently ejected at least 25 MPs that the speaker had suspended from proceedings for alleged misconduct.
Wednesday’s vote was the second time Ugandan parliament has changed the constitution to allow Museveni extend his rule. In 2005, they voted to remove a limit of two five-year terms, which blocked him from standing again.
The bill also extended the length of a term for MPs to seven years from the current five. The limit of two terms was also re-imposed for the president, although that only means Museveni would be limited to two more terms, starting with the 2021 election.
“Are you not seeing what happened in Zimbabwe, do we want his excellency to end like Gaddafi of Libya,” opposition legislator, Gilbert Olanya, who opposed to the amendment, said in Wednesday’s debate as he attempted to persuade colleagues to reject it.
Several African leaders have amended laws designed to limit their tenure. Such moves have fuelled violence in countries including Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
Initially hailed for restoring political order and fostering economic growth, Museveni has lately come under mounting pressure fuelled by runaway corruption, and accusations he uses security forces to maintain his grip on power.
A combination of both military and police personnel were heavily deployed around parliament this week, which opposition MPs say was meant to intimidate members.
Reporting by Elias Biryabarema, editing by Katharine Houreld and John Stonestreet

Law passed to allow Uganda’s President Museveni to seek re-election

HARARE (Reuters) &#8211; President Robert Mugabe was dismissed as leader of Zimbabwe’s ruling ZANU-PF party on Sunday in a move to force a peaceful end to his 37 years in power following a de facto military coup.
He was replaced by Emmerson Mnangagwa, the deputy he sacked this month, sources at a special ZANU-PF meeting to decide Mugabe’s fate told Reuters.
“He has been expelled,” one of the delegates said. “Mnangagwa is our new leader.”
Mugabe’s wife Grace, who had harboured ambitions of succeeding Mugabe, was also expelled from the party.
READ: <a href="http://cnbc.africa/news/political/2017/11/18/mugabe-wont-step-grace-wont-step-says-cabinet-minister-nephew/">Mugabe Won’t Step Down – Grace Won’t Step Up – Says Cabinet Minister And Nephew</a>
Speaking before the meeting, war veterans’ leader Chris Mutsvangwa said the 93-year-old Mugabe was running out of time to negotiate his departure and should leave the country while he could.
“He’s trying to bargain for a dignified exit,” he said.
Mutsvangwa followed up with threat to call for street protests if Mugabe refused to go, telling reporters: “We will bring back the crowds and they will do their business.”
Mnangagwa, a former state security chief known as “The Crocodile,” is now in line to head an interim post-Mugabe unity government that will focus on rebuilding ties with the outside world and stabilising an economy in freefall.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Zimbabwe?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Zimbabwe</a>’s President <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Mugabe?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Mugabe</a> now has the following options, which do you think is most likely?
— CNBC Africa (@cnbcafrica) <a href="https://twitter.com/cnbcafrica/status/932231621734010880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
On Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Harare, singing, dancing and hugging soldiers in an outpouring of elation at Mugabe’s expected overthrow.
VIEW: <a href="http://cnbc.africa/trending/forbes-africa/2017/11/18/history-making-scenes-zimbabwes-anti-mugabe-protest/">History In The Making: Scenes From #Zimbabwe’s Anti-Mugabe Protest</a>
His stunning downfall in just four days is likely to send shockwaves across Africa, where a number of entrenched strongmen, from Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni to Democratic Republic of Congo’s Joseph Kabila, are facing mounting pressure to quit.
SUPPORT EVAPORATING
Men, women and children ran alongside the armoured cars and troops who stepped in this week to oust the man who has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980.
Under house arrest in his lavish ‘Blue Roof’ compound, Mugabe has refused to stand down even as he has watched his support from party, security services and people evaporate in less than three days.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Mugabe to resign by noon tomorrow else impeachment proceedings begin <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ZanuPF?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ZanuPF</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Zimbabwe?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Zimbabwe</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/cnbcafrica?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cnbcafrica</a> <a href="https://t.co/pgvCc8qE7V">https://t.co/pgvCc8qE7V</a>
— Ancillar Mangena (@ancillarmangena) <a href="https://twitter.com/ancillarmangena/status/932248111396859904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 19, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
His nephew, Patrick Zhuwao, told Reuters Mugabe and his wife were “ready to die for what is correct” rather than step down in order to legitimise what he described as a coup.
But on Harare’s streets, few seemed to care about the legal niceties as they heralded a “second liberation” for the former British colony and spoke of their dreams for political and economic change after two decades of deepening repression and hardship.
“These are tears of joy,” said Frank Mutsindikwa, 34, holding aloft the Zimbabwean flag. “I’ve been waiting all my life for this day. Free at last. We are free at last.”
The huge crowds in Harare have given a quasi-democratic veneer to the army’s intervention, backing its assertion that it is merely effecting a constitutional transfer of power, rather than a plain coup, which would entail a diplomatic backlash.
Despite the euphoria, some Mugabe opponents are uneasy about the prominent role played by the military, and fear Zimbabwe might be swapping one army-backed autocrat with another, rather than allowing the people to choose their next leader.
“The real danger of the current situation is that having got their new preferred candidate into State House, the military will want to keep him or her there, no matter what the electorate wills,” former education minister David Coltart said.
The United States, a long-time Mugabe critic, said it was looking forward to a new era in Zimbabwe, while President Ian Khama of neighbouring Botswana said Mugabe had no diplomatic support in the region and should resign at once.
Writing by Ed Cropley; Editing by Angus MacSwan
http://cnbc.africa/news/southern-africa/2017/11/15/fact-box-key-figures-zimbabwe-first-lady-grace-mugabes-g40/

Zimbabwe’s ‘second liberation’ looms as President Mugabe expelled from Zanu-PF, given ultimatum

Sarah Logan | International Growth Centre
&nbsp;
October 9 marks 55 years since Uganda’s independence in 1962. The country’s economy has seen many changes during this time, affected by periods of political instability, civil war, fluctuating global commodity prices, and various economic reforms. Trends in recent years are positive, although some key challenges remain.
Economic data for the early years after Uganda’s independence is scarce. But economic growth appears to have been impressive for the first eight years. Agriculture dominated the economy, with cotton and coffee comprising <a href="http://siteresources.worldbank.org/WBI/Resources/wbi37152and37153.pdf">76%</a> of exports. Five years after Uganda’s independence it joined forces with Kenya and Tanzania to form the East African Community, with the intention of creating a common market.
In 1971 Idi Amin overthrew President Milton Obote in a military coup and Uganda went into rapid political and economic decline. “Foreign” economic interests were <a href="http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/ueconomy.htm">eliminated</a> and some 70,000 residents of Asian and European descent were expelled from the country. Firms and factories that had been the backbone of Uganda’s economy were expropriated. This, combined with Amin’s massive military spending, sent the economy into free fall. External debt <a href="http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/ueconomy.htm">climbed</a> and Uganda’s investor confidence was shot. Regional relations deteriorated and the East Africa Community was disbanded in 1977.
Amin was finally overthrown in 1979 and Obote took over the presidency again. Uganda’s economy had been devastated and significant economic reforms were needed. This <a href="http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/ueconomy.htm">involved</a> removing price controls, floating the exchange rate, and tightening government spending. Owners of expropriated firms and properties were encouraged to return.
After five years of civil war, Yoweri Museveni and the National Resistance Movement (NRM) took power in 1986. The economy was in deep <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">recession</a>. With International Monetary Fund <a href="http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/ueconomy.htm">support</a>, the NRM undertook major economic reforms aimed at encouraging private sector growth and diversifying Uganda’s agricultural exports. Uganda’s over-reliance on a small number of agricultural exports, notably coffee, had left the economy vulnerable to fluctuations in production and swings in global commodity markets.
Under these early reforms, the Ugandan shilling was <a href="http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/ueconomy.htm">devalued</a> and budgetary constraints were adopted. Inflation, which had peaked at <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">190%</a>in 1987, was brought down to <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">26%</a> by 1991. Additional reforms further limited government spending and borrowing and significantly <a href="http://www.africa.upenn.edu/NEH/ueconomy.htm">reduced</a>the size of the civil service and the army.
Over the past two decades, Uganda’s economy has developed in important ways &#8211; dependence on agricultural exports has eased, the services sector has grown, and regional trade and integration has strengthened. But there are still major weak spots, including a weak manufacturing sector and constraints on small and medium sized enterprises.
<h2>Breaking away from agriculture</h2>
Some progress has been made in diversifying Uganda’s agricultural exports and, although still dominated by food exports, the share of non-food merchandise exports has been increasing in recent years (see Figure 1 below). Exports of agricultural raw materials and ores and metals exports have declined, indicating that greater domestic value addition is taking place.
FIGURE ONE
<div id="attachment_286022" style="width: 764px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-286022" class="wp-image-286022 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Figure-One.png" alt="" width="754" height="543" />Uganda’s composition of merchandise exports. World Development Indicators.</div>
The composition of Uganda’s economy has changed quite significantly over the past few decades (see Figure 2 below). Agriculture’s contribution to GDP has shrunk, although it continues to employ some <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">70%</a> of Uganda’s labour, and the share from services has increased from 19% in 1977 up to over 55% today. Industry’s share has also grown since the sector’s collapse in the early 1970s, but its growth has been more muted.
FIGURE TWO
<div id="attachment_286023" style="width: 764px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-286023" class="wp-image-286023 size-full" src="http://cnbc.africa/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Figure-Two.png" alt="" width="754" height="458" />Composition of Uganda’s GDP. World Development Indicators</div>
Within industry, manufacturing’s contribution to GDP has remained stagnant at around <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">8%</a> for the last 15 years. Uganda’s manufacturing sector is small and dominated by micro, small and medium enterprises, which make up some <a href="https://www.theigc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Sherpherd-et-al-2016-paper.pdf">93.5%</a> of the sector, with agro-processing being a particularly important activity in the sector. These small firms are limited by a number of constraints including lack of access to high quality inputs, reliable and cost effective electricity, and affordable credit. As a result, they struggle to achieve the economies of scale needed to grow and increase their productivity.
<h2>Remaining challenges</h2>
Under the NRM, Uganda has experienced positive, albeit fluctuating, economic growth (see Figure 3 below). Growth of the services and industry sectors shows important progress towards structural transformation, shifting labour out of less productive agriculture and into more productive sectors.
Population growth, however, has remained high, averaging <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">3.4%</a> since 2010. This has lowered net growth rates (economic growth less population growth) and eroded potential improvements in living standards.
Indeed, Uganda’s population growth has meant that GDP per capita growth has been on the decline in recent years. In contrast, Kenya and Tanzania have had lower population growth averages since 2010. In Kenya it’s been 2.7% and in Tanzania 3.1%. Both countries remain on <a href="http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators">positive</a> and higher GDP per capita growth trajectories.
<h2>Looking forward</h2>
The East African Community was revived in 2000 and regional integration has made significant strides since then. A customs union and common market have been <a href="http://www.eac.int/integration-pillars">introduced</a>. Among other benefits, regional trade has been shown to promote regional <a href="https://www.theigc.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Mayer-Thoenig-2016-Working-paper.pdf">peace</a> and bring economic development to <a href="https://www.theigc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Brulhart-et-al-2017-Working-paper.pdf">border areas</a>. Further integration, such as greater transport connectivity, could offer important advantages.
Continued growth of the services sector should be promoted. Attention should also be given to supporting manufacturing sector growth as it has the potential to create many low-skilled jobs. Easing the constraints faced by small and medium sized enterprises would facilitate firm growth, increase productivity, and raise manufacturing’s contribution to GDP and exports.
To <a href="https://www.theigc.org/publication/maximising-the-impact-of-fdi-on-domestic-industrial-capabilities-and-job-creation/">increase </a> Ugandan firms’ competitiveness it’s critical that production capacity is raised through training programmes and by matchmaking domestic suppliers with foreign firms. And firms need unrestricted access to high quality inputs if they’re going to be able to move into the export market.
The Ugandan government has an important role to play in supporting these efforts and, with government commitment, considerable economic gains could be achieved.

Taking stock of Uganda’s economy 55 years after independence

Legislators from Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni’s party on Tuesday agreed to introduce a law to remove an age limit from the country’s constitution, potentially allowing him to extend his rule, two lawmakers told Reuters.
The East African country’s existing constitution bars anyone over 75 from standing as a presidential candidate. Museveni, 73, is already one of Africa’s longest-serving rulers and has been in charge for more than three decades. The next elections are due in 2021.
Oil-rich Uganda is a staunch Western ally and receives substantial aid and support for its security forces, partly for sending troops to Somalia as part of an African Union peacekeeping mission.
When he first came to power, Museveni was lauded for helping restore stability after two murderous dictators known to use torture and extrajudicial executions widely, and for directing the suppression of a brutal insurgency known for mutilating civilians and kidnapping children.
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But over the years, criticism has mounted over the suppression of the political opposition, widespread corruption and a poor human rights record.
Simeo Nsubuga, a legislator from Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party, told Reuters the move to amend the constitution was agreed in a special meeting of the party’s House members.
“We agreed that a private member should come up with a constitutional amendment bill to remove the age limit,” Nsubuga said, adding the bill would be introduced on the floor next week.
In July, Uganda’s deputy attorney general said cabinet was planning to introduce similar legislation.
Most Ugandan laws are introduced by the government via cabinet ministers. But Kafuuzi Jackson Karugaba, another NRM legislator, told Reuters they had decided to take the option of a private member’s bill because cabinet was moving “too slowly.”
In 2005, NRM legislators changed the constitution and removed a limit of two five-year terms, allowing Museveni to extend his reign.
Independent observers said that last year’s presidential election lacked transparency and that the poll body lacked credibility.
The ageing leader has himself not stated whether he intends to seek another term, and officials have said the proposed constitutional change was not specifically to benefit the incumbent but all of Uganda’s future leaders.
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Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Hugh Lawson
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Uganda ruling party seeks to scrap age limit to extend president’s rule

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Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame assumed his third term in office today when he was sworn in for a third seven-year term.

President Kagame assumes 3rd 7-year term

(DURBAN) When the first of more than 1000 delegates, expected at this World Economic Forum Africa gathering in Durban, began arriving on the eve of this conference the temperature was 25 degrees and the locals said it was chilly. Most who live this close to the Indian Ocean are use to 30 degrees plus for most of the year.
For the next three days, in Durban, the interest in the economies of Africa is likely to be running hot.
Organisers say more than 100 countries from around the world will be represented at this year&#8217;s WEF Africa compared to 70 at last year&#8217;s WEF in Rwanda. Some of the surprise attendees this year is the German Finance Minister &#8211; who is bringing a plane load of CEOs with him- and the deputy leader of Singapore.
There will also be a strong contingent of African leaders in Durban. Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe will attend his first WEF since Tanzania in 2010. Yoweri Museveni, the leader of Uganda, has also confirmed along with Edgar Lungu of Zambia and King Mswati of Swaziland.
For more read: 
<a href="http://cnbc.africa/insights/world-economic-forum/2017/05/02/world-economic-forum-preview-africa-hub-opportunities-waiting-unlocked/"> 
World Economic Forum Preview: Africa – a hub of opportunities, waiting to be unlocked!</a>
<div class="simple-thumb"><a href="http://cnbc.africa/insights/world-economic-forum/wef-africa-2017/2017/05/02/wef-africa-preview/">The World Economic Forum roadshow lands in Africa</a></div>

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to attend first WEF since Tanzania 2010

Uganda&#8217;s President Yoweri Museveni has appointed his son as his senior adviser, officials said on Tuesday, a move analysts said was part of a plan to groom him to take over the top job.
The president&#8217;s son, Major General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, was moved from his position at the head of the army&#8217;s special forces, the military said, in what it called a normal change in command.
But political rivals have regularly accused the 72-year-old president of handing powerful positions to members of his family and adopting an increasingly autocratic style &#8211; charges his supporters dismiss.
His brother, Salim Saleh, is another presidential adviser and his wife, Janet Museveni, is minister of education.
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&#8220;Muhoozi &#8230; is going to play a significant role in a post-Museveni Uganda, there&#8217;s no doubt about it,&#8221; said political commentator and rights activist Nicholas Opiyo.
&#8220;He is just giving the boy a hand in experiencing how government works on the side of politics.&#8221;
Human rights lawyer and political commentator Andrew Karamagi described the appointment as a &#8220;real clear move to bring the man closer to succession&#8221;.
Kainerugaba has risen quickly through the ranks since he joined the army in 1998. He jumped two positions from 2nd Lieutenant to Major in 2001.
Military spokesman Paddy Ankunda said Kainerugaba had been appointed Senior Presidential Adviser for Special Operations. Asked whether it was a move to boost Kainerugaba&#8217;s political credentials, he told Reuters: &#8220;No, this is just a normal change in command.&#8221;
The Chief of Defence Forces, General Katumba Wamala, was named junior minister for works and transport and replaced by David Muhoozi in the change, Ankunda added.
Museveni, one of Africa&#8217;s longest-serving leaders, won a new five-year term in elections last year that the opposition said were rigged. He denies the charge.
 
(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa and Andrew Heavens)﻿

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