ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE STATE DINNER IN HONOUR OF H.E. THE PRESIDENT OF UGANDA
ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT McALEESE AT THE STATE DINNER IN HONOUR OF H.E. THE PRESIDENT OF UGANDA, MR YOWERI KAGUTA MUSEVENI
President Museveni,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen
Cuireann sé athas orm fáilte a chur romhaibh anseo tráthnóna. Fearaim céad míle fáilte roimh a shoilse, Uachtarán Museveni, agus ár gcuairteoirí uile ó Uganda.
It is a great honour for me to welcome you President Museveni and all the members of your delegation. I hope you are already beginning to feel at home in Ireland. I welcome too all those who have gathered here from every part of this island and from many walks of life, to share this State dinner in your honour.
On the face of it the contrasts between our two countries could not be greater. We are a small island in the Northern Hemisphere, part of continental Europe of course, but at some remove from most of our neighbours. Uganda sits in the very heart of Africa, straddling the equator, landlocked, yet home to some of the world’s greatest displays of the beauty and power of water - the legendary source of the Nile and Lake Victoria. Yet our two peoples have legendary reputations for openness, friendship and hospitality. They have both known the scarring effects of deep-rooted poverty and violent conflict. We both know what it is to try to energise dormant national pride and to forge an inclusive identity capable of drawing the pride and loyalty of citizens of very different backgrounds and perspectives.
Nor are we strangers to each other, despite the considerable distance between us. We enjoy deep, warm and cordial friendship. Indeed among the many links between Ireland and Uganda which long predate independence and which have kept communication fresh between our two countries is the work of Irish missionaries in the fields of health and education. It is a matter of pride to us that you personally hold in particularly high regard the work of the Franciscan nuns who educated your daughters.
Ireland and Uganda share many similar historical experiences. Both our nations emerged from a colonial legacy with a fierce determination to secure a better future for our peoples and with a willingness to make our own distinctive contribution on the world stage. As our independence came early in the 1920's, we in Ireland have had 40 years longer than Uganda in which to progress towards the attainment of our objectives. Still, it is only in the past few years that the true potential of our people has begun to be realised and that our country has emerged from the shadows of the past to the peace, prosperity and the heartening prospects which we enjoy today. Perhaps in our story there is hope to help you as you continue on your journey to achieve the full potential of your place and your people.
The young, optimistic and independent Uganda has weathered many storms over the past forty or so years. Many of us here remember those awful years through the seventies and early eighties when the Ugandan people endured the most appalling hardship and violence. They emerged with great dignity and courage and under your leadership, Mr President, Uganda has become stable and peaceful despite conflict in the neighbouring regions, which at times has spilled over into your country and cost you dearly in terms both of lives and property. To have preserved peace and stability under such difficult circumstances is a great tribute to your patient, steady and clear-sighted leadership and to the people of Uganda.
As President of Uganda you have demonstrated exceptional and consistent political courage. When you were first elected President in January 1986 you assumed responsibility for a country facing comprehensive economic collapse and drained by internal conflict. The challenge of restoring democracy, securing peace and rebuilding a devastated economy was formidable, yet you faced into it with vision and determination. Since then you have consolidated your achievements well.
Over the past decade Uganda has emerged as a consistently good economic performer, achieving annual growth rates of over 5%. The new Uganda has made tremendous strides in education, health, water and energy supply, public sector management and economic development generally.
Yet recent economic progress notwithstanding, we know that Uganda has not yet fully realised its considerable potential. Bearing this reality in mind, Ireland’s development cooperation with Uganda has increased significantly in recent years and is set to expand further in the coming decade. The Ireland Aid Programme for Uganda has grown to approximately IR£10 million this year and we anticipate a further growth to some £15 million in 2001. It is a young and growing Programme, operating within a favourable economic and political environment and with a key focus on poverty reduction, the provision of basic needs and services, institutional and human resource development and good governance.
Mr President, one of the major aims of your administration has been to develop educational opportunities for the people of Uganda. As a young student, you yourself specifically identified lack of knowledge as “the major factor in many of the mistakes that have occurred in Africa since the 1960s”. By introducing Universal Primary Education for all in 1997, you have pointed the way to Uganda’s future prosperity. For Ireland, education has been the very foundation stone of our path to social and economic development. Through the widening of access to education, the talent and genius of our people has been unlocked as never before. The new power it has released into the human energy grid has transformed the life chances of our people and the fortunes of our country. It has made us anxious to ensure that all our human potential is enabled to blossom, not just some, for now we know the power of that potential we also know the dismal downside of wasting it. I know that Uganda will take heart from our experience.
Mr President your championing of the inclusion of women in the mainstream of your country’s governance is a righteous source of pride for it too is about ensuring the best possible use of the power generated by each human being. By empowering Ugandan women both educationally and politically, you have once again moved your country forward with great strides. I am sure you will find, as we have, that this investment will be repaid a hundredfold, releasing an enormous reservoir of fresh talent and energy.
Health is another key area towards which you have directed considerable attention in your tenure as President. Faced with the AIDS pandemic which has already wreaked such a horrendous toll on the people of Africa, you realised at once that the situation demanded a multisectoral response. Uganda was one of the first African countries to get to grips with this formidable enemy and today your work to control the spread of AIDS sets a crucial and positive example for other countries.
Mr President, for more than thirty years, you have devoted yourself selflessly to the betterment of your people. In your autobiography entitled “Sowing The Mustard Seed” you remarked that:
“…public leadership, especially in an underdeveloped country like Uganda, is an endless sacrifice…..I accepted the mantle of leadership…..knowing very well that sacrifices notwithstanding, action had to be taken if Uganda’s pitiable situation was to be reversed and transcended.”
You planted the mustard seeds of democracy and of hope. With your careful guardianship they have, as you have said, “germinated and grown well”. Uganda has been fortunate in its President and Ireland is honoured to have you here with us in the Millennium year.
I hope, Mr President, that this visit will enable you to deepen your understanding of the Irish people. But most of all I hope that during your visit, you will get a sense of how delighted we are to have you here and that we see in you a valued and respected friend. May you travel safely and bring back to Uganda good word of us, your friends here in Ireland.
May I ask the company to rise and join me in a toast to the President and People of the Republic of Uganda.