Visiting President Museveni calls China a reliable friend of Africa

China threw its weight behind Uganda as the two countries signed eight agreements in Beijing on March 31, half of which allow China to extend concessional loans to improve Uganda's infrastructure and its communication sector.

The agreements will lead to closer economic ties and help Uganda build up its industrial skills and to expand and upgrade Entebbe International Airport, southwest of the capital's central business district.

Both countries can strengthen cooperation in areas including infrastructure, investment, medical care and tourism, President Xi Jinping told Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni in a meeting before they witnessed the signings.

China is willing to share its experience in developing special economic zones and industrial parks, as well as encourage and support the involvement of Chinese enterprises in Uganda's industrial and agricultural development, Xi said.

Uganda's economic growth is set to accelerate to 5.3 percent in fiscal 2014-15, driven by infrastructure investment aimed at maximizing benefits from an expected oil boom, Reuters quoted a Ugandan official as saying last month.

For decades, China has been a supporter of Uganda's development and a leading contractor in projects from housing to roads and bridges. Two-way trade reached $520 million in 2013.

Calling China a reliable friend of Africa, Museveni said Uganda hopes to see closer cooperation in standard-gauge railways and hydroelectric development.

He also called for support from the Chinese government for bilateral cooperation in oil, mineral resources, tourism and industrial parks.

According to The Diplomat, a Tokyo current affairs magazine for the Asia-Pacific, "Uganda has been steadily turning toward China".

China is becoming Uganda's preferred trade and investment partner, and Chinese investment has supported an African rail line linking Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya, with exports to be made through Mombasa, Kenya's second-largest city. China is also financing 85 percent of two hydroelectric projects in Uganda, the magazine reported last year.

In a separate meeting on March 31, Premier Li Keqiang told Museveni that China wants to establish a railway network in East Africa by working together with countries in that region.

China will also offer assistance in the construction of large projects such as airports and hydropower stations, Li said.

Deng Yanting, a researcher in African studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the cooperation with Uganda gives lie to allegations that China is only interested in acquiring African resources.

It also shows Beijing's growing ties with inland Africa, not just traditional partners like coastal Kenya, Deng said.

Museveni concluded his fifth visit to China on April 1. During the six-day trip, he attended the annual Boao Forum for Asia in Hainan province.

Zhao Yinan contributed to this story.

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