Botschaftermatinée: Uganda

Wednesday 30. April 18:00 - 19:00
Location: DGAP, Berlin

 

Beautiful flora and fauna, a relatively well educated population and a lively civil society, but also civil war, refugees and child soldiers especially in recent decades – all this is part of Uganda, a land of contradictions. At the Ambassador’s Meeting in the DGAP on 30 April 2008 Sabine Porn spoke to His Excellency Nyine Samson Bitahwa, ambassador of the Republic of Uganda, Walter Schroedter, a Protestant pastor from Kiel and chairman of the partnership committee of the Raisdorf church community, and Dr. Annette Weber, expert on Uganda from the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik. The discussion focused on historical and current developments in this East African country as well as on personal experiences of the participants with the Republic of Uganda.

Named the “Pearl of Africa” by Winston Churchill, today Uganda’s main challenge is to deal with its difficult recent past. After achieving independence from Great Britain in 1962 a terrible dictatorship was established by Idi Amin, during which 300.000 members of the opposition died. At the end of the following decade a bloody civil war broke out mainly in the north of the country between the Lord’s Resistance Army, aiming to establish a Christian theocratic state, and the Ugandan government, led by President Museveni since 1986. In 2008 a fragile ceasefire was achieved. Confronted by poverty, destruction and misery, the country must now begin a difficult process of reconstruction and reconciliation.

After studying in Germany, then returning to his country of birth, which he had left as a refugee, His Excellency Nyine Samson Bitahwa founded the NGO Rukawere Partnership Workshop for Rural Development in Uganda. Since then this organisation has implemented projects particularly designed to improve the situation of the people living in rural areas, who make up about 90 per cent of the total population. In the process, a partnership developed between German church-based aid initiatives and the Ambassador’s NGO. He and Pastor Schroedter, who has been organising aid projects in the East African country for 20 years, reported in this context on their experiences during their work in Uganda, which has shown success, as well as a number of problems. His Excellency Nyine Samson Bitahwa expressed his expectations and hope for a real partnership between Europe and Uganda, which should be characterised not only by European financial aid but also by personal engagement in local projects. Dr. Annette Weber also stated in addition, that Europe lacks political will concerning its aid for Africa. But she called for a change in policy and thinking by African elites, who have so far done too little to improve the situation of their peoples.

This episode of the “Botschaftermatinée” will be broadcast on Sunday, 4 May 2008, at 11:22 am on Inforadio 93,1.

For further information visit www.inforadio.de