Uganda this week is hosting two unprecedented back-to-back summits with the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit currently running from the 15th to the 20th of January at the Munyonyo Commonwealth Resort Hotel.

With this masterpiece of African event organization, Uganda is trying to compete with neighboring Rwanda to establish this country as East Africa’s capital for global meetings, incentives, and tourism.

The Non-Aligned Movement is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc.

The movement was founded with the view to advancing the interests of developing countries in the context of Cold War confrontation.

After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide. It was launched in 1961 in Serbia and has its headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Following this event, the G77 summit will run from the 20th to 23rd January 2024 at the same venue.

The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a coalition of 135 developing countries, designed to promote its members’ collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations.

“This is a huge gathering. In comparative terms, you can compare it with the UN General Assembly. The UN General Assembly is made up of 193 countries,” said Ambassador Adonia Ayebare.

He is Uganda’s permanent representative to the United Nations.

Preparations

The country was bustling with preparations in the months preceding the events, with the brand new Speke Resort Convention Centre, which can accommodate 1500 people, being completed just in time for the start of the summit after a construction period of one year and two days.

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Information published bu the CVB on Why Uganda

Entebbe International Airport

Just over a week ago, the modified terminal building at Entebbe International Airport was opened for public use.

The 360-meter length underpass road is the first of its kind in this East African country.

New pedestrian bridges have also just been opened to the public to address congestion, and to enhance pedestrian safety, especially at such international conferences where delegates are given priority lanes and siren blaring escort vehicles.

These developments demonstrate the country’s strides as an emerging Meetings Incentives Conferences and Events – (MICE) destination capable of facilitating such large-scale events and enhancing its global standing.

Uganda’s Vice President opens the summit

Presiding over the Official Opening ceremony was Uganda’s Vice President, H.E. Jessica Alupo.

She informed delegates that their presence is an affirmation of the trust and confidence in the leadership of the country, to steer the Movement in line with the founding principles and promotion of the interests of its membership in a globalized world.

The East African Trade and Investment Forum also runs concurrently with the big conferences aimed at bringing together investors from the East African Community (EAC) and beyond to showcase and explore the investment opportunities in Uganda and other EAC countries.

The forum is organized under the theme, “

Deeper Cooperation in Trade, Tourism, and Investment for shared global affluence”.

The summits are running almost parallel with the annual World Economic Forum bringing together the G7 and other global elite countries gathered at the popular alpine ski Resort of Davos, Switzerland to discuss priorities for the year ahead.

This parallel enhances the significance of Uganda also represented by Peter B. Nyeko who joined fellow panelists at Davos 2024 for a discussion on enabling industries and sectors to scale innovations tackling air pollution and the climate emergency towards achieving net zero.

Peter runs Mandulus Energy a private energy startup that uses farm waste to enhance both on-grid and off-grid biomass projects to supply clean power to local communities in rural Uganda; a common topic on the agenda both at Davos and Kampala.