V Muraleedharan's visit to Uganda contributed to consolidation of bilateral ties, sets roadmap for future engagements: MEA

Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan's visit to Uganda contributed to the consolidation of India-Uganda relations on the entire gamut of bilateral, regional and international issues, and set out a road map for future engagements.

New Delhi:Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan's visit to Uganda contributed to the consolidation of India-Uganda relations on the entire gamut of bilateral, regional and international issues, and set out a road map for future engagements.

Muraleedharan paid an official visit to the Republic of Uganda on November 11-13. During the visit, Muraleedhaaran called on President of the Republic of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni.

President Yoweri Museveni emphasized the special nature of India-Uganda relations and expressed his desire to further strengthen these relations, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

"Muraleedharan's visit to Uganda contributed to the consolidation of India-Uganda relations on the entire gamut of bilateral, regional and international issues, and set out a road map for future engagements," the MEA statement read.

Recalling President Museveni's visit to India in October 2015 for the India-Africa Forum Summit, MoS briefed the President of Uganda about the current state of bilateral relations and discussed ways and means to take these relations forward.

Muraleedharan also called on the Speaker of Ugandan Parliament Jacob L. Oulanyah and invited him to visit India for the centennial celebration of the Public Account Committee in December 2021. The Speaker accepted the invitation.

Muraleedharan also had detailed discussions with the Ugandan MoS for Foreign Affairs, Oryem Okello covering the entire gamut of our bilateral relations including trade and investment, health, energy, agriculture, cultural exchanges, Indian Community-related matters and other bilateral and multilateral issues. Both sides agreed to enhance cooperation in these areas.

The vice president inaugurated the Learning Centre set-up under e-Vidhya Bharti e-Arogya Bharti (E-VBAB) at the College of Computing and Information Science at Makerere University in Kampala.

This is expected to serve the educational needs of young Ugandan students who can avail of distance education facilities from Indian universities, the MEA said in a statement.

During the visit, Muraleedharan had useful interaction with the Indian diaspora in Kampala and also participated in the Indian Business Forum organized by the Indian Association of Uganda. He also addressed a business gathering organized by the Uganda Investment Authority.

Muraleedharan also had visited Jinja to pay homage at the Bust of Mahatma Gandhi.

This is the site where Mahatma Gandhi's ashes were immersed and is expected to be the site for Mahatma Gandhi Heritage Centre (MGHC).

ANI