RWANDA: Kagame family spends Christmas in Rwakitura

Presidents Kagame and Museveni (R) after the former’s arrival at Katuna border. PHOTO BY STEPHEN WANDERA

In Summary

This is the second time that the Rwandan President is visiting Uganda in a space of one month.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame and his family arrived in Uganda on Thursday on a five-day private visit. His wife Jannette, children Anse, Brian and Ian were welcomed by President Museveni and his wife Janet at the Uganda-Rwanda border in Katuna.

The two heads of state will dine and wine on Christmas together with their families in reciprocal visit that indicates continued effort to strengthen the relations between the two countries. Mr Kagame’s visit comes three months after President Museveni, his daughter Natasha Karugire and Janet visited Rwanda in a four-day state visit.

The two Presidents launched the re-construction of Mbarara-Katuna-Kigali Road at Uganda-Rwanda border.
The road which connects Rwanda and Burundi to the strategic port of Mombasa is currently in bad condition after its reconstruction in 1991.

President Museveni said the renovation of the high-way was supposed to begin in 2005 but the two governments had no money. “This road was tarmaced in 1963 and according to the design, it was supposed to last for 14 years. It was supposed to be reconstructed in 1977 but because of the chaos, we didn’t until 1991,” he said.

“We were again to reconstruct it in 1991 but we didn’t have money.” The Mbarara-Katuna-Kigali Highway is a 201km section of the vital Northern Corridor route, which links the economies of East Africa and the Great Lakes region with the Indian Ocean.

The project is funded by the European Union.

Road maintenance
The Head of the EU delegation in Uganda, Amb. Roberto Rodolfi said the two governments must maintain the road.

President Kagame is in Uganda for a five-day visit. The Rwandan leader was last here for two days on December 11 for the Young Achievers’ annual gala at the commonwealth Speke Resort Munyonyo.

The relations between Uganda and Rwanda became fragile in the late 1990s and early 2000 when the armies of the two countries which had entered DR Congo as allies to fight the late president Kabila later fought each other.

SOURCE: DAILY MONITOR, Posted  Sunday, December 25  2011 at  00:00

AUTHOR: Risdel Kasasira & Robert Muhereza  (email the author)