(21 June 2017) Business Opportunities for Italian Companies in Uganda were the focus of the second business forum "Uganda: Investment and Trade hub for East Africa" organised in Rome by Pavia and Ansaldo Law Firm, the Embassy of Uganda and the Assafrica and the Mediterranean Confederation. The forum, moderated in the early part of the morning by Pier Luigi D'Agata, General Manager of Assafrica & Mediterraneo Confederation, began with opening remarks by Grace Akello, Ambassador of Uganda to Italy, by Marco Claudio Vozzi, Deputy Director for Sub-Saharan African Countries and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Christopher Kibanzanga, Ugandan Minister of Agriculture. "Today's signing of the Assafrica & Mediterranean Confederation Agreement and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uganda paves the way for greater interaction between Italian and Ugandan companies," according to Agata. The speakers also focused on the G20 initiative to promote private investments in the continent, investment opportunities in infrastructure such as roads and railways, the mechanisation of agriculture and power plants for the production of energy from renewable sources but also on the important contribution that the Italian system can provide to the development of the country and the continent. "Through our Africa desk, we provide assistance to international institutions as well as Italian and foreign customers interested in investing across the continent and that have developed considerable experience over the years. Uganda, in particular, is increasingly a strategic country for access to the markets of East Africa, also considering the country's political stability and the high rate of economic growth" says lawyer Mario Di Giulio, partner and manager of the Africa office of the Pavia and Ansaldo Law Firm.

UGANDA

Uganda is strategically located between East Africa and the Great Lakes Region, qualifying as a real hub for investment and trade within the East African Community. The country's growth is also estimated at 5.1% this year an climbing towards an estimated 5.8% next year also thanks to major infrastructure projects announced by the government in the wake of the development plan aimed at transforming Uganda into a Middle-income nation within the next 30 years.