Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has played down concerns regarding his country's expulsion from a special US-Africa trade program.
Last week, US President Joe Biden said Uganda and three other African countries would be removed from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), citing Uganda’s “gross violations of internationally recognised human rights”.
But President Museveni on Sunday criticised the US, saying they “overestimate themselves” and “erroneously think that African countries cannot move forward without their support”.
“As far as Uganda is concerned, we have the capacity to achieve our growth and transformation targets, even if some of the actors do not support us,” he added.
Following Uganda's passage of a controversial anti-homosexuality law in May, which included severe penalties for certain same-sex acts, the US has joined other nations in taking action against the country. The law led to the World Bank withdrawing its funding to Uganda. However, President Museveni remained steadfast, accusing the organization of exerting pressure on his country to repeal the law. He emphasized that Uganda could continue to progress without the bank's support.
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Mr. Museveni expressed appreciation for the American government's continued funding for HIV drugs. He also stated that his government had a contingency plan in place to procure the drugs independently in case foreign donors withdrew their support.
