Speaker of Parliament Anitah Among has welcomed His Excellence, Sasayama Takuya, the new Japanese Ambassador to Uganda, saying his appointment comes at the time Uganda is grappling with the devastating effects of climate change, where floods have washed away roads & bridges, thus creating the need for infrastructural development support from Japan.
“Thank you for coming in at the time we need you most. This is the time we need you most, we have challenges in terms of climate changes where the roads have been swept off by water, where we need roads to be worked on, the schools to be worked on but because you have come in at the right time, we will be able to work together,” said Among.
She added, “Just yesterday, we talked about the Karuma Bridge in Northern Uganda, the bridge has had a problem but we know with your support, we will be able to support and see that the country you have been posted to and you will work in is going to be the country that will enjoy the benefits coming from Japan. We will continue collaborating in terms of trade, technological development and exchange, we know you are so far away in terms of technology, we would want to tap something from Japan in terms of technological development.”
Among also called for better collaboration between the Parliament of Japan and Parliament of Uganda in legislative matters where the two institutions can even enter into a Memorandum of Understanding so that the respective MPs can exchange knowledge in legislation and foster the continued development between the two nations.
“When you look at socio-economic development, most of the cars we use in Uganda come from Japan. Japan gets the market for cars in Uganda because we believe it is the Japanese cars that are good for our roads here in Uganda. We want to thank the appointing authority for sending you over to Uganda and as Parliament, we will give you unwavering support in the execution of your work while you are in Uganda. Uganda is a country you will never want to leave, when you come here, you will always want to live here,” Among said.
Japanese Ambassador to Uganda, His Excellence, Sasayama Takuya thanked Ugandans for the warm reception he received since coming to Uganda two months back and promised to ensure that the aid development from Japanese people to Uganda is evenly distributed across the country, as opposed to limiting it to Northern Uganda as has been in the past.
He also thanked the Speaker for the Parliamentary resolution that was recently passed, thanking Japan for the socio-economic development they have extended to Uganda through their body, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
“I have already spent 2months here and I found the nature wonderful, kind people, and the friendship, I felt it already. And you have wonderful seasons in the year. Our assistance extended to our friend Uganda in various areas include; economic development, infrastructure, education, agriculture, medical, refugees, that we want to see not in one area but also balanced. You have an abundance of resources which are the young people who will reassure your country and hope for the next generation to come. My Government and my people would like to invest for the future generation as well,” said Takuya.
