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\n Kampala, Uganda \u2014 Diplomats, government officials, development partners, private sector leaders, and representatives of civil society gathered in Kampala on Thursday evening as the European Union marked Europe Day 2026 alongside the 50th anniversary of diplomatic partnership between Uganda and the EU. Hosted by Amb. Jan Sadek at his Residence, the celebration brought together ambassadors and representatives of all EU member states accredited to Uganda, senior Ugandan government officials, international organisations, cultural actors, youth representatives, and members of the diplomatic corps in what became both a symbolic and policy-oriented reflection on five decades of cooperation.
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\nThis year\u2019s celebration carried significance beyond the annual commemoration of Europe Day. It also marked half a century since the then-European Community formally established its delegation in Kampala in 1976, laying the foundation for a relationship that has evolved through political transitions, economic reforms, regional integration, and shifting global realities. Addressing guests, Ambassador Sadek reflected on the historical meaning of Europe Day, tracing its origins to the 1950 Schuman Declaration, proposed by French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman in the aftermath of the Second World War. He noted that the idea behind European integration was to ensure that conflict between European nations would become \u201cnot merely unlikely, but unthinkable.\u201d \u201cSince then, the European Union has grown into one of the world\u2019s most successful peace and integration projects,\u201d Ambassador Sadek remarked. \u201cIn today\u2019s complex geopolitical environment, the EU remains committed to dialogue, partnership, and predictable international cooperation.\u201d
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\nWhile rooted in European history, the evening in Kampala focused strongly on the future of EU\u2013Uganda relations and the broader Africa\u2013Europe partnership. Ambassador Sadek described the 50-year relationship as one built not only through development cooperation, but through sustained dialogue, trust, trade, investment, education, and people-to-people connections. The event was attended by Uganda\u2019s Vice President, Jessica Alupo, alongside ministers, parliamentarians, representatives from the Buganda Kingdom, development agencies, business leaders, and officials from the United Nations and World Bank systems.
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\nIn her remarks, H.E Rtd MAJ Jessica Rose Epel Alupo the Vice President of Uganda conveyed greetings from President Yoweri Museveni and commended the European Union for what she described as five decades of \u201cconstructive partnership and shared progress.\u201d She acknowledged that EU support to Uganda over the years has contributed to improvements in infrastructure, energy, education, humanitarian response, and community resilience. Uganda currently hosts one of Africa\u2019s largest refugee populations, a responsibility she said continues to require strong international solidarity. Trade and economic cooperation emerged as a central theme throughout the evening. Uganda continues to benefit from the European Union\u2019s \u201cEverything but Arms\u201d arrangement, which grants duty-free and quota-free access for Ugandan exports to the European market, excluding arms and ammunition. Amb. Sadek noted that Ugandan exports to the EU have significantly increased in recent years, with coffee remaining one of the country\u2019s strongest export products to Europe.
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\nFrom Rome and Paris to Berlin, Stockholm, and Amsterdam, Ugandan coffee continues to strengthen commercial and cultural ties between the two regions while supporting livelihoods for thousands of farming households across Uganda. Amb. Sadek also highlighted growing European investment in Uganda through sectors such as renewable energy, agriculture, logistics, manufacturing, technology, and infrastructure development. He linked this cooperation to the EU\u2019s Global Gateway strategy, which seeks to promote sustainable investment partnerships globally. The evening further reflected the increasingly strategic nature of Africa-Europe relations in a changing international order. Beyond development financing, the partnership now encompasses climate action, digital transformation, critical raw materials, youth engagement, education, cultural diplomacy, and regional security cooperation. Uganda\u2019s contribution to regional peacekeeping efforts, particularly through missions in Somalia, was recognised during the ceremony, alongside the country\u2019s longstanding refugee policy and regional diplomatic role within East Africa.
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\nAs Europe and Uganda look toward the next phase of engagement, both sides projected optimism grounded in mutual interests and shared global challenges. Upcoming joint initiatives, including business forums, academic exchanges, climate partnerships, and new investment programmes, were presented as part of a broader vision for the future. In many respects, the evening reflected more than diplomatic ceremony. It underscored the continuing evolution of Uganda\u2013EU relations from traditional aid cooperation toward a multidimensional partnership increasingly shaped by trade, innovation, sustainability, and geopolitical collaboration. As guests raised a toast to the next fifty years, the message emerging from Kampala was clear: in an era defined by uncertainty and shifting alliances, long-standing partnerships anchored in dialogue and mutual respect remain central to international cooperation.<\/p>\n
\t\tPost navigation<\/p>\n\n Kampala, Uganda \u2014 Diplomats, government officials, development partners, private sector leaders, and representatives of civil society gathered in Kampala on Thursday evening as the European Union marked Europe Day 2026 alongside the 50th anniversary of diplomatic partnership between Uganda and the EU. Hosted by Amb. Jan Sadek at his Residence, the celebration brought together ambassadors …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":833,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_3659155457675267_172535249438148":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-news"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight.jpeg",1579,1185,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-150x150.jpeg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-300x225.jpeg",300,225,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-768x576.jpeg",618,464,true],"large":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-1024x768.jpeg",618,464,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-1536x1153.jpeg",1536,1153,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight.jpeg",1579,1185,false],"tie-small":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-110x75.jpeg",110,75,true],"tie-medium":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-310x165.jpeg",310,165,true],"tie-large":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-310x205.jpeg",310,205,true],"slider":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-660x330.jpeg",660,330,true],"big-slider":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/EU\u2013Uganda-Partnership-Marks-50-Years-as-Europe-Day-Celebrations-Highlight-1050x525.jpeg",1050,525,true]},"author_info":{"info":["Editor"]},"category_info":"News<\/a>","tag_info":"News","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=832"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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