President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has pledged to support the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and offered Uganda as a potential host for the organisation’s future headquarters as it prepares to relocate from Brussels, Belgium.
The President made the commitment today during a meeting with the OACPS Secretary General, H.E. Moussa Saleh Batraki, at State House Entebbe.
The meeting was also attended by the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Thomas Tayebwa, who serves as President of the OACPS Parliamentary Assembly.
President Museveni welcomed the organisation’songoing reforms and reaffirmed Uganda’s commitment to advancing South-South cooperation among developing nations.
He also invited the organisation to consider Uganda as the location of its future headquarters.
“You can look at Uganda if you want to relocate here. We shall support you. The shift from Europe is also a good one, so I will support you,” the President added.
Briefing the President, H.E. Batraki said the OACPS has evolved beyond its original mandate of coordinating development negotiations between African, Caribbean and Pacific countries and the European Union.
He explained that in 2019, member states resolved to transform the organisation into a stronger political and economic alliance focused on South-South cooperation.
“The Heads of State wanted to create an alliance for South-South cooperation. The idea is to reinforce our political identity while ensuring our member states are aligned in addressing emerging global challenges,” he said.
The Secretary General disclosed that when he assumed office a year ago, he inherited an institution facing severe financial and operational challenges.
“I found staff who had gone seven months without salaries. The organisation had accumulated debts exceeding €12 million and, remarkably, we had no permanent headquarters,” he said.
To stabilise the organisation, H.E. Batraki embarked on an extensive diplomatic campaign to rally support from member states. He credited King Mswati III of Eswatini for helping mobilise African leaders and facilitating an OACPS summit held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, in March this year.
During that summit, member states pledged financial support, including €4.5 million from Equatorial Guinea, €3 million from Angola and €1.5 million from Eswatini, alongside additional commitments from Tanzania, China and Barbados.
H.E. Batraki noted that Uganda was represented at the summit by the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gen. Jeje Odongo.
Although Uganda did not announce a financial contribution during the summit, Rt. Hon. Tayebwa said he was confident President Museveni would back the organisation because of his long-standing support for South-South cooperation.
“I said to myself that President Museveni has always supported South-South cooperation, and I believed Uganda would contribute something,” Rt. Hon. Tayebwa said.
Following the briefing, President Museveni immediately announced Uganda’s contribution.
A key issue discussed during the meeting was the proposed relocation of the OACPS headquarters from Brussels to one of its member states.
H.E. Batraki said maintaining the organisation’sheadquarters in Belgium no longer reflects its new strategic direction.
“Our Heads of State agreed that we cannot continue spending our resources in Europe when the organisation belongs to its member states. They instructed me to identify suitable countries where the headquarters could be relocated,” he said.
He explained that while the OACPS intends to retain a small liaison office in Brussels to coordinate relations with the European Union under the Samoa Agreement, its main headquarters should be based within a member state.
“We currently have offices in Geneva handling trade issues, Equatorial Guinea handling triangular negotiations, and we are establishing another office in Nigeria focusing on diaspora affairs. The headquarters should now also be located within one of our member states.”
The Secretary General said Uganda is among the countries being considered.
“We believe Uganda can be one of the countries considered. We wanted to know whether this would be acceptable to Your Excellency.”
President Museveni welcomed the proposal, assuring him of Uganda’s full support.
H.E. Batraki said member states have agreed on three strategic priorities to shape the organisation’s future.
The first is promoting trade among member states by leveraging their comparative advantages and encouraging investment and knowledge exchange.
The second focuses on climate resilience through environmental protection, sustainable management of oceans and responsible utilisation of natural resources and minerals.
The third is digital governance, with emphasis on digital sovereignty and ensuring member states retain ownership and control of their strategic data and digital infrastructure.
He said the priorities are intended to strengthen cooperation among developing countries while reducing dependence on external actors.
The Secretary General also outlined several initiatives aimed at expanding partnerships across the Global South.
These include collaboration with Indonesia to host a Global Business Forum in 2027 to promote trade, investment and public-private partnerships, as well as a proposed €5 billion agricultural programme with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to boost agricultural technology and food security.
“We hope to conclude the project before the end of this year so that many of our member states can benefit,”he said.
H.E. Batraki also congratulated Uganda for ratifying the Samoa Agreement, describing it as a significant step in strengthening cooperation between the OACPS and the European Union.
“The organisation should continue working with the European Union, but it should not be viewed as belonging to the European Union. It belongs to its member states,” he said.
He further commended Rt. Hon. Tayebwa for his leadership of the OACPS Parliamentary Assembly and expressed confidence that he would continue mobilising legislators across member states to support the organisation’s reform agenda.
Speaking during the same meeting, Rt. Hon. Tayebwa revealed that Uganda is bidding to host the next Joint Parliamentary Assembly, which brings together legislators from Africa, the Caribbean, the Pacific and the European Union.
“We have requested that the next Joint Parliamentary Assembly takes place in Uganda in October next year. It will be an opportunity for more than 200 European delegates to come and witness Uganda’s transformation,” Rt. Hon. Tayebwa said.
He also noted that Uganda is seeking diplomatic support for Ambassador Olara Otunnu’s candidature for the position of United Nations Secretary-General.
