The Ugandan government on Thursday, announced plans to reclaim vehicles from officials, including ministers, permanent secretaries, and directors.
Vincent Bagiire, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that this move is in preparation for the upcoming Non-Aligned Movement and G77+China summits, which Uganda is hosting in January 2024.
The announcement was made during an event where the Chinese government handed over 70 sports utility vehicles to Uganda for use during the forthcoming summits in Kampala.
“The vehicles we are targeting are those for ministers, permanent secretaries, directors, and all entitled officers,” Bagiire clarified.
According to him, starting from Monday, December 18, all official cars will be withdrawn and parked at Kololo Independence Grounds for inspection and maintenance.
He further explained that both summits require a minimum of 1,200 vehicles to transport delegates to and from the venue conveniently.
The 19th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit is scheduled to be hosted by Uganda from January 15 to 20, followed by the G77+China summit from January 21 to 23 at Speke Resort Munyonyo.
The vehicles will be returned to their users after the conclusion of these two events, which mark the country’s most significant global meetings since the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2007.
Delegates from 120 countries are expected to attend the NAM summit, while 134 countries should be represented during the G77+China conference.
Bagiire assured that the government has made adequate preparations for the upcoming summits.
“As far as preparedness is concerned, the country seems ready to host the two summits… We have other vehicles in ministries and departments, and all these vehicles are going to be recalled for use during the ten-plus days the summits shall be running.”
The decision to retrieve vehicles comes at a time when the Christmas festivities have commenced, and a lot of people, including government officials will be travelling for the Christmas holiday.
