By Julius Mugaga Tukacungurwa/ Umoja Standard.
Kampala, Uganda: Under the theme ‘Enhancing East African Competitiveness in Global Value Chain’ the International Community of Ankole (ICOA) has organized a precursor of the October Convention in Boston.
The ICOA which was conceived and initiated two years ago will be holding a 4-day Investment & Trade Expo 2024 in Boston State, United States of America. The Expo will be focusing on many essential areas say, tourism in East Africa and Africa, culture and heritage reminding themselves of African values, market expansion platforms, innovations and inventions, IT (New Technology like AI), Value Addition knowledge, Women Entrepreneurship, Networking with partners abroad and others.
These areas have captured the interest of ICOA members allover Africa looking forward to tap into this opportunity.
In this endeavor, ICOA team Uganda organized a networking session geared towards getting together, showcasing some of the products as they prepared for the October Expo.
ICOA members from different parts of Uganda gathered at SKYZ Hotel, Naguru among other things, they showcased their amazing innovations and products as well getting to familiar one another.
Speaking during the networking session on Friday, Hon. Florence Hashaka Kabahweza, the Vice President of ICOA decided that the convention is a great opportunity entrepreneurs, with the element of Value Addition, it will help us understand how we can fetch more money for other than exporting what is in raw material.
Hon. Florence Hashaka Kabahweza, the Vice President of International Community of Ankole, (ICOA)
“We are focusing ourselves on new technology around the globe. We are focusing on culture and heritage. There is a lot of moral decadence. So our children, some of them, they don’t know what culture is. That’s why they are indoctrinated into other cultures that they don’t understand. So it is our work as an international community of Banyankore to go back to our roots and teach our children and ourselves what we should do, what used to hold us culturally and traditionally.” She hinted.
She stressed that the reason as to why they conceived the idea was that they needed to rejuvenate unity and needed an association that can bring them together arguing that two minds are better than one, ‘so that’s why we have come up as an association so that we bring all our ideas together and expand on all these areas of focus but when we remain as individuals we are not going to move.” She highlighted.
She noted that, they needed to attract audience, Members so that they all gather their brains together, knowledge, experience so that they can achieve their areas of focus during the event.
She thought government has to come in, because they’re doing this government. ‘This should be done by government but we as people, as Ugandans, as Africans, as East Africans, the development starts with us. At times we may not wait for government to start because we are the ones who experience whatever we are experiencing. We are the ones who want the growth.’
Hon Kabahweza stressed that everyone now should be brought on board to start something so that we move forward.
She cited some of the challenges as membership and coordination with their headquarters being in Boston, USA, coordinating with the local communities at times becomes a little bit difficult.
For this reason therefore, she stated that it’s the reason as to why they put this expo between (11-14)th October, 2024 which will bring the diaspora and the local communities together as it will draw strategies on how to move forward.
“That’s why we had the dinner today, that let us start with our indigenous country, so that now we can try thinking of going outside the country to get more knowledge on what we have.” She revealed.
About ICOA
International Community of Ankole is an association that was started by a few like-minded Ugandans in outside Uganda two years ago, most especially in USA and its offices are in Boston.
This was done with the aim of coming together to see how they can network for growth and development of their communities back home.
ICOA started as a small group of Banyankole people living in the diaspora, but later on there was demand from other tribes because they saw what the ICOA members were doing.
So our main focus, one, is we focus on promoting what we have back in our homes