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Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT REPORTER | Businessman Sudhir Ruparelia has been appointed first honorary Consul of the Republic of Nepal.
Sudhir was recently confirmed by Bidhya Devi Bhandari, the Nepalese President after he successfully presented his credentials to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
A billionaire, Sudhir, is the founder and Chairman of the Ruparelia Group, a 28-company conglomerate in Uganda.
What’s role of a consul?
Why would an individual be appointed to represent interests of a foreign country in their (individual’s) home economy?
That is the question that many people in the business and political circles are currently trying to answer a few days after Nepal appointed Sudhir to connect them to Uganda.
The two economies – Napal and Uganda have a lot in common and Sudhir’s appointment is expected to strengthen their trade ties and expose opportunities for both.
According to internet sources, a consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul’s own country. Such a move also facilitates trade and friendship between the people of the two countries.
Available data indicates that Napal’s economy is heavily dependent on imports of basic materials and on foreign markets for its forest and agricultural products. It imports essential commodities, such as fuel, construction materials, fertilizers, metals, and most consumer goods, and exports such products as rice, jute, timber, and textiles.
Uganda on the other hand is an agricultural based economy with investment opportunities in the sector’s value chain.
The economy is expected to experience a new boom after the Final Investment Decision (FDI) for the oil and gas sector is made very soon. The country also has investment opportunities in services, general trade, construction and manufacturing sectors.
