By John Stephen Katende

8^th April 2013:

President Yoweri Museveni has donated $300,000 to the ‘Meles Foundation’ which was established in honour of Ethiopia’s late Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi. The Foundation was officially launched at ceremony held at the African Union (AU) headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa on Saturday, April 5.

Apart from Uganda on whose behalf Museveni made the $300,000 donation, Sudan announced it would contribute $2million, South Sudan pledged $1million and Djibouti pledged $500,000.

The ‘Meles Foundation’ will serve as a memorial centre to the Ethiopian Prime Minister’s great contribution towards peace, socio-economic development and his lead role in climate change negotiations and environmental protection among others.

It was disclosed at the occasion that the Foundation had elected 13 board members, including the former first lady, Azeb Mesfin, who will serve as board president and house of federation speaker Kassa Teklebrhan, who was elected vice president.

The Foundation will house an international standard library where works of the late Prime Minister will be displayed. It will also serve as a research centre to advance and maintain his legacies for future generations.  Preserving Meles’s legacy will involve the implementation of policies and strategies designed by Zenawi.

The launch of the Foundation was also attended Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir, Djibouti President Ismail Guelleh, Somalian Prime Minister Abdi Shirdon, AU Chairperson Dlamini Zuma, the Foreign Minister of Rwanda and other high profile African government officials.

AU Chairperson Dlamini Zuma remembered the late premier as “visionary leader” who managed to transform his country from one that was only known for poverty and hunger to one that is now known to be one of the fastest growing economies on the continent.

The African leaders lauded Zenawi as an outstanding leader who was not only committed to the development of his country but that of Africa as a whole.  END: Login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories mid-week for our updates

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