UGANDA MOVES TO REOPEN ANCIENT NORTH AFRICA TRADE ROUTES THROUGH STRATEGIC TALKS WITH YEMENI-BORN BUSINESS HISTORIAN, ALI BAJABER
In a bid to expand Uganda’s trade footprint into North Africa, His Excellency Ali Bajaber—an esteemed businessman and historian of Yemeni ancestry—flew in from Morocco to meet with officials at the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (@PACEIDUG). The high-level discussion centered on opening a commercial corridor linking Uganda’s products to North African markets.
Mr. Bajaber brings a unique blend of business acumen and deep historical insight into ancient South Arabian civilisation. His knowledge is rooted in the legacy of Yemen, a region once ruled by the Sabeans from around 1200 BC. It was this ancient kingdom that produced the legendary Queen of Sheba, who famously visited King Solomon of Israel around 970 BC.
Yemen has long held a prominent place in global trade history, having established early trading relationships with India, Africa, and the Middle East. What many may not know is that Yemenis, over time, embraced Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, forming a remarkably cosmopolitan society well before the modern era.
“We must be careful with history,” said a representative at PACEID, “and study societies deeply if we are to build effective partnerships. Understanding our shared historical ties will help us work more cohesively.”
The partnership with Mr. Bajaber aims to revive and modernize the ancient trade networks that once connected the Swahili Coast—Malindi, Mombasa, and Zanzibar—with major North African ports such as Casablanca, Tunis, and Tripoli.
This initiative marks a strategic step in Uganda’s broader economic agenda to diversify export destinations and rekindle historic ties across the African continent and beyond.
