President William Ruto has recalled a conversation in which Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni warned against sacrificing the long-term value of Africa's natural resources for short-term gains, saying some leaders could “sell the Uganda oil and buy perfume”.
Speaking during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Dangote East Africa Oil Refinery in Lamu, Ruto said Museveni had explained to him why he insisted that Uganda retain domestic refining capacity rather than exporting all its crude oil.
According to Ruto, Museveni believed countries rich in natural resources needed leaders with long-term plans for turning those resources into industries, jobs and wider economic development.
“He told me the reason why he had put his foot down is that there were some leaders in Uganda who did not have a plan and they did not have a vision,” Ruto said.
Ruto then paraphrased Museveni's warning: “If they got an opportunity... they would sell the Uganda oil and buy perfume.”
The remark drew laughter from the audience before Ruto jokingly asked whether Kenya also had leaders of that kind.
Museveni has used the “perfume” analogy before when explaining Uganda's oil strategy. A documented version of his argument states that Uganda's petroleum should be used for national development rather than simply sold and the proceeds spent on imported consumer goods.
The exchange reinforced one of the dominant themes of Wednesday's Lamu ceremony: African countries should increasingly process their natural resources locally instead of exporting raw commodities and importing finished products.
Earlier, Museveni said Uganda remained committed to developing its own refinery even as he backed the much larger refinery planned for Lamu.
President Ruto and former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo made similar arguments, saying governments should use policy and infrastructure to encourage private investment in domestic processing and manufacturing.
The proposed Lamu refinery is designed to process up to 700,000 barrels of crude oil a day, with Dangote targeting completion within 40 months.
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