The government has launched a nationwide campaign to enlist religious and faith-based organisations in promoting ethical values and fighting corruption, saying rebuilding integrity must begin within families and communities.
The initiative, led by the Directorate for Ethics and Integrity under the Office of the President, seeks to popularise the National Ethical Values Policy (NEVP) through churches, mosques and other faith institutions, with a particular focus on young people.
Officials say the policy is intended to tackle moral decline, promote professional conduct and strengthen accountability in both the public and private sectors.
Speaking during an engagement with religious leaders in Masindi District on June 25, Assistant Commissioner for Religious Affairs Justus Rubalema said corruption continued to undermine national development despite an existing legal and policy framework.
“We are here in Masindi today to meet religious leaders and agree on how to defeat corruption. Corruption has done a lot of havoc, yet it can be defeated,” Mr Rubalema said.
He urged religious leaders to support efforts to strengthen ethical values and encourage citizens to detect, reject and report corruption.
“Because we have so many tools like the Zero Tolerance to Corruption Policy, the National Ethical Values Policy, the Anti-Corruption Act and so many others, there is need to detect, hate, report and shun corruption. That way, we will win the battle,” he said.
The National Ethical Values Policy outlines 10 core values, including integrity, accountability, honesty, transparency, justice, patriotism, social responsibility, national unity, creativity and respect for humanity and the environment.
The Directorate for Ethics and Integrity is implementing the programme through local governments, schools, workplaces and religious institutions to encourage ethical leadership and responsible citizenship.
The engagement has brought together leaders from the Catholic, Anglican, Pentecostal, Muslim, Seventh-day Adventist and Orthodox faiths, alongside civil society organisations and district officials.
Participants called on the government to intensify public awareness campaigns against corruption, enforce laws without discrimination and ensure leaders demonstrate integrity through their actions.
Rev Raymond Kaija, Dean of the Lutheran Church of Uganda in the Mid-Western region, said stronger enforcement of anti-corruption laws was essential.
“The church has always castigated corruption as an evil. However, government needs to come out boldly and ensure that laws are applied without discrimination so that justice is achieved equitably for all,” he said.
Bishop Joshua Kiiza Amanyire of Christian Life Churches in Bunyoro and Northern Uganda argued that tackling corruption requires reforms in public recruitment.
“We are not going to fight corruption by mere talking and moving around. We must look at the system. Government only looks at academic qualifications and not moral values,” he said.
He proposed that moral integrity become a key consideration when recruiting both public servants and political leaders.
Regional Muslim leader Kassim Ssembuga said the fight against corruption should begin in homes by instilling ethical values in children from an early age.
Rev Canon Ronald Mukuru, the diocesan secretary of Masindi-Kitara Diocese, pledged to strengthen anti-corruption messages through church teaching, particularly among children.
The government has been holding similar engagements in several districts, including Rakai, as part of efforts to build public support for ethical leadership and strengthen the country’s anti-corruption campaign.