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Tooro Kingdom has released the final programme for the coronation of Omukama-designate Prince Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I on Tuesday, September 29.

The programme, released Saturday by head of protocol Dr Richard Rwabuhinga, shows activities will begin on Monday night, September 28, when the king-designate will leave Rwengoma Palace and trek to Karuziika Palace in a symbolic takeover of the royal seat.

The ceremony includes traditional rites, a church blessing, the formal coronation and an address by President Yoweri Museveni, who has confirmed attendance as chief guest.

“We expect thousands of people to accompany him [Nyabongo I], carrying reed-lit as they walk through Fort Portal City towards the royal palace. At the main entrance to Karuziika, known as Mugabante, the procession will encounter a traditional mock battle,” Rwabuhinga said.

He said the mock confrontation symbolises the transfer of authority. Members of the public will stop at Mugabante, while the king and royal family proceed into Karuziika for rituals reserved for the royal institution.

Inside Karuziika, Nyabongo I will participate in traditional rites through the night. The royal drums and regalia, including spears turned upside down after Oyo’s death on August 27, will be turned upright to mark the transition from mourning to a new reign.

On Tuesday, the public programme begins at 7:30 am, with VIPs from 8 am and guests from 8:15 am.

“At about 8:30 am, the kingdom expects the arrival of senior government officials, including the Vice President, Speaker and Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Cabinet ministers, Members of Parliament, heads of diplomatic missions and other guests,” Rwabuhinga said.

At 8:45 am, Nyabongo I will leave Karuziika for St John’s Cathedral for a blessing by Bishop Reuben Kisembo.

“The service is scheduled to run from 9 am to 10:30 am, after which the king will return to Karuziika. No speeches are planned at the cathedral apart from a vote of thanks by Musuuga Charles Kamurasi,” he said.

President Museveni is expected to arrive at Karuziika at 11 am. After receiving the President, the programme will proceed with the national anthem, the East African anthem and the Tooro Kingdom anthem, which was suspended during mourning.

Only five speeches are planned: Fr Isiah Mayombo, chairman of the central organising committee; Omujwera Musuuga Charles Kamurasi; Omukama Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I; Gender minister Henry Tumukunde; and Tourism minister Tom Butiime, who will invite President Museveni.

After the speeches, the formal crowning will take place. King Nyabongo I will receive his crown before proceeding to Muchwa House for another traditional ritual with the princesses.

Organisers expect between 25,000 and 50,000 people to attend the luncheon, with visitors asked to dress in cultural attire.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has eased precautionary entry and visa restrictions on Ugandan nationals following the official end of the country’s recent Ebola outbreak.

The decision was announced on Saturday by the UAE’s National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA), in coordination with the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) and the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP).

According to UAE officials, the move comes after Uganda successfully completed the internationally required monitoring period without recording any new cases of the virus.

The UAE had imposed strict travel measures on June 6 to prevent the potential importation of Ebola from Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and South Sudan. Under those restrictions, new visa issuance for nationals of the three countries was suspended, and entry was barred for travelers arriving from the affected nations-including those transiting through third countries-unless they had spent at least 21 consecutive days outside the listed regions.

While restrictions on Uganda have now been lifted, similar measures remain in force for the DRC and South Sudan due to the ongoing epidemiological situation in both countries.

Responding to the development, Mr Adonia Ayebare, Uganda’s Foreign Affairs Minister, confirmed holding high-level discussions with UAE authorities to seal the agreement.

“Very productive and cordial meeting with His Highness Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates,” Mr Ayebare posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday.

“His Highness informed me of the decision to lift travel restrictions on Uganda, subject to a delegation of UAE visiting the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority and other entities to assess preparedness. This will be done in the next seven days. I thank His Highness and his Government for this decision to restore economic ties between our countries,” he added.

Uganda officially declared its latest Ebola outbreak over on July 28 after completing the mandatory 42-day surveillance period without any new transmission.

The outbreak was first declared on May 15 following the confirmation of imported cases from the neighboring DRC. Over the course of the outbreak, the Ministry of Health registered a total of 20 confirmed cases, 18 recoveries, and two fatalities.

NCEMA, MoHAP, and ICP noted that they will continue to monitor regional and international Ebola developments and periodically review health protocols in accordance with global risk assessments.

At least two people have died and nine others were injured in a motor accident at Seeta Nyize along the Kayunga-Jinja Road in Kangulumira Town Council, Kayunga District.

The crash, involving a white Tata truck and a white Toyota Hiace occurred at about 9:16pm.

Ssezibwa Region Police spokesperson Hellen Butoto said both vehicles were travelling from Kayunga towards Jinja when they crashed.

‘It is alleged that both motor vehicles were travelling from Kayunga towards Jinja when they crashed at Seeta Nyize in Kangulumira Town Council,’ Ms Butoto said.

She identified the deceased as Mubiru Martin and Wanguwu Fred, both adult males and residents of Nazigo in Kayunga District.

The injured were identified as Genga Reagan, Kiiza Moses, Ojambo Jackson, Ibeli David, Amoit Rukia, Erumbi Manjeri, an unidentified baby and Kasubi Julius, a rescuer from Kangulumira.

Eight victims were admitted to Kangulumira Health Centre IV, while one critically injured male adult was rushed to Kayunga Regional Referral Hospital.

‘The scene was visited by our traffic officers. The bodies of the deceased were conveyed to the mortuary pending postmortem, while the motor vehicles were towed to Kangulumira Police Station for inspection. The particulars of the drivers are still unknown,’ Ms Butoto added.

She said investigations are ongoing to establish the cause of the crash and urged motorists to exercise discipline on the road.

President Museveni has rooted for tourism as one of Uganda’s most powerful sectors, saying the country’s natural uniqueness makes it unmatched as a world destination.

‘We have got what Europe has, which is snow, but we also have what Europe does not have, which is a good climate. It’s time to act, and those who don’t see will be our enemy. The global value of tourism is 11.6 trillion US dollars. It has a lot of money compared to coffee, 22 times that is why a chased away Bakonjo who wanted to grow sweet potatoes in Murchison Falls National Park,’ Mr Museveni said.

Mr Museveni made the remarks during the celebrations to mark World Tourism Day, which took place in Mbale city at Mbale Secondary School playground on Sunday. The celebrations were held under the theme ‘Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to redesign’.

Mr Museveni said protecting the wetlands and forests in the region will give the region and country at large an advantage in tourism.

‘We need to take advantage of our latitude and altitude of our mountains to earn more from tourism. We are also near the equator,’ he said.

Bugisu sub-region is one of the sub-regions with unexplored potential tourism products that post very low earnings from the tourism sector.

The sub-region earns between Shs8 million and Shs10 million annually from tourism, compared to other regions like Murchison, which earns about Shs1 billion, yet the area is endowed with beautiful hills, waterfalls and culture.

Mr Museveni further urged Ugandans to protect the mild weather by protecting and conserving wetlands, adding that temperatures in different parts of the country are becoming hotter.

‘People in wetlands in Bugisu and Busoga must leave so that we protect the wetlands. We will make sure all people in wetlands shift to fish farming, which is more profitable,’ he said, adding that people in wetlands work hard, earn little, and worst of it, destroy the environment.

President Museveni also applauded Uganda Wildlife Authority for opening a zoo in Mbale to further accelerate promotion of tourism. ‘I thank UWA. They have woken up. They have opened up a zoo, and children will go there and learn,’ he said.

The zoo, which is situated in Mbale along the Mbale-Tororo highway, has wild animals such as lions, monkeys, leopards, zebra, waterbuck, an ostrich and peacocks.

On the four-acre model, Mr Museveni urged Ugandans who don’t have enough land to engage in other sectors, including services and manufacturing.

‘If you don’t have enough land for agriculture, that is not a problem. There are other sectors like services where tourism falls and manufacturing, which are outside agriculture,’ he said.

Ms Joyce Kidulu Matuka, the Mbale City mayor, asked President Museveni to address issues such as the establishment of an airstrip and the tarmacking of roads that lead to tourism sites.

‘This will support the growth of tourism in our region, which is being affected partly due to poor roads,’ she said.

Among the roads leaders want the government to tarmac are the Mbale-Bufumbo road, which leads to Wanale Ridge, and the Wanale-Nkokonjeru terrace route and Nalugugu- Mutufu-Budadiri road, which connects to Mt Elgon National Park.

Colour. Cheers. Hugs. Fireworks. Reflection. And the cutting of an American-themed cake was all part of America’s 250th anniversary celebration marked at the U.S. Embassy in Uganda.

The well-attended celebration commemorated 250 years since the United States declared its independence, with Chargé d’Affaires Mikael Cleverley saying the anniversary was an opportunity to celebrate the courage, resilience, innovation, and determination that have shaped America and its relationships around the world.

He said: ‘We celebrate today those remarkable people who laid the foundation for our country. Their acts were followed by other great acts of courage, vision, and determination.

‘We celebrate a nation of doers, of tryers, of adventurers-people who defied the odds. And we celebrate the characteristics and traits that enabled their contributions.

He continued: ‘Here in Uganda, we’ve characterized those traits and characteristics-that added ingredient the United States can bring to any endeavor-as the American Edge.

‘Whether innovation, philanthropy, pragmatism, transparency, industry, creativity, or something else-these are elements, added advantages, that also imbue our partnerships.’

Billions in USD cooperation

According to Chargé d’Affaires Mikael Cleverley, the celebration underscored the growing depth of the U.S.-Uganda relationship, particularly in health cooperation, commercial diplomacy, and enduring people-to-people ties.

This is in addition to health and humanitarian cooperation. In all these, he noted that American collaboration and innovation are contributing to improved health outcomes and strengthening global health security.

This was solidified through the America First Global Health Strategy and $2.3 billion U.S.-Uganda Health Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which represents a new chapter of our longstanding health cooperation.

‘The agreement reflects a shift toward genuine collaboration, with the United States committing up to $1.7 billion, while the Government of Uganda is adding more than $570 million in new domestic health spending.

‘The MOU supports government-led responses to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and pandemic diseases while strengthening Uganda’s health systems and emergency preparedness – building on more than two decades of cooperation,’ part of a statement issued by U.S. Embassy Uganda on Thursday.

The statement further noted that this includes stopping more than 600 disease outbreaks while highlighting that the U.S. government also remains the largest contributor to humanitarian assistance in Uganda, shifting this year to new delivery mechanisms designed to provide emergency lifesaving assistance while maximizing lifesaving effects, efficiency and accountability.

Commercial diplomacy

Commercial Diplomacy: American investment, innovation, and technology are contributing to the Government of Uganda’s tenfold economic growth agenda.

On September 1, SpaceX’s Starlink launched its Low Earth Orbit satellite internet service in Uganda, following the acquisition of a five-year provisional license from the Government of Uganda.

On June 10, Uganda Airlines and Boeing signed a landmark $2.37 billion agreement for 10 aircraft, the largest single commercial deal in the history of the U.S.-Uganda bilateral relationship.

The U.S. Embassy is also working with several U.S. companies to secure additional opportunities in Uganda in support of the Government’s priorities in agro-industrialization, tourism, mineral development, and science and technology (ATMS) valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

The official opening of the Kampala Marriott Hotel and Executive Apartments in Nsambya further demonstrated investor confidence in Uganda’s expanding tourism and hospitality sector.

Cross-Cultural Ties: The U.S.-Uganda relationship is strengthened by more than a century of exchange, friendship, and shared achievement. That tradition dates back to 1909, when U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt traveled to Uganda on a scientific expedition – beginning a legacy of curiosity and exchange between the two nations that continues today.

Alumni

More than 6,000 Ugandan U.S. exchange alumni now advance Uganda’s economic, social, and civic development, while the new American Center, opened in January, welcomes thousands of Ugandans each year to learn, connect, and dream bigger.

That spirit of engagement also extends to sports diplomacy, a growing pillar of the bilateral relationship as America enters a “Decade of Sport.”

This past summer, Uganda’s own Ghetto Kids performed alongside Shakira at the FIFA World Cup Final on the world stage, and with Uganda set to co-host the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) next year, that engagement is poised to grow even further.

These ties – built through decades of educational exchanges, health research, entrepreneurship, cultural programs, humanitarian cooperation, and personal friendships – reflect a relationship rooted not just in agreements, but in shared experience. Freedom 250 is more than a commemoration of America’s past; it is a commitment to building the future with trusted nations such as Uganda.

‘As the United States marks 250 years of independence, it looks forward to deepening a relationship that advances shared prosperity, strengthens health and security, expands opportunity, and brings the American and Ugandan people even closer,’ concludes the statement.

With recent baseline reporting by the police capturing more than 12,700 child victims of defilement in a single year, 30 legal reforms are being drafted to combat sexual offences against children in Uganda that remain at critically high levels.

A legislative and advocacy agenda for strengthening child protection systems, put together by civil society organisations (CSOs) inclined to children’s welfare and protection, has floated proposals to amend the Constitution, the Children Act, the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act and the Penal Code Act to provide tangible safeguards.

This comes against the backdrop of empirical evidence indicating that one in three girls and one in six boys suffer from sexual abuse. The statistics point to the fact that Uganda, which has one of the youngest populations globally, has a big demographic of minors aged under 18 exposed to predatory risks, most of which go unpunished. Consequently, CSOs want 21 reviews to be made to the Children Act. They have also proffered five reviews apiece to the Constitution and the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act.

Mr Moses Ntenga, the executive director of Joy for Children, Uganda (JFC-U), says the proposed amendments are long overdue. It is a position that Mr John Tamale Mirundi, the Principal Legislative and Procedural Counsel at Parliament, concurs with.

‘This legislative agenda is intended to initiate and promote legislation that fosters holistic development of all the children in Uganda, by dealing with the issues that hinder the full potential and protection of children,’ Mr Mirundi says.

‘Its implementation will ensure a more just and safe Uganda and will support the lives of Ugandan children through policy and legislative reforms,’ he adds.

Sex offender registry

Plans to “respond to the crimes of child marriage and other gender and sexual violence by amending legislation to address the evolving and current social attitudes, values and sexual practices involving children in order to curb sexual violence against children’ are laid out in the 20-page legislative agenda. Some of what the agenda calls ‘international best practices’ include creating a sex offender’s register. Uganda lacks a fully operational sex offender registry due to legal confidentiality rules in current criminal procedures.

‘The rationale for establishing a sex offender register is based on the realisation that sex offenders are likely to re-offend even after punishments,’ the legislative agenda says, adding, ‘The sex offenders’ register is one of the ways through which the public is informed of the existence of sex offenders within their neighbourhoods and serves as a reference point for prospective employers in ensuring that persons who have a history of sexual offences do not get employed because of the risk they pose to the public, especially to children and other vulnerable groups.’

If it gets the green light, the National Identification and Registration Authority (Nira) will run the rule over the sex offenders’ register. Ms Mastula Namatovu, the Kamuli Municipality lawmaker, says the Community Development Officers (CDOs) will have to pull their weight for the sex offender registry to see the light of day.

‘The CDOs, or probation officers, in all districts need to jot down whatever is happening. Even these offenses are so many. You find that because districts don’t have a way of getting this information from the villages. So, there is a lot that is needed,’ Ms Namatovu says.

Compensation proposal

Mr Ntenga says his office intends to push for the creation of a provision to ’empower court to award a victim of the [sexual] offence under the Penal Code Act.’ The legislative agenda offers more granular details.

It states that: “Apart from the payment of compensation to victims of defilement, there is currently no other provision which specifically grants victims of other sexual offences the right to receive compensation from the convicted person.’

“The provision will make it easy for victims of sexual violence to receive compensation from the convicted person since the award of compensation will be made in the same processes as the criminal trial, thereby eliminating the need to take out civil proceedings for recovery of compensation,” it adds.

There is also an appetite ‘to codify a practice and require that children who have defiled each other should be treated equally and should remove the current practice of prosecuting the male child in such situations’.

A gender-neutral approach has also been suggested to ensure that ‘the offence [of procuring a person for prostitution cannot] only be committed by a male person against a female person”. The provision, per Mr Tamale, ‘also needs to be harmonised with the offence of defilement and rape by restricting the offence to a person below 18 years of age”.

Other provisions

There is also a proposal to introduce the offence of indecent assault, defined as “an offence committed by a person who directly or indirectly, physically or online intentionally, exposes a person’s sexual organ, breasts or buttocks to any other person”.

Mr Tamale says “the offence is currently not prosecuted on its own right since it does not exist in the Penal Code Act yet vices that would fall under the offence of indecent exposure are common and not punished”.

The mooted draft laws also intend to criminalise the supply of pornographic material to children, prohibit the use of children in sex tourism and to also ‘obligate a person who knows about sexual offence to report the same to the authorities in order to protect the children and other vulnerable members of society’.

Mr Tamale shares that the draft laws also intend to criminalise sexual acts in the presence of children and also introduce the ‘offence of child grooming committed by a person who engages a child in non-sexual relationships that are intended to earn the trust of a child in order to engage the child in sex’.

‘We are going to introduce the offence around child grooming. We have seen that someone can bring up a child and befriend that child for purposes of engaging in sexual activities with that child. It is rampant. We think that it does not happen in Uganda, but it happens,’ he adds.

An amendment of the Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act also intends to rework the definition of the term ‘exploitation’ to insert ‘engaging a child in forced begging.’

‘There is a group of people who bring these children from Karamoja [and put them on streets to beg] but those people cannot be charged because the element [of begging] that they push those children into is not punishable under the law,’ Mr Tamale says.

Ms Ann Nassamula, the senior programme officer at the Center for Domestic Violence Prevention (CeDoVip), however contends that ‘the real gap is enforcement; not absence of law’. To improve the state of affairs, she proposes that “better-resourced law enforcement and prosecutors for real accountability” be done across all concerned national structures.

The management of Walimu Cooperative Union Ltd says it is owed Shs11 billion in outstanding bad debts by teacher cooperatives.

Walimu Cooperative Union is a secondary cooperative with 275 members who borrow for onward lending. It manages a Shs25 billion grant pledged by President Yoweri Museveni in 2011 to teachers’ SACCOs to cushion government teachers against low wages.

Speaking to journalists at the Union offices in Kiwatule on September 26, Finance and Administration Manager Robert Omongin Odeke said the money is held by primary cooperatives.

‘Teacher cooperatives have this money with them,’ he said.

‘Last year in June when they were inaugurating the new board, the Registrar of Cooperative Societies tasked the new board to recover this 11 billion shillings,’ he added.

Omongin said the debts stem from member defaults, many of them trade union leaders in districts and regions, not poor accountability or corruption.

He said recovery efforts have yielded minimal results, with only Shs2 billion recovered through courts.

‘Mediation was carried out or arbitration where the registrar of cooperative societies was the chair of the arbitration committee. Another second round of arbitration was done where even the leadership of the trade union were involved did not yield much. We went to courts of law to recover the money and we recovered some,’ he said.

He said conflicts arising from recovery efforts are not criminal in nature.

‘But we would like to remind our members and the whole country that in cooperatives, any conflict that arises is not criminal because we give money to a member because we deal with a member,’ he said.

Omongin explained the recovery procedure: management first, then the board, then the annual general meeting, then the Registrar of Cooperative Societies through arbitration, and finally courts of law.

On how the debts accumulated, he said some SACCOs issued post-dated cheques which bounced after teachers took multiple loans from other financial institutions.

‘Now, later on when we wanted to recover the money using the code system where you go back to the source, to the employer, we found that most of our members, the teachers, had got money from other banks, commercial banks,’ he said.

Because deductions are capped, the Union could only recover Shs10,000 to Shs20,000 monthly from over-indebted teachers, prolonging repayment.

‘Now when we code, and you have a loan of 80 million, you have a loan of 60 million, 10 million, and because you have put a system of recovery, we are covering 10,000, 15,000, 20,000, how long will you take to pay this amount?’ he asked.

New board chairperson Stephen Olinga said the Union has introduced digital systems to improve transparency and ease access.

‘We have introduced systems in place that even enable the teacher to get the money in class, at school, at ease, without disturbing the teacher moving up and down looking for the loan facility,’ he said.

‘We have also innovated a system of digitalized recovery processes. The teacher will not again be running up and down. We shall use his salary, look at the affordability of his teacher,’ he added.

The Union lends wholesale to teacher SACCOs at 8% per annum, and directly to teachers at 15% per annum on reducing balance.

Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja has called on Ugandans to take greater personal responsibility for waste disposal, warning that poor sanitation is escalating public health risks, urban flooding, and environmental degradation across the country.

Speaking in Hoima City on Saturday while presiding over the third edition of National Cleaning Day, Ms Nabbanja announced plans to enforce mandatory waste sorting at the source nationwide.

Under the proposed regulatory framework, households, commercial entities, and institutions will be required to separate waste at the point of disposal, while local governments will lead community sensitization and enforcement.

“Waste management should not be left to local authorities alone; citizens must take responsibility for keeping their homes and surroundings clean,” Ms Nabbanja said.

She emphasized that the monthly cleaning campaign is a key strategy in preparing Hoima City for increased economic activity and international visibility ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which Uganda will co-host alongside Kenya and Tanzania. Hoima is among the host cities designated for match fixtures.

According to the Prime Minister, a sharp focus on sanitation is urgent because a significant portion of Uganda’s national disease burden stems from preventable environmental conditions.

“Malaria, diarrhea, and typhoid are among the illnesses directly associated with poor sanitation and poor environmental conditions,” she noted, adding that uncollected garbage frequently clogs drainage channels, causing severe urban flooding and vector breeding grounds.

Ms Nabbanja urged schools, businesses, and religious institutions to embed proper hygiene into their daily operations rather than viewing National Cleaning Day as a casual, one-off event.

Dr. Jonard Asiimwe, the Minister of State for Science, Technology, and Innovation in the Office of the President, called on citizens to embrace the monthly exercise as a cornerstone for national development and public health.

Hoima City Woman Member of Parliament, Ms Asinansi Nyakato, commended the local turn-out and urged residents to maintain high hygiene standards beyond official cleaning days.

Hoima City Mayor, Mr Edward Isingoma, revealed that municipal authorities have already launched a door-to-door public awareness campaign to address garbage accumulation in urban hotspots.

Saturday’s cleanup exercise drew hundreds of participants, including officers from the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), the Uganda Prisons Service, local school children, and political leaders, who cleared drainage channels, market areas, and major roads across Hoima.

Background

The National Cleaning Day initiative was officially launched on July 25, 2026, following Cabinet approval under a Whole-of-Government and Whole-of-Society approach. Held on the last Saturday of every month, the national program aims to eradicate preventable disease outbreaks, safeguard urban ecosystems, and cultivate civic responsibility nationwide.