{"id":9386,"date":"2026-11-03T06:22:40","date_gmt":"2026-11-03T06:22:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/govinfohub.go.ug\/?p=9386"},"modified":"2026-11-09T07:09:05","modified_gmt":"2026-11-09T07:09:05","slug":"president-museveni-tasks-cultural-institutions-with-driving-community-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/govinfohub.go.ug\/index.php\/2026\/11\/03\/president-museveni-tasks-cultural-institutions-with-driving-community-development\/","title":{"rendered":"President Museveni Tasks Cultural Institutions with Driving Community Development"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Caroline Nakire<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Entebbe\u2014<\/strong> The President of Uganda has urged traditional and cultural institutions to take a more active role in the country\u2019s social and economic transformation, while remaining independent of partisan politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said cultural leaders should focus on preserving African heritage, mobilising communities for wealth creation and providing moral guidance, rather than engaging in political activities reserved for elected government institutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President made the remarks while opening a two-day conference of traditional and cultural leaders at State House, Entebbe. The meeting brought together leaders from across the country to discuss the contribution of cultural institutions to national development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He emphasised that traditional institutions have distinct responsibilities under the constitutional framework and should not interfere with the functions of elected leaders and other government structures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He identified cultural preservation, indigenous knowledge, community mobilisation and social cohesion as the key areas through which traditional leaders can contribute to national progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President also challenged cultural institutions to safeguard Africa\u2019s historical identity, languages and customs, noting that colonialism had significantly affected the continent\u2019s cultural heritage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quoting Matthew 19:6, he said: \u201cTherefore what God has joined together, let no man put asunder,\u201d while advocating for African unity based on shared historical and cultural connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On economic empowerment, the President encouraged cultural leaders to promote traditional occupations and practical skills that can create employment and improve household incomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He cited agriculture, livestock keeping, fishing, blacksmithing, carpentry, pottery and leather tanning as indigenous economic activities that should be preserved and passed on to younger generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He further called for the promotion of indigenous crop varieties, livestock breeds and traditional food systems as part of efforts to strengthen agricultural production and household incomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President also outlined five historical missions that he said should guide Africa\u2019s development: liberation from colonialism, democracy, economic prosperity, strategic security and African unity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He argued that political independence must be accompanied by economic transformation and access to wider markets to enable African countries to compete effectively in the global economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this regard, he highlighted regional and continental trade arrangements, including the East African Community, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa and the African Continental Free Trade Area, as important platforms for expanding markets and strengthening economic cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the conference, cultural leaders proposed greater collaboration with the government in agriculture, industrialisation, tourism, skills development and women\u2019s economic empowerment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They offered to provide land for model agricultural farms and requested government support through improved seeds, livestock, irrigation equipment, agricultural machinery and extension services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also proposed community-based processing facilities for agricultural produce, textiles, leather and other locally manufactured products to promote value addition and create employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On cultural preservation, they called for the establishment of a Digital Cultural Park to document kingdoms, chiefdoms, historical sites, artefacts and indigenous knowledge for future generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also announced plans to organise a National Cultural Festival in partnership with the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development. The proposed event is expected to showcase the country\u2019s cultural diversity while creating opportunities for tourism, creative industries and local businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the cultural leaders raised concerns about the operational capacity of their institutions, citing inadequate staffing, limited infrastructure and weak coordination. They appealed to the government to support the Forum of Cultural Institutions to strengthen its capacity to coordinate cultural development programmes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development called on traditional leaders to work with the government in addressing social challenges, including gender-based violence, child marriage, teenage pregnancy, poverty and discrimination against persons with disabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Minister also encouraged cultural institutions to harness their cultural resources to support the growing creative economy, particularly in music, film, fashion, crafts and cultural tourism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The conference closed with a shared commitment to strengthen cultural preservation, community empowerment and the contribution of cultural institutions to the country\u2019s broader economic transformation agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Caroline Nakire Entebbe\u2014 The President of Uganda has urged traditional and cultural institutions to take a more active role in the country\u2019s social and economic transformation, while remaining independent of partisan politics. He said cultural leaders should focus on preserving African heritage, mobilising communities for wealth creation and providing moral guidance, rather than engaging […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9389,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t