State of the Nation Address

By

H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA

At

Kololo Independence Grounds

7th June, 2022

Your Excellency the Vice President,

Right Honourable Speaker,

His Lordship the Chief Justice

Rt. Hon. Deputy Speaker,

Rt. Hon. Prime Minister,

Rt. Hon. Secretary-General of the NRM,

Hon. Members of Parliament,

Members of the Diplomatic Corp,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

In fulfillment of the Constitutional requirement under

Article 101 (1) of the Constitution of the Republic of
Uganda, I am here to deliver the State of the Nation
Address, 2022.

Greetings, to all the Ugandans. On an occasion like this,

I am reminded of the parable in the Book of Matthew,
Chapter 7 and Verses 24-27. This is the parable of two
men – a foolish one and a wise one. The foolish man built
his house on sandy ground and when a storm came, the
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house collapsed. The wise man built his house on hard
ground and even when the storm came, the house
withstood the force. The exact quotation goes as follows:
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and
puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house
on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the
winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall,
because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who
hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice
is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain
came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat
against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Similarly, when the NRM was fighting and when we took

power in 1986, we put out the 10 points programme that
was later summarized into the four principles of the
NRM. Point No. 5 of the NRM 10 points programme, set
out to build “an independent, self-sustaining national
economy”, by creating backward and forward linkages in
our economy. Later on, we summarized the 10 points
into the four NRM principles of: patriotism,
Pan-Africanism, social-economic transformation and
democracy. Some myopic people, thought that this was
sandy ground where the NRM had constructed the house
of Uganda. However, the onslaughts to which Uganda
has been subjected in the last 2 or 3 years, have proven
that the Uganda house the NRM has constructed in the
last 60 years, including the preparatory years before
1986, has been built on hard ground, indeed.
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Remember, the locusts, the rising waters of the Lakes,
the floating islands, the landslides, the terrorist bombs,
the covid-19 and now the rising commodity prices
artificially caused by the Ukrainian war. In spite of all
these, the Ugandan economy, by the budget time in the
next few days, will be standing at US$ 45.7billion by the
exchange rate method and at USD 131.6 billion by the
PPP method. This means that the GDP per capita is now
$1046. You remember, the entrance points for the lower
middle-income status, is USD 1036. We have now
passed that figure. Congratulations. However, to be
declared a middle-income country, you need to sustain
this for two to three consecutive years. I am confident,
we shall over perform, in achieving that. Remember that
our economy expanded in spite of the lockdowns caused
by covid-19 and in spite of the ever increasing
population; you can see that the size of the economy,
when compared to the population that is always growing
fast, has continued to grow and we have arrived at the
boundary point as far as the middle income status is
concerned. Before the global destabilization by the
corona-19 and the Ukrainian crises, Uganda was a
country of surpluses that were crying out for markets in
the form of sugar, maize, milk, chicken, eggs, bananas,
cement, mitayimbwa (steel bars), soap, beers etc., etc.
This global crisis actually presents Uganda with plenty
of opportunities. I saw on the news, that
Malaysia had banned the export of chicken and that
India had banned the export of sugar. President Biden
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was crying for baby formula, etc. Many of these products
are the ones that have been in surplus in Uganda. We
just need to deal with a few quality and bio-hazard
issues. The issue of aflatoxins, will be dealt with by
proper harvest and drying methods as well as the
method of embracing biotechnology. The
door to our Dairy exports will be opened when we, the
cattle owners, vaccinate our cattle twice a year. If the
government does not have the money to pay for the
vaccines, we the farmers can do it. With 1000 cattle, I
would need Ushs15M (fifteen million shillings only)
for FMD. Given the lucrative export markets that will
become available, like the one of Algeria of USD 1.124
billion, this cost on the farmers, will make sense. The
other crucial vaccine, will be the one of CBPP. With 1000
cattle, we need Ush 850,000 (eight hundred fifty
thousand shillings only) in a year.

All this capacity that has enabled the house of the

wiseman to withstand the force of the storm, is long
before the implementation of our Parish Development
Model, whose end result is to tap the production capacity
of all the 7 million houses in Agriculture, relying on the
7 high-value commodities of: coffee, fruits, dairy
products, poultry, pigs, fish-farming and food growing for
those of 4 acres and less. The ones with land that is
more than 4 acres, can, in addition, grow sugar-cane,
cotton, maize, tobacco, tea, cassava, bananas, ranching,
etc., because the country needs these products for
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industry, food or as inputs into the intensive agriculture
mentioned earlier – the agriculture of the seven high
value activities. The agriculture of the commodities in
the latter category, we describe as extensive Agriculture
– where you get less money per acre per annum, but
because of doing what you are engaged in on a large
scale, you get good money. The activities of intensive
agriculture, such as poultry, piggery, fish-farming, dairy
farming of the zero-grazing type, need animal feeds,
fish-meals, etc., that are from maize and other products
of the extensive agriculture type.

Moreover, the wise man’s house is currently full of

surpluses, without too much use of irrigation or the use
of fertilizers. In the coming financial years, we are going
to intensify the modest efforts we have already started
on, in connection with irrigation. With irrigation, we
have worked with the private sector to produce solar-
powered water pumps that the rich farmers can buy and
engage in mini-irrigation, farm by farm. Once the solar
powered irrigation pumps are on the market, the
Government will buy them for some of the co-operatives
or farming villages, where one pump can be shared by a
number of small farmers. We shall continue also
developing the mega-irrigation schemes of the Mobuku
type. Currently, 150 solar-powered water pumps have
been imported. By the end of next year, 687 solar-
powered water pumps will have been imported.
Meanwhile, our private sector is building a factory for
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producing solar-powered water pumps and panels. The
factory will be ready by the end of the year and it will
produce 160,000 pumps per year. At the same time, we
are continuing to repair and expand the old irrigation
schemes and also build new ones. As of now, the
following irrigation schemes are ready: Wadelai
(Pakwach); Mubuku (Kasese); Ngenge (Kween); Doho
(Butaleja); Rwengaaju (Kabarole); Agoro (Kitgum); Olweny
(Lira); and Tochi (Oyam). Acomoi in Bukedea and Ataari
in the district of Bulambuli and Lopei in the district of
Moroto are being worked on. We intend to use the waters
of the Kagyera River to support irrigation in Isingiro, the
water of Lake Kyoga to support irrigation in Nakasongola
district, the water of the Nile to support irrigation in
Pakwach, Nebbi, Madi-Okolo and Obongi districts. The
areas of Busoga, Teso, Bukedi and Lango, have got a lot
of wetlands, that are now being misused for rice growing
or under-used, that will be used as reservoirs for
irrigation projects. Irrigation, mega and micro, is in
order to enhance and also stabilize agricultural
production by immunizing from the negative effects of
erratic rainfall. On the side of fertilizers, the Usukuru
hills project, has stagnated. We are, however, looking for
a solution to that problem. There are a
number of offers. Tororo will give us phosphorous, the
associated gas that is found with our petroleum in Lake
Albert, will give us the nitrogen and Lake Katwe will give
us potassium.

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With these efforts, you can visualize the magnitude of the
agricultural production in Uganda. It will be massive.
I can give one example. In the villages, production of
bananas per hectare is 5.3 tonnes. However,
Dr. Muranga, at Nyaruziinga, with Government support,
produces 53 metric tonnes per hectare. This is where
our industrial linkage with agriculture comes in. Our
strategy is that anything agricultural that is not
consumed fresh, should be processed industrially so that
it is preserved to be able to reach distant markets and
also to add value to the raw-materials. We have done
this for milk, for cotton, for some fruits (e.g. Soroti), for
sugar cane (tea-sugar, ethanol and industrial sugar), for
some plantation products, for some bananas (wines,
flour, sanitizers), for some of the maize (flour, animal
feed, later ethanol, industrial alcohol), etc. This now
brings me to the massive theft that has been going on
with coffee. Right from 1986, I started the struggle to
add value to our coffee because our cadres who were
deployed there told me of the value differentials between
our coffee sold as beans and what it would get when
processed as soluble coffee, or any other type of final
coffee, to be consumed. At that time, the kg of beans of
coffee would give us USD1, while the same coffee
processed would give USD14. Many times in meetings, I
would point out that those who say they are donors, are
actually donees, because, in every kg, Uganda was giving
USD13 dollars to the outside World and also donating
jobs. Whose children roast the green beans and grind
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them to powder in Europe? Are they our children?
Whose electricity is used? I have checked the latest
figure. There is a type of robusta coffee that is known as
Screen 18. Sold as green coffee, after removing the skin,
apparently, our people are being paid USD 3.34 per kg.
When a kg is roasted in London and ground, it shrinks
to 700grams and packed into packets of 300grams each.
Each packet is sold at USD12, which means that
700grammes may fetch about USD30. Therefore, for
what Uganda gets USD 3.34, the smart people of UK, get
USD30. Each coffee bean that is sold in supermarkets
abroad, takes away our phosphorous, our nitrogen, our
potassium and other nutrients for 10% of the value at
which the final consumer buys the product. 90% of the
value of that product from our soils and 100% of the
accompanying jobs that go with the roasting, grinding
and packaging of the product at that stage, are all
donated to the outsiders. The total value of coffee in the
World is US$460 billion. However, of this figure, the
coffee growing countries only take USD 25 billion. The
African coffee growing countries only USD 2.4 billion
(0.5%) Exporters of unprocessed raw-materials, where it
is economic to add value, are exploiters. When we de-
hust, roast, grind and pack here, Uganda will get more
dollars and we shall also pay higher prices to our
farmers. The farmers are now cheated because the
biggest beneficiaries from our coffee are the
external roaster, grinders and packers of coffee. The
story about blending etc. is nonsense. That blending etc.
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is nonsense. That blending can be done here. We have
both Robusta and Arabica. In any case, I hear that our
good robusta is used to blend inferior coffees from other
areas, but in Europe. It is this centuries-old
haemorrhage that the Hon. Abed Bwanika was so
passionately supporting here some weeks ago. It is this
haemorrhage that the NRM opposed from the beginning
in the point 5 of the NRM’s 10 points programme already
referred to. We oppose this haemorrhage in all the raw-
materials: milk, cotton, skins and hides, timber, iron ore
(obutare), copper (ekikomo), gold, tin, lithium, wolfram,
petroleum, etc. It is this haemorrhage that is responsible
for the stagnation of Africa. The total GDP of Africa is
USD 2.7 trillion, smaller than or equal to individual
economies of Japan USD 5.06 trillion, that of India is
USD2.66 trillion, UK USD 2.67 trillion, France USD 2.63
trillion, Germany is USD 3.85trillion, small South Korea
is USD 1.63 trillion, USA USD 20.89 trillion and China
USD 14.72trillion. Yet Africa is 12 times the size of
India, with a population of 1,406,013,839 billion, that is
4 times that of the USA. The continued export of raw-
materials by Africa is the new form of slavery. Export of
value in exchange for no value (mirrors, combs for our
ignorant chiefs in exchange for slaves) or for little value
like now – 10% value of the final product. The export of
raw-materials and slaves for the last 600 years is the
cause of this stunting (okuningama).

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Ever since 1986, I have been trying to get value adders
to all our raw-materials. Sometimes I succeeded like
with milk (Sameer, Brookside, Pearl, Kagate, etc.), Cotton
(Nytil, Fine Spinners), wood (plywood in Katuugo), Palm
Oil (Bidco, etc.), sugar (many companies), Petroleum
(Refinery), Bananas (Dr. Muranga, Kyamuhangyire etc.),
Skins and Hides (Nakyobe), Gold (six refineries), etc.
With coffee, I tried so many groups – Nescafe, Nestle,
Tata, Bancafe (Banya), Star Coffee (Tz-Bukoba), to no
avail. When I met Madame Pinetti, she had no idea about
coffee. I, however, could see that she had a wide network
of contacts. I asked her to look into coffee. After
sometime, she came back with a positive report that it
was doable. Therefore, those attacking that project, are
supporters of okukenenula, (ekyejwiiso) of Africa –
perpetual bleeding. If they were not, they would have
responded to our call of 1986 and after, to come forward
and add value to coffee and seek government assistance.
Instead of attacking the saviour (oyo anataasa), if you are
genuine, join the liberation effort. It is criminal for
anybody to continue arguing for the continued export of
raw-materials in Africa when there is 90% more value in
that product that you are giving to outsiders.

Apart from the huge expansion of the agricultural sector

and the concomitant expansion of the agro-industrial
sector, there are industries that we are promoting based
on our minerals: oil and gas (refinery, petro-chemicals,
fertilizers); iron-ore (steel – Kabaale); copper (the
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electrical industries – cables, transformers, electrical
appliances); lithium (electrical car batteries); niobium
(ingots, bars, billets, rods); tin (tin plates, buckets,
cooking utensils); coltan (laptops, medical equipment,
smartphones); wolfram(electric filaments, ammunition);
etc., etc.

The work in the services sector is familiar to Honourable

members in the form of tourism, transport (Airline, the
railway, etc.), entertainment, etc.

With the masses, apart from the PDM, there is a

programme of Emyooga – the 18 of them as listed here:

1. Boda Boda SACCO;

2. Women Entrepreneurs’ SACCO;
3. Carpenters’ SACCO;
4. Salon Operators’ SACCO;
5. Taxi Operators’ SACCO;
6. Restaurateurs SACCO;
7. Welders’ SACCO;
8. Market Vendors’ SACCO;
9. Youth Leaders’ SACCO;
10. PWDs’ SACCO;
11. Produce Dealers’ SACCO;
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 12. Mechanics’ SACCO;
13. Tailors’ SACCO;
14. Local Elected Leaders SACCO;
15. Veterans SACCO;
16. Journalists SACCO;
17. Performing Artists SACCO;
18. Fishermen’s SACCO.
The contact point for this effort is at the constituency.
As you can see, the spectrum covers most of the modest
artisanal skills that produce products for ordinary use.

The four sectors – commercial agriculture – big or small,

intensive or extensive; industries – big or small,
including SMEs and artisanship; services (transport,
tourism, hotels, entertainment, professional services e.g.
doctors, etc.); and ICT; if aggressively pushed, will cause
massive social-economic transformation. I estimate that
commercial agriculture alone, can create 50million jobs
if you assume five million households engaged in small
scale agriculture of the Rwengaaju type and each
household employing 10 people. This would be a
transitional situation because the developed economies,
have small numbers of employees in agriculture and
more numbers in services and industry, while
under-developed economies, have many numbers
unemployed or in “disguised unemployment” presented
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as “agriculture” and only few numbers employed in the
four sectors: commercial agriculture, industries, services
and ICT.

Apart from universal commercial agriculture; industries

based on agro-processing, forest products, etc.; services;
and ICT; there are industries that are based on the
intellect of the human brain. The industries of electric
and conventional automobiles (buses, mini-buses,
trucks, motorbikes, etc.), the pathogenic economy
(vaccines, pharmaceuticals, for humans and livestock),
space science, energy (including nuclear energy) etc.,
have each, at least, a nucleus already laid down, as I
speak today.

The Book of Galatians, Chapter 6, Verse 7, in the Bible,

tells us that whatever a man sows, that is what he reaps
(Buri muuntu weena ekyabiba, nikyo agyesha). How has
the NRM brought Uganda to the door-step (ekisasi) of the
middle income status from such a low base and in spite
of so many challenges? The following are the reasons:

1. The correct ideology of the NRM rejecting the

sectarian ideas of the past actors, insisting on
Patriotism, Pan-Africanism, Social-economic
transformation and democracy; this removed
oburyaane (disharmony and tension) from the
community and the country; that is why Uganda has
no refugees living outside Uganda – even when we
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 had Kony and ADF terrorism, we had internally
displaced persons, within the country, they never
run outside Uganda.

2. A strong Army that has ensured peace within

Uganda, all the challenges notwithstanding.

3. A strong private sector, encouraged by the correct,

pro-private sector policies of the NRM; most of the
surpluses referred to above, have been generated by
the Private Sector – farmers, manufacturers etc.

4. The correct Pan-Africanist ideology of the NRM that

saw the revival of the East African Community, the
creation of COMESA and the Abuja Treaty of 1991,
that, eventually, saw the birth of the CFTA (the
Continental Free Trade Area). Today, Uganda
exports goods and services (2020/2021) worth: USD
1.27143 billion to EAC, USD 1.67271 to COMESA
and USD 2.03397 billion to CFTA. Algeria has a
market of USD1.124 billion for dairy products that
only awaits us to solve the problem of FMD (ejwa)
and CBPP (kihaha). Ethiopia has a dairy products
market of USD 30.473M that only awaits a reliable
road from the Kaabong-Kotido area, to Southern
Ethiopia.

5. The correct NRM policy of emphasizing science in

Education and prioritizing the better payment of
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 Government scientists if we do not yet have enough
money to pay everybody. Africa was colonized and
enslaved and People were exterminated, dominated
or marginalized, not because they lacked
story-tellers, comedians, musicians, witchdoctors
and priests, Kings and Queens, soldiers, farmers,
etc.; but because they lagged behind in Science and
technology. Inability to see this, is a threat to our
survival as free people, if not survival at all. Our
lagging behind in the technology of gun-powder and
guns, for instance, was one of the greatest
handicaps. The Private Sector needs scientists, in
addition to the managerial cadreship. The state
economic and social infrastructure needs scientists
– researchers; engineers, for electricity, engineers for
water, etc.; doctors; vets; etc.

6. The correct strategy of the NRM developing the

infrastructure – the roads, the railway, the
electricity, the piped water, the telephones, the
internet etc. The crucial roles of infrastructure are
to enable (e.g. electricity) and connect (e.g. roads,
railways, telephones) the producers of goods and
services and their consumers and do so cheaply – so
that the product is not overpriced and, therefore,
competitive in the market.

We could have achieved much more if it was not for either

the confused people or the enemies of Africa, many
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times, obstructing us. I, for instance, remember the
sabotage of Uganda tempo of development by the
6th Parliament of 1999, on the 8th, in the month of
November, the year 1999, when they blocked the
agreement I had negotiated with AES to produce power
at 4.9 American cents and Mr. Chat Chai of Malee
Sampran Public Company of Thailand was chased by
Parliament, whom I had mobilized with the late Mzee
Mulwana to help us with milk processing.
Dr. Muranga’s banana project, has been maliciously
obstructed many times. Recently, we witnessed the
mishandling of the coffee value addition effort. Uganda
has made these gigantic steps, such obstructions
notwithstanding.

When it comes to the recent high commodity prices,

caused, initially, by the re-launch of the world economy
after the two years of lockdown and, additionally, by the
war in Ukraine, our decision, after careful analysis, is to
avoid the traps of tax cuts and subsidies. Instead, we
are doing two things. One, is to engage the global actors
that have caused these artificial shortages. I have
contacted some of the actors. I am glad H.E. Biden is
going to Saudi Arabia, to meet the Crown Prince to get
OPEC to pump more petroleum out of the ground. That
would definitely help. Also, the Chairperson of the AU,
H.E. Mack Sall, met H.E. Putin in Sochi, Russia to ask
him to assist in getting the wheat of Ukraine out of the
Ports of Odessa and he has also talked to the Europeans
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to stop sanctioning wheat from Russia and fertilizers
because Africa needs them. This is one of the correct
ways. The other one, is to get our own substitutes –
cassava and banana flour for bread and our own
sunflower, soya beans oil as we wait for our more
quantities of Palm Oil from Sango Bay, Mayuge,
Buvuma, Maruzi, Bundibugyo, etc. Cutting taxes or
subsidies, especially on imports, is suicidal because our
people may buy carelessly and we end up draining our
forex reserves. Moreover, cutting taxes or subsidizing,
means taking away money from planned projects and
putting it in consumption – fuel, bread, etc. That
means, we stop, for instance, the following roads:
Kigumba - Bulima – Kabwoya - Kyenjojo - 235km,
Rukungiri-Kihihi-Ishasha/Kanungu (78.5 km), Masindi
-Para (through the Murchison Park)(159km), Hoima-
Butiaba-Wanseko (111km), Buhimba-Nalweyo-Bulamagi
& Bulamagi-Igayaza-Kakumiro (93km), Masindi-Biiso,
Hohwa-Nyairongo-Kyarusheesha-Butoole, Kabaale-
Kiziranfumbi Roads(97km), Kapchorwa-Suam (73 Km),
Atiak – Laropi (66km), Busega - Mpigi Expressway
(23.7Km), Muyembe – Nakapiripirit (92km),
Najjanakumbi – Busabala Road (11km),Kira-Matugga
road and improvement of 5 No. junctions (21km),
Rwenkunyu - Apac - Lira –Puranga (191Km), Moroto-
Lokitanyala Road (42km), Rehabilitation of Mityana-
Mubende Road (86Km), Alwii – Nebbi (33Km); or the
following secondary schools: Noble Mayombo Seed
Secondary School in Kabarole; Awara Seed Secondary
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School in Arua; Nairambe Seed Secondary School
in Buvuma or Universities like Soroti University,
Muni University; or cutting some money from PDM or
Emyooga – meaning, money taken away from production
to consumption, on account of a temporary problem. Let
us maintain our momentum of development;
the high commodity prices will be solved in other ways,
some of them outlined above.

In foreign affairs, Uganda abstained in the votes in the

UN on the issue of Ukraine. You must have heard the
arguments of the two sides. We have communicated our
views, confidentially, to the two sides – the Western Bloc
and Russia. At some stage, we shall give our view
publicly.

On the issue of security within the Great Lakes Region,

in Regional Conferences like the one we had in Nairobi
some weeks ago, we share our history with the African
brothers and sisters. Some of the problems never get
solved on account of mixing up three issues: armed
conflicts for just causes, armed conflicts for reactionary
aims and the use of terrorist methods whatever the
nature of the conflict – just or unjust. The tendency,
which is not correct, is to bunch up all conflicting parties
as “negative forces”. Uganda is a good laboratory for all
manner of conflicts. We have the just wars like the ones
waged between 1971 and 1986, by the different fighting
groups, against the regimes of Amin, Obote II and Okello.
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Why just? It is because the fight was about the freedom
to vote by secret ballot, for all adults above the age of 18,
at regular intervals; the struggle against extra – judicial
killings; the struggle against sectarianism that was
enforced by arms; etc. The last elections were in April,
1962 and we never had any other elections until the 10th
of December, 1980 and, even those were contested from
the beginning of the process, to the end. We tried to talk
to the groups that thought that they had the upper hand
to no avail and, worse still, they would kill anybody with
a different opinion (Kiwanuka, Bataringaya, Latim,
Oryema, Kasura, Sebugwawo, Luttamaguzi, Nkangirwa,
etc., etc.). We, therefore, had no alternative, but to fight.
That is why between 1966 and 1986, Uganda was among
the top four refugees – generating countries in the World
at that time. At one time, Uganda had 500,000 refugees
– almost the whole population of West Nile - in exile in
Congo and South Sudan. While I do not want to talk
about other African Countries, I am sure that I can safely
cite at least, two examples: the struggle by the SPLM of
Sudan against the Arab-Islamic chauvinist regime of
Khartoum which was insisting that the very dark Dinkas,
Shilluks, Nuers etc., of South Sudan, were Arabs and
had to live under sharia law. How do you resolve that
madness? How about the Whites in South Africa who
said that the indigenous Africans could not have voting
rights in the country of their ancestry? The answer was
a just war in each of the above situations. You, then,
have unjust wars of either aggression or of a reactionary
19
nature – non – progressive. Take the colonial wars of
conquest. Why were the colonialists conquering other
countries? What rights did they have to do so? Then
you come to ADF, Kony, Lakwena, etc. ADF said that
they wanted to make Uganda, Islamic by force. Kony
wanted to rule us by some commandments that were to
be given by the Holy Spirit. Lakwena wanted
“Government megwa” (our Government), by which she
meant the Acholi tribal Government over the whole of
Uganda. These were aims, all right; but they were wrong
aims, oppressive aims, negative, unprogressive aims.
They were, therefore, reactionary (kupinga maendeleo)
aims and, hence, the wars fought in their
implementation were unjust wars, just like the wars of
colonial conquest.

Having talked about just and unjust wars, we also clarify

the issue of terrorism. It is wrong to say that every armed
group, is a terrorist group whether they are fighting a
just or unjust war. Take Lakwena, for instance.
Although she was fighting an unjust war of Acholi
sectarianism, she was definitely not a terrorist because
she was not using terrorist methods. Terrorist methods,
mean using violence indiscriminately such as attacking
non-combatants, killing prisoners of war or torturing
them. Lakwena was confused, using the witchcraft of
smearing her fighters with the Oil of Moya tree (Shea
butter tree) and telling them that they were immune to
bullets, but she was not a terrorist, because she was not
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targeting non-combatants, she was not killing prisoners
of war (that is how Major Byensi survived) etc. Kony and
ADF were, on the other hand, fighting both an unjust war
but also a terrorist one. Why? It is because they were
targeting non-combatants, killing prisoners of war etc.
(the Atiak massacre, the Barlonyo massacre, the
Kichwamba burning of 8 students in the dormitory, the
Kiburara Seminary massacre, the abductions of young
people to force them to fight for them, the abduction of
sex slaves etc.). It is those acts that make a fighter a
terrorist. Even if you are fighting for a just cause, if you
target non – combatants, use forced recruitment other
than conscription by the state, kill prisoners of war, take
sex slaves etc., you become a terrorist. Therefore, in the
whole of the Great Lakes area, the concerned groups
should be audited as to whether they are fighting for a
just cause or not and as to whether they are using
terrorist methods or not. What is, then, the correct
method of resolving such armed conflicts? What is our
experience? Our experience and even other good
experiences, show that combining both political and
military methods, is the correct way. Especially for the
non-terrorist armed groups, even when they are fighting
for an unjust cause (sectarianism etc.), priority should
be given to dialogue, leading to a political solution. Even
for the terrorist groups, if they accept dialogue, it should
be tried. It is through dialogue combined with military
efforts that we reached solutions with Angello Okello,
Bamuze, Musa Echweru, Benz, UFM, FEDEMO, etc.
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Using force is like using surgery in medicine. Surgery is
used as a method of last resort when less violent
methods to the body can no longer work. Even, then, it
should be used in a very restricted way, affecting only the
sick part, not the rest of the body. East Africa under our
current Chairman, H.E. Kenyatta, can resolve all these
security challenges using appropriate actions – political
methods where feasible and force where necessary.
Uganda is ready and able to contribute. Congo and
Uganda, since November, 30th, 2021, crushed the ADF in
Eastern Congo. ADF cannot operate in large groups
anymore in the three sectors of: Sector 2 - Ituri, Sector
1 and 2 - North Kivu. The ADF survivors have either
gone into hiding or have fled beyond limit of exploitation.
However, in small groups, I am told, the ADF is still
sneaking back into sector - Mambasa territory and
killing some unguarded villagers. There are easy
solutions to such a problem that we used to deal with
those small groups attacking the soft targets of
unguarded wanainchi. We are discussing all this
with the Government of Congo.

Within Uganda, we have strengthened security on the

whole, including Karamoja and the surrounding
districts. We have trained tens of thousands of LDUs
that I passed out at Kaweweta, Labwordwong, Olilim,
etc., recently and many of them have been absorbed into
the divisions to boost manpower. As I have said
repeatedly, the cattle – rustlers will soon lose appetite for
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the gun. However, the cattle rustlers and the other
terrorists should be condemned and they should also
condemn themselves because of okwetera endobo,
bekuba – endobo (hurting one’s shin as you play football).
In 1991, we reduced the manpower of the Army from
100,000 to 40,000 to save money by having less infantry
so that we can buy better equipment on account of the
situation in the Region at that time that had the potential
for possible interstate conflicts. You could not fight such
conflicts with just infantry (Soldiers just walking on foot).
Even counter-insurgency needed some capacity of
combined arms. That is how we were able to build the
strategic elements of our Defence forces such as Air
force, Artillery, tanks, Reconnaissance, etc. That is how
we were able to achieve victories and cope with the
dangerous security situations in the Region. Having
smaller numbers and more equipment was a smart way
of building a modern Army able to defend the borders of
the country against external serious threats. The
modern equipment alone, however, will not handle
indisciplined elements, walking on foot, stealing cattle,
killing people, raping women, etc. On account of the
activities of those confused people, we are now forced to
build up the manpower of the Armed Forces, far above
the figure of 1991. That means a bigger wage bill,
feeding, health, education for the children of the soldiers,
accommodation, etc. This is the money we should be
spending in Karamoja and other areas on the roads, the
schools, the health centres, the PDM, the emyooga.
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Indeed, the Karimajong have seen the tarmac road from
Soroti to Moroto, from Moroto to Nakapiripirit; the
electricity from Opuyo-Moroto, from Moroto to
Kotido-Kaabong-Abim; they have seen the schools; they
have seen the health centres; etc. It is Government
money that has been doing all that. Nevertheless, we are
now diverted by our indisciplined cattle rustlers to spend
money on more soldiers (infantry). To fight what war and
against whom? To fight a war of ignorance and fight
against our expanded prosperity. All understanding
people, should denounce this sabotage.

With what I have said above, Uganda is on the right path

and has been for the last 36 years. We only need to be
mindful of three points: the environment, corruption and
chauvinism in business. You have seen what can
happen to countries when they cannot produce their own
food. There is no problem Uganda cannot solve, as I have
stated above, as long as we are able to produce most or
all of our food. To do this, you need soil and, above all,
fresh water. This means environmental protection –
protecting the wetlands – all of them, the river banks, the
lake shores and the forests and also planting trees even
in inhabited areas. I have warned all sub-county and
miruka chiefs, as well as CAOs, not to forget the
environmental officers, GISOs and DISOs, manning
areas where I will discover encroachment on wetlands,
will be sacked and, if legally possible, also criminally
prosecuted. This is for all areas of Uganda except some
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areas of Busoga, Bukedi and Kigyezi where, historically,
there was misguided Government encouragement of
people going into wetlands to grow swamp rice and start
dairy farms. Those areas of historical mistakes, will also
be recovered by working with the stakeholders to shift to
fish farming in the periphery of those wetlands, which
activity is much more profitable, so as to allow the
wetland regenerate. All the others must unconditionally
leave the wetlands because nobody took them there and
many of these are recent, which means they are doing it
in deliberate defiance of plans to save their country. The
swamp of Buseemba, between Kirolo and Kalasa, was the
river crossing where machine-gunner Mondo
Tumuhairwe used to do a lot of damage to the UNLA.
There was not a single encroacher at that time. It is now
invaded and so is Mayanja-Wenkalwe, Wabikokoma, etc.
When I flew to Kiwoko, recently, I saw the swamps that
feed into Mayanja, Makyebebe, Kizzikibi, etc., being
encroached on. This is my last warning to the Local
authorities all over Uganda. Damage to our Local water
bodies affects 40% of our rainfall. How can we tolerate
that? This is a danger to our very own existence. The
global mistake – makers are endangering the globe and
humanity with the greenhouse gases. Humanity will
struggle against them. Why should we reinforce their
mistakes with ours?

Another danger to our rapid social-economic

transformation is the corruption of political actors and
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Public servants who do not only steal government money,
thereby denying the population the services that money
would have provided, but they also parasite on our
business people. Business people and investors, do not
feel beholden to these parasites. Expose both their
requests for bribes and their schemes for frustrating
those that do not pay bribes. Action will be taken for the
benefit of the business atmosphere in the country.

Finally, on the strategic issues, I must point out the

mistake of those who proclaim what they call
“indigenous” business people as being more useful to the
country than the “foreigners”. Some people even talk of:
Factory y’Omuyindi” – an “Indian’s factory”. There are
no Indian or Chinese factories etc. in Uganda. Indian
and Chinese factories are in India and China
respectively. Economics, helped us to understand this
problem long ago by providing for us a measurement of
the size of the economy with two measurements: GDP
and GNP (Gross Domestic Product and Gross National
Product). GDP refers to the value of all production of
goods and services on our territory whether by our
citizens or not. GNP is measurement of the value of the
production of goods and services by our citizens whether
on our territory or elsewhere. Economies that do not
discriminate among wealth creators, prosper. The
German Jew, by the names of J. Robert Oppenheimer,
who was discriminated by the NAZI in Germany, is the
one that helped the USA to develop a nuclear bomb. The
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people that should be discriminated are the unrepentant
comprador bourgeoisie (the commission agents, the
importers of foreign consumer goods that could be made
here, the exporters of our unprocessed raw materials at
10% of their eventual value as final products). A foreign
manufacturer of goods based in Uganda is more useful
to the country than an importer of foreign consumer
goods that can be made here who is a citizen of Uganda.
However, patriotic importers, do not import perennially
(endlessly). I was told that Dangote used to import
cement, but graduated and became a cement
manufacturer, not only in Nigeria, but in many parts of
Africa. I was also told that in 1931, Samsung was
importing textiles in South Korea. He graduated from
that and became the big producer of electronic gadgets
(computers, etc.). Let us stop “okutaha amaizi
n’ebyondo”, “mixing water with mud”, by calling bad,
“good” and good “bad”. Such countries stagnate. China
developed because of the clear vision of Mao Tse Tung
and Deng Hsiao Ping. Mao Tse Tung helped China by
pointing out the positive alliance of the four classes:
National bourgeoisie, Peasants, Proletariat and patriotic
petty bourgeoisie against the parasitic comprador (agent)
bourgeoisie that were working as foreign agents for other
people’s interests.

Therefore, let all the NRM MPs and other positive

elements, rally around the patriotic programme of the
NRM that has transformed Uganda from the failed state
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of 1986, with the economy expanding in size 30 times
plus in 30 years, in spite of the endless betrayals by
certain elements. Those who cause frictions among the
NRM fraternity, should be carefully examined. Why can’t
you discuss any matter in non-antagonistic ways.
Antagonistic ways only work for the enemy.

The bulk of the 11th Parliament have been acting

positively. I congratulate everybody, especially the
Speaker and the Deputy Speaker. I also congratulate the
Vice President and the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister, the latter
being leader of government business in Parliament. On
account of this positiveness, parliament has passed the
following legislations in the last 12 months:

Title
1. The Administration of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 2021
2. The National Social Security Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2021
3. The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) (Special Provisions) Bill,
2021
4. The Income Tax (Amendment) (No.2) Bill, 2021
5. The Public Finance Management (Amendment) Bill, 2021
6. The Landlord and Tenant Bill, 2021
7. The Succession (Amendment) Bill, 2021
8. The Mining and Minerals Bill, 2021
9. The Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2022
10. The Physical Planners’ Registration Bill, 2021
11. The Fisheries and Aquaculture Bill, 2021
12. The Markets Bill, 2021
13. The Supplementary Appropriation (No.2) Bill, 2021
14. The Supplementary Appropriation (No.3) Bill, 2021
15. The Supplementary Appropriation (No.4) Bill, 2021
16. The Excise Duty (Amendment) Bill, 2022
17. The Value Added Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2022

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 18. The Tax Procedures Code (Amendment) Bill, 2022
19. The Income Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2022
20. The Stamp Duty (Amendment) Bill, 2022
21. The Tax Appeals Tribunal (Amendment) Bill, 2022
22. The Traffic and Road Safety (Amendment) Bill, 2022
23. The Appropriation Bill, 2022

Some of these are very strategic for further growth of the

economy. These include: the Law on the East African Oil
Pipeline known as The East African Crude Oil Pipeline
(EACOP) (Special Provisions) Bill, 2021 and the one that
allows Industrial parks to get power direct from
generation, bypassing UMEME. I thank and
congratulate everybody that was involved.

In the coming year, the government will bring the

following bills for legislation:

Title
1. The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces Act (Amendment) Bill 2022
2. The Social Impact Assessment and Accountability Bill
3. The Uganda National Kiswahili Council Bill
4. The Employment(Amendment) Bill
5. The Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Bill
6. The Workers Compensation(Amendment) Bill
7. Labour Unions (Amendment) Bill
8. The Culture and Creative Bill
9. The Veterinary Practitioners Bill
10. Animal Diseases Amendment Bill
11. The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
12. The Insolvency (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
13. The Law Revision (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, 2022.
14. Energy Efficiency and Conservation Bill(EEC)
15. Amendment of Atomic Energy Act,2008
16. Building Substances Bill,2022

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17. The National Health Insurance Scheme Bill,2019
18. The Food and Drug Authority Bill,2017
19. Health Professional Council’s Authority Bill,2016
20. The Museums and Monuments Bill 2022
21. The Nakivubo War Memorial Stadium (Amendment) Bill.
22. Business Technical Vocational Education and Training (Amendment)
Bill.
23. The National Teachers’ Bill.
24. The Physical Activity and Sports Bill
25. The Local Government (Amendment) Bill
26. The Uganda Communication(Amendment) Bill
27. National Information Technology (Amendment)Bill
28. Engineers Registration (Amendment) Bill.
29. Uganda Railways Corporation (Amendment)Bill
30. Land Acquisition Bill,2022
31. Valuation Bill,2022
32. Real Estates Bill,2022
33. Land Act(Amendment) Bill,2022
34. Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Bill
35. Small Arms and Light Weapons Control Bill
36. The Explosives Bill.
37. Transitional Justice Bill
38. Microfinance Deposit Taking Institutions(Amendment) Bill,2020
39. Annual Macroeconomic and Fiscal Performance Report FY 2021/2022
40. National Budget Framework Paper for FY 2023/2024
41. Semi – Annual Budget Performance Report FY 2022/2023.
42. Semi – Annual Macroeconomic and Fiscal Performance Report FY
2022/2023
43. Annual Budget Estimates FY 2023/2024
44. The Appropriation Bill FY 2023/2024
45. Treasury Memoranda FY 2023/2024
46. Corrigenda FY 2023/24
47. Income Tax (Amendment)Bill,2023
48. Excise Duty(Amendment)Bill,2023
49. The Value Added Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2023
50. The Stamps Duty (Amendment) Bill, 2023
51. Traffic and Road Safety (Amendment)Bill, 2023
52. Lotteries and Gaming(Amendment)Bill,2023
53. The Tax Procedures Code (Amendment) Bill 2023
54. Tax Appeals Tribunal(Amendment)Bill,2023

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 55. The Finance (Amendment) Bill, 2023
56. Budget Speech for FY 2023/2024.
57. The Supplementary Appropriation Bill FY 2022/23
58. The Uganda National Council of Science and Technology(Amendment)
Bill
59. Competition Bill
60. Consumer Protection Bill
61. Legal Metrology Bill
62. Industrial and Scientific Metrology Bill

Uganda and Africa are unstoppable. Long live Uganda,

Long Live East Africa. Long Live Africa.

I thank everybody. After overcoming the consequences

of covid-19 and the high commodity prices, we shall go
back to our other manifesto issues e.g. free education.
On corona, however, the public needs to be careful again.
Why were people not putting on masks at Namugongo?
We now, again, getting 2 deaths per week from corona.
Be alert, again, please.

7th June, 2022 - Kololo Independence Grounds

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