SPEECH BY HIS EXCELLENCY YOWERI KAGUTA MUSEVENI, GENERAL (RTD) SSABALWANYI SSEMALUNGU
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA AT THE NOMINATION DAY – 5TH JULY, 2025 H.E. the Vice President,
Rt. Hon Speaker,
Chief Justice,
The NRM Vice-Chairman,
All the other leaders and supporters of the NRM, and all Ugandans: Greetings. I want to thank the NRM Electoral Commission for nominating me. I hope the whole membership of the NRM and its structures will support my candidature as Chairman of the NRM for 2025–2031 and also as flag bearer for the NRM in the Presidential contest for 2026–2031. Why? It is because I stand here on behalf of the very NRM that started as a student movement in 1965. That nascent student movement emerged in a very fragmented landscape, where polarization followed tribes and religious denominations. That political fragmentation made governance impossible because no fragment could muster a majority in an election. The fragmentation also could not allow institutions to be built up. The victim institutions included:
- the Army,
- the Judiciary,
- the Civil Service, etc.
With both political and institutional fragmentation came the constitutional collapse in the form of the conflict between Mutesa and Obote in 1966 and the Idi Amin coup of 1971. The constitutional order was destroyed within the first 10 years of Independence. The next casualty was the small enclave economy (island economy) of the 3Cs and 3Ts:
- 3Cs: coffee, cotton, and copper
- 3Ts: tobacco, tea, and tourism
Cotton, copper, tea, and tourism had disappeared. Only coffee and tobacco were still limping on. There were acute shortages (ebura) of all “essential items”—soap, salt, paraffin, textiles, sodas, beers. Alcohol drinkers were being rescued by “Primus beer” from Burundi and “Muniki” from Congo. Therefore, by 1986, Uganda had three mega traumas:
- Political fragmentation caused by sectarianism, leading to democratic and constitutional collapse
- Collapse of State institutions, such as the army
- Collapse of the economy
Standing where we are in 2025, we can see that over the last 60 years, the NRM has been a participant—and, for most of the time, a leader—in efforts to:
- Liberation (1965–1986)
- Stabilization (1986–2025)
- Minimum economic recovery (restoring the 3Cs and 3Ts, eliminating shortages)
- Expanding the narrow enclave economy
- Diversifying the economy (commercializing previously subsistence products)
- Adding value to raw materials
- Introducing the knowledge economy (automobiles, vaccines, diagnostics, electronics, etc.)
The NRM has helped liberate Uganda from sectarianism, ensured economic recovery, started socio-economic transformation, and pushed for regional integration to guarantee markets for African wealth creators. As a result, Uganda’s economy has expanded 16 times since 1986—from USD 3.9 billion to USD 61 billion (exchange method) or USD 172.2 billion (PPP method). Uganda is now a lower-middle-income country with a GDP per capita of USD 1,263 and is no longer a Least Developed Country (LDC). However, we can do better, especially if we eliminate corruption. Why I’m Standing Again There are two reasons:
- To clarify the six crucial aspects for Uganda’s future:
- Peace (no war, control of crime)
- Development (entunguuka, enkulakulana)
- Wealth creation (obugaiga, obugagga)
- Jobs (emirimo)
- Access to services (health, education, spirituality, etc.)
- Markets through regional integration
Understanding this helps us know that most jobs come from the private sector (factories, farming, services, ICT)—not the government.
- Factories: 1.2 million jobs
- Agriculture: 3.6 million jobs
- Services: 5 million jobs
- Government: only 480,000 jobs
Wealth creates jobs—whether by government enterprises (e.g., National Water, NEC) or private ones.
- To pursue a qualitative leap from USD 66 billion GDP (2026) to USD 500 billion in the next few years—not by 2040.
- Uganda’s exports are mostly raw materials.
- Roasted coffee earns 10–15x more than de-husked beans.
- Germany (non-coffee growing) earns USD 65 billion from coffee; all coffee producers combined earn USD 25 billion.
- By refining minerals (gold, tin, copper) and adding value, we create jobs and attract high-tech industries.
- Uganda’s educated workforce is an asset for transformation into a knowledge economy.
We have achieved the lower middle-income status through recovery and expansion. With value addition and the knowledge economy, we can achieve upper-middle-income and First World status. God has helped me lead the NRM through these phases. I am ready to contribute again as President and NRM Chairman for the next five years. Acknowledging the Past Let us not forget:
- The Bataka-bbu of the 1920s
- I.K. Musaazi and colleagues (1930s–1950s)
- Their work pushed Uganda toward independence, but later sectarianism undermined their legacy.
To New NRM Leaders I congratulate the newly elected NRM leaders—especially the youth.
- Politics is about ideology, not biology (age/gender) or “jobology” (careerism).
- Our progress is thanks to our historical missions and ideological principles:
- Historical missions: prosperity, strategic security, and African brotherhood (Undugu)
- Ideological principles: patriotism, Pan-Africanism, socio-economic transformation, and democracy
- If these guide you, success will come.
- Politics should not be a job for money (murimo), but a calling to fight for people’s interests (okwerwanako), not being hired shepherds (mupakasi).
- If you’re not yet a wealth creator, use PDM and Emyooga to become one.
In the early days, we left well-paying jobs to fight for Uganda’s future. If we hadn’t, where would Uganda be? Now you don’t need to fight with arms, but defend people’s interests against corruption, fraud, criminality, and land evictions. That is principled political leadership.
Long live the 60 years of victories and progress.
Long live the efforts of Ugandan freedom fighters.
Long live the qualitative leap to a USD 500 billion economy.
All glory to God, our creator and sustainer. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni
General (Rtd) Ssabalwanyi Ssamalungu
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA