President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has urged African leaders to unite in defending traditional family values and strengthening economic and political independence across the continent.
Speaking at the 3rd African Regional Inter-Parliamentary Conference at State House Entebbe, President Museveni warned against foreign ideologies that undermine African family structures and sovereignty.
“To defend the family, we must strengthen Africa economically and politically. There will be no strong families without strong countries,” he said.
The conference, themed “Towards an African Charter on Family Values and Sovereignty,” attracted high-level parliamentary leaders including Fabakary Tombong Jatta of The Gambia, Jemma Nunu Kumba of South Sudan, Vital Kamerhe of DR Congo, and Tsitsi Gezi of Zimbabwe.
President Museveni criticized what he termed as external pressures promoting disorienting ideologies, particularly on sexual and reproductive issues. Referring to the Samoa Agreement and related global campaigns, he urged African countries to resist values that conflict with African culture.
He cited Uganda’s resilience in the face of Western sanctions following the passage of the Anti-Homosexuality Law, noting that the economy grew by over 6% in the subsequent years and is projected to grow even further with the coming oil revenues.
The President called for accelerated implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to create a unified market that supports wealth creation and industrial growth.
“Without a bigger market, wealth creators are suffocated. Prosperity comes from producing goods, selling them, and accessing markets,” he said.
First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Maama Janet Museveni, supported the call for cultural preservation, warning against conditional foreign aid that threatens to alter African social values.
“Too often, aid comes with conditions that threaten to redefine our societies. We must protect our children from ideologies that do not reflect our values,” she said.
She also highlighted government-led education reforms designed to foster patriotism, moral grounding, and reverence for family and faith. A National Framework for Education on Health and Life-Skills is currently being developed to equip African children with values-based knowledge.
President Museveni emphasized the centrality of the family to national stability and called on African nations to confront moral disorientation with unity and resolve.
“When people abandon what is right for wrong, that’s disorientation—and spreading it is criminal. But it will not succeed,” he said. “There can be no nation without families.”
