President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has called on Ugandans living abroad to register with the government, saying accurate data will enable better planning, stronger engagement, and more opportunities for investment.
The President made the appeal on Tuesday at State Lodge, Nakasero, while meeting National Resistance Movement (NRM) members from over 20 countries who had gathered for the recently concluded NRM Delegates Conference.
“What is crucial now is to know the Ugandans, name by name, country by country, so that we know how to plan for them. Do you agree with that?” President Museveni asked, drawing a resounding “yes” from the delegates.
He clarified that the registration drive is not limited to NRM members but will cover all Ugandans abroad. “We need to know all the diaspora, whether they are NRM or not. The diaspora is not only NRM. These are Ugandans,” he said.
The government estimates that around four million Ugandans live abroad, though the figure remains uncertain. Museveni said a structured registration process will establish the true numbers and improve engagement with the diaspora. “You may be saying we are talking of four million, but when they are not there. They may be less or more,” he noted.
The exercise will be coordinated by the NRM’s Director of External Affairs, Maj. (Rtd). Awich Pollar, working with State House staff led by Barbra Barungi and community leaders in each country.
In a major pledge to boost diaspora participation in economic growth, the President announced that a special desk will be created within the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) to directly serve Ugandans abroad. “I will appoint one of you once you recommend him or her as a deputy director of the Uganda Investment Authority, so that when you come, you go to him directly without going through other people,” he said.
Maj. (Rtd). Pollar explained that the NRM Constitution already provides for diaspora branches, with 20 or more Ugandans abroad eligible to form a branch equal in status to an NRM district within Uganda. “NRM UK, for instance, is equivalent to NRM Mbarara, Hoima, or Soroti district,” he said.
Representing the delegates, Philip Kakuru thanked the President for his guidance and reaffirmed the diaspora’s commitment to supporting Uganda’s development. “We in the diaspora feel honored that when we mention your name, they salute all of us courtesy of your great work of Pan-Africanism,” he said.
The meeting drew delegates from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, China, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, and other countries.
As the government moves to formalize diaspora structures, the message from Nakasero was clear: Uganda’s foreign-based citizens are a vital constituency whose voice and resources will shape the country’s development.