Museveni Celebrates Janet's 78th Birthday with Story of Miraculous Reunion

President Yoweri Museveni has paid tribute to First Lady Janet Museveni on her 78th birthday, recounting how a chance meeting in Nairobi in 1972 reunited them and eventually led to the family they built together.

In a message posted on X on June 24, 2026, Museveni thanked God for Janet's life and reflected on the events that brought them back together during one of the most turbulent periods in Uganda's history.

The First Lady, who is also Minister of Education and Sports, was born on June 24, 1948. The President praised her resilience after losing her father, Edward Kataaha, in 1955.

"The family and myself thank God for having given us Maama, kept her safe in the years of orphanhood having lost her Father, Mzee Edward Kataaha, in 1955 and prospering her in the subsequent years up to today," Museveni wrote.

He said they had known each other from Ntungamo and had studied at Kyamate School together in 1958. However, Uganda's political turmoil separated them for many years.

Museveni recalled that by 1972 he was living in exile and organising efforts to fight the government of former president Idi Amin. He described the period as dangerous and uncertain, following a failed anti-Amin incursion in September 1972.

According to Museveni, their paths crossed again unexpectedly on Christmas Day in 1972 outside the Inter-Continental Hotel in Nairobi.

He said he had just parked at the hotel when he saw members of the Kazzora family leaving after lunch. While Mr and Mrs Kazzora did not recognise him, Janet Museveni and Jennifer Kutesa remembered him from their days in Ntungamo and at Kyamate.

Museveni described the encounter as a miracle that changed the course of his life.

"Without going into details, it is that accidental and miraculous re-connection that enabled me to have a family even when I was still in the risky life of exile and, the Resistance. Praised be the Lord," he wrote.

The President said the reunion eventually led to the birth of their four children and 15 grandchildren.

"It is that miraculous re-connection, that gave me a family of 4 great children and fifteen grandchildren and I am now threatening to have great grandchildren (Abaijukuriza)," he added.

Museveni and Janet have been married for more than five decades and remain one of Uganda's most prominent political couples. Janet Museveni currently serves as Minister of Education and Sports, a position she has held since 2016.