The Julius Nyerere Leadership Centre (JNLC) will convene the Nyerere-Museveni Generation Dialogue 2026 at Makerere University on 13th and 14th October 2026, under the theme “Borrowing from the Past, Building the Future: Reimagining Pan-African Leadership for a Sustainable Future.”
The dialogue will open with the traditional Ekyooto – a fireside conversation on October 13, from 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM at Freedom Square, Makerere University.
The Ekyooto, which is by invitation only, will bring together established leaders and emerging young leaders to connect history with contemporary realities. The main public symposium will follow on October 14, 2026 at Makerere.
The timing coincides with the 104th commemoration of Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere (April 13, 1922 – October 14, 1999), providing an opportunity to turn remembrance into meaningful intergenerational engagement.
Four years after JNLC convened a symposium to mark the centenaries of Makerere University and Mwalimu Nyerere, the Centre is returning to a related but urgent question: how can the next generation learn from the continent’s past without repeating its mistakes?
According to JNLC, the 2026 dialogue seeks to examine the past critically – retaining what remains valuable, rethinking what no longer serves present realities, and creating what the future requires. Discussions will focus on leadership, regional integration, peace, enterprise, technology and youth participation.
The Centre says the dialogue is conceived not merely as a commemoration, but as an investment in the leaders, ideas and relationships that will shape Africa’s future. It aims to contribute to a continuing conversation about leadership grounded in dignity, service, responsibility, solidarity and commitment to the common good.
JNLC, an initiative of President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in honour of Mwalimu Nyerere, was launched on October 6, 2018, and is jointly hosted by Makerere University and the Uganda Management Institute (UMI). Its mission is to develop and disseminate knowledge that promotes visionary leadership anchored in Pan-African ideals.
The dialogue builds on the Centre’s ongoing work in leadership training, mentoring, research and public dialogue. In September 2026, JNLC in partnership with UNDP Uganda convened hundreds of newly elected young leaders at Makerere’s Food Science Auditorium for a symposium on ethical governance, digital tools and accountability.
“At the Julius Nyerere Leadership Centre, we believe that leadership is ultimately about service,” Executive Director Dr Suzie Nansozi K. Muwanga told participants at the September gathering. “Leadership must ultimately be about people and their dignity.”