Kitagwenda — President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, accompanied by the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Maama Janet Museveni, addressed a public rally at Kichwamba Secondary School, where he praised the people of Kitagwenda District for maintaining peace and rejecting subversive activities.
The President attributed Uganda’s enduring peace and stability to the National Resistance Movement (NRM)’s inclusive ideology, which prioritises politics of common interest over identity-based politics and promotes gender equality and religious and ethnic tolerance.
While acknowledging the importance of infrastructure such as tarmac roads and electricity, President Museveni emphasised that economic empowerment at the household level is the key to meaningful development.
“Without a source of income, roads and power alone cannot transform a family’s life. Our focus now is boosting household incomes,” he said.
He encouraged residents with small land holdings to engage in productive farming, referencing Richard Nyakana, a model farmer from Fort Portal, who has successfully turned a one-acre plot into a thriving enterprise.
Central to the President’s message was the Parish Development Model (PDM), a government initiative aimed at lifting the poorest Ugandans into the money economy by providing startup capital at the grassroots.
He explained that each parish is allocated Shs 100 million annually, from which beneficiaries can access Shs 1 million loans at a low interest rate of 6%, repayable over two years.
“This money is your money—it will not go back to the government. Report any official who tries to steal or mismanage it,” the President warned.
On the education front, Museveni reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to free primary and secondary education in government schools. He announced increased investment in teacher recruitment and classroom construction and donated school buses to both Kichwamba Secondary School and Humura Secondary School.
In addition, the President pledged Shs 60 million to support the ongoing construction of the Kitagwenda Mosque.
The rally was attended by local leaders, including Kitagwenda Woman MP, Hon. Dorothy Nyakato, and Kitagwenda County MP, Hon. Nulu Byamukama, who thanked the President for creating Kitagwenda District and for rolling out the PDM initiative.
Hon. Byamukama further appealed to the President to prioritise tarmacking key roads in the district to facilitate the transport of coffee and other produce to markets.
