Parliament has passed the Museums and Monuments Bill, 2022 with amendments.
The new law will protect cultural, and natural heritage resources and the environment and prohibit illicit trafficking of protected objects.
Hon Mwine Mpaka, the Chairperson of the Committee on Trade, Tourism and Industry, on Wednesday presented the committee report on the Museums and Monuments Bill 2022.
Hon. Tom Butime Ateenyi, the Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, moved to read the Museums and Momentums Bill, 2022 for the second reading.
The objective of this Bill is to consolidate and reform the law relating to cultural and natural heritage; to strengthen the administrative structures for the effective management of the cultural and natural heritage subsector.
The Bill will provide for the classification of museums; to provide for the development, management, and maintenance of museums and monuments; to provide for formalization, control, and protection of tangible and associated intangible cultural heritage, and works of art collection.
In its report, the Committee recommended that the Government of Uganda should establish an independent Ministry responsible for culture to be in charge of Uganda’s heritage and to promote the recognition, development, and adherence to the cultural values and standards of the Ugandan Society.
In an event that the recommendation can’t be achieved under the current regulatory framework, the Committee recommended that in the interim, the function of Culture currently under the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development be transferred to the Ministry responsible for Museums and Monuments for effectiveness.
The Committee observed that the Monuments declared are not specific in nature and are, in effect, ambiguous, for example, “Makerere University”. This would imply that the entire university is gazetted as a historical site and not specific buildings, the same applies to declarations like “Mwiri”. Additionally, another building being declared in the Bill is termed as “Watoto” located in “Kampala”.
This is ambiguous and it could be any Watoto building in Kampala and not specified to a specific building and this could create an unclassifiable declaration putting all Watoto buildings into the realm of the Museums and Monuments Act.
At the Committee stage, the house scrutinized the bill clause by clause. The Committee further recommended that the Government of Uganda prioritizes the ratification, domestication, and implementation of UNESCO Conventions and recommendations for purposes of sustainable development of Uganda’s Cultural and Natural Heritage.