Uganda holds successful first National Cleaning Day

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People across Uganda came together on Saturday to participate in the inaugural National Cleaning Day, demonstrating a shared commitment to creating cleaner, healthier, and safer public spaces.

The nationwide exercise, officially launched by H.E. Vice President Jessica Alupo at Kiti Zone in Kisenyi Parish, Kampala, marked the beginning of a monthly campaign that will see Ugandans dedicate the last Saturday of every month, from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., to cleaning their homes and public spaces, including roads, schools, health facilities, and markets.

Vice President Jessica Alupo and Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja participating in the cleaning activities before the launch of the National Cleaning Day in Kisenyi, Kampala on Saturday.

The initiative, championed by H.E. President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, aims to promote environmental sanitation by encouraging every citizen to take responsibility for the cleanliness of their surroundings.

Speaking during the launch, the Vice President urged Ugandans to make cleanliness a daily habit rather than a one-day activity.

“Cleaning should start at the household and extend to our communities. Uganda belongs to all of us,” she said. “I hereby launch the national cleaning activities to be conducted on the last Saturday of every month by all people in Uganda.”

The Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja said the initiative was approved and adopted as a national programme by the Cabinet in August 2025.

“The lead champion of this National Cleaning Day is H.E. President Yoweri Museveni,” she said. “We have been planning this for quite some time.”

The Vice President, Prime Minister, Ministers and several government officials participated in the cleaning exercise before and after the launch along with members of the general public.

From urban centres to rural communities, thousands of Ugandans turned out in large numbers and worked together to clear drainage channels, sweep streets, collect waste, and restore public spaces, leaving many communities visibly cleaner by the end of the exercise.

The Government received an overwhelming response on its social media platforms from across the country, with hundreds of Ugandans sharing photographs and videos of themselves participating in the exercise. This reflected public ownership of the campaign and emphasised the message that environmental cleanliness is a shared responsibility.

As the programme continues every last Saturday of the month, the Government is calling upon all Ugandans to sustain the momentum and work together to keep the country clean and healthy.

See recap of the launch

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Government takes food to more Districts in Karamoja

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The Government has continued to deliver more food relief to families in Karamoja, where the prolonged dry spell has destroyed crops and exposed the sub-region to food insecurity.

The Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees, Hon. Sam Engola, recently presided over the distribution of food in the latest beneficiary Districts of Napak and Moroto.

L-R Ministers Hon. Esther Anyakun, Sam Engola and John Baptist Lokii (2nd right) joined by the WFP Representative and Country Director to Uganda after meeting leaders in Karamoja sub region over the food crisis

“Nobody should die of hunger in Karamoja because the Government is here to take care of its people. The President has directed that all households must receive food immediately to save lives,” Engola said.

The Minister for Karamoja Affairs, John Baptist Lokii, said that the Government is determined to deliver food to all parishes in the nine Districts of Karamoja, as directed by Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabbanja.

Lokii thanked President Yoweri Museveni for directing the Government to deliver food relief to Karamoja.

“We appreciate the President for his humility and generosity as the Fountain of Honour. The people of Karamoja are blessed to have you as our President,” Lokii said.

Ministers Hon. Sam Engola and Hon. John Baptist Lokii whle addressing a section of the people in Napak District

Hon. Esther Anyakun, the Minister of State for Karamoja, appealed to parents to send their children to school now that food has been provided.

Local leaders lauded the Government for the quick response to the food shortage in the sub-region.

John Paul Kodet, the Napak District Chairperson, urged the Government to invest in water harvesting and water-for-production technologies.

“The rain water can help us address the challenge of prolonged droughts and crop failure,” Kodet said. “We need the Government to establish dams in all parishes so that we can irrigate our crops when the rains are delayed.”

The Government provided Shs 45 billion for the procurement and delivery of food to Karamoja. Ends

Relief Food trickles down to the beneficiaries in Karamoja

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The Government of Uganda has begun distributing emergency food relief to households in the Karamoja sub-region following a prolonged dry spell.

The exercise was officially launched in Kotome Parish, Lodiko Sub-county, Kabong District on Wednesday.

A Karamajong woman with relief food after it was handed over to her by the minister for Reief, disaster preparedness and Refugees Hon. Sam Engola at Kotome Primary School in Kabong District

The relief operation was flagged off by the Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees, Hon. Sam Engola, as part of the Government’s intervention to provide immediate assistance to communities whose livelihoods have been severely affected by the prolonged drought.

Speaking to residents of Lodiko sub county at Kotome Primary School in Kabong, Engola reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to ensuring that no one in Karamoja dies of hunger.

“His Excellency the President of Uganda does not want to hear of anyone in Karamoja dying of hunger. I am here to supervise the distribution of this food to the intended beneficiary and no one is left behind,” said Engola.

The Minister warned the beneficiaries against selling relief food saying that whoever is found doing so will face the law.

Beneficiaries Carrying their share of the relief food in Kotome Parish in Kabong District

Engola commended the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and other security agencies for safeguarding the food supplies and ensuring they reach the intended beneficiaries.

Engola said the distribution exercise will run for two months, covering July and August 2026.

The Minister for Karamoja Affairs John Baptist Lokii thanked President Museveni for aiding the Karamojong with food which was timely.

“We have to thank the Government more especially President Yoweri Museveni for his humility to the people of Karamoja. When we told him about the hunger situation in Karamoja, he immediately ordered relief food, for this we are very grateful,” said Lokii.

Lokii said the exercise will target households in every parish across the nine Districts of Karamoja.

The Minister of State for Karamoja affairs, Hon. Esther Anyakun, said the Government’s priority was to save lives.

She added that UNICEF and the World Food Programme, alongside other Development Partners, will support schools and communities affected by hunger.

“Partners like UNICEF and World Food Programme are considering schools and children under the age of 5 as government targets households,” said Anyakun.

The UPDF will ensure security for all stakeholders involved in relief distribution, provide escorts, and secure storage facilities. We will ensure food is distributed in an orderly manner without disruption, together with the Uganda Police,” he said

The launch was attended by the Resident District Commissioner of Kabong, Stephen Latek, the Kabong District LCV chairperson, LCIII Chairpersons, the Regional Police Commander for Kotido, the Resident Internal Security Officer, the Deputy Commandant of the Anti-Stock Theft Unit (ASTU), and Kabong District technical staff.

Government released sh45bn to help provide immediate relief to the people of Karamoja and food was flagged off by the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabbanja on Monday.

The Districts of Kabong, Karenga, Nablatuk, Moroto, Amdat, Nakapiripirit, Napak, Abim and Kotido will all benefit from the aid from.

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Government flags off food relief to Karamoja

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Thousands of families affected by the prolonged dry spell in Karamoja are set to receive life-saving food assistance after the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja flagged off a convoy of trucks carrying maize flour and beans destined for the sub-region on Monday.

Speaking during the flag-off ceremony at the Headquarters of the National Enterprise Corporation (NEC) in Bugoloobi, the business arm of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), which is supplying the food together with the Uganda Prisons Service, the Prime Minister said more than 9.4 million kilograms of maize flour and beans will be delivered to communities across Karamoja.

Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja displaying packed maize flour and beans before flagging off a convoy of trucks to Karamoja carrying relief food.

She said the relief food will be distributed to 313,987 households in 480 parishes across the sub-region. Nabbanja explained that the intervention is being coordinated by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) in partnership with NEC, the Uganda Prisons Service, the Uganda Police Force, and Local Governments to ensure the timely, transparent, and accountable delivery of the food aid.

“To the people of Karamoja, I assure you that the Government stands with you,” the Prime Minister said. “We recognise the challenges you are facing and will continue to mobilise the necessary resources to support your recovery and strengthen your resilience.”

The Prime Minister warned against the misuse of the relief supplies. “Every bag of relief food supplied must be properly received, documented, and distributed in accordance with the approved guidelines. There will be no tolerance for diversion, theft, or misuse of relief supplies. Anyone found culpable will be dealt with in accordance with the law,” she said.

The Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees, Hon. Sam Engola, urged all leaders and technical officers involved in the response to ensure that the relief food reaches the intended households.

The OPM Permanent Secretary, Mr. Alex Kakooza, said the Ministry will continue to closely monitor the food security situation in Karamoja and neighbouring Districts while coordinating both immediate humanitarian assistance and long-term resilience interventions.

“We are also engaging our Development Partners to strengthen efforts to protect lives and livelihoods, guided by the recently approved Karamoja Regional Development Plan,” he said.

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Minister Anyakun pledges to support fight against Child trafficking in Karamoja

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The Minister of State for Karamoja Affairs, Hon. Esther Davinia Anyakun has pledged to support the stakeholders involved in the fight against trafficking and exploitation of the children of Karamoja, who are lured by the traffickers due to the challenges in the region ranging from poverty, food insecurity and limited access to social services.

The Minister made the commitment during a meeting which she held with the team from FIDA-Uganda in her Office, on Friday 10 July 2026, to discuss the emerging trends in child trafficking and how to strengthen the protection of children in Karamoja.

Hon. Anyakun chairing a meeting on the emerging trends of child trafficking of children in Karamoja with the FIDA-Uganda team

She commended FIDA-Uganda and all the stakeholders who are taking the initiative to combat the vice and the human rights crisis of trafficking the Karamojong Children, so that, the vulnerable minors can be protected from exploitation, modern-day slavery and abuse by the traffickers.

She applauded the efforts of FIDA-Uganda in ensuring that the children rescued from the traffickers are rehabilitated and reintegrated back into the community so that they can pursue formal education, and also for putting mechanisms in place to address child trafficking and strengthening the child protection systems.

On behalf of the Ministry of Karamoja Affairs, the Minister pledged to equip the schools involved in the “reintegration process and programme” of the child survivors of human trafficking in Karamoja sub-region with tractors for agricultural purposes.

The team from FIDA-Uganda which was led by Lilian Byarugaba Adriko, the Chief Executive Officer of FIDA-Uganda, appreciated the Minister’s collaborative efforts and highlighted the persistent and evolving forms of child trafficking and exploitation, including the movement of children within Uganda for purposes of exploitation, organised street begging, forced labour, domestic servitude, and other harmful practices. END.

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