42 Facts About Yoweri Museveni

Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Tibuhaburwa is a Ugandan politician and retired senior military officer who has been the 9th and current President of Uganda since 26 January 1986.

However, Yoweri Museveni's presidency has been marred by an upsurge in anti-gay legislation and activity, involvement in the First Congo War, the Rwandan Civil War, and other African Great Lakes conflicts; the Lord's Resistance Army insurgency in Northern Uganda, which caused a humanitarian emergency; and constitutional amendments, scrapping presidential term limits in 2005, and the presidential age limit in 2017.

Yoweri Museveni's rule has been described by scholars as competitive authoritarianism, or illiberal democracy.

Yoweri Museveni has recently suggested he would like to retire at some point; according to a presidential adviser, Yoweri Museveni does not want to preside at 82 years of age.

Yoweri Museveni has been endorsed by his Vice President Jessica Alupo as a presidential candidate in 2026.

Yoweri Museveni has refused to participante in the 2026 presidential elections, his son has interesting in ruling Uganda.

Yoweri Museveni was estimated to be born on 15 September 1944 to parents Mzee Amos Kaguta, a cattle keeper, and Esteri Kokundeka Nganzi, in Rukungiri.

Yoweri Museveni is an ethnic Hima of the kingdom of Mpororo.

Yoweri Museveni attended Kyamate Elementary School, Mbarara High School, and Ntare School for his primary and secondary education.

Yoweri Museveni attended the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania for his tertiary education.

Yoweri Museveni broke away from the mainstream opposition and formed the Front for National Salvation in 1973.

Yoweri Museveni was present during the capture and destruction of Mbarara in February 1979, and involved in the Western Uganda campaign of 1979.

Yoweri Museveni played a significant part in the Moshi Conference which led to the unification of the opposition as the Uganda National Liberation Front.

Yoweri Museveni felt dissatisfied with the results of the conference, believing that he and his followers were not granted enough representation.

Indeed, this was part of the NRM's ten-point programme, as Yoweri Museveni noted in his swearing in speech:.

Yoweri Museveni managed to get the Karamojong, a group of semi-nomads in the sparsely populated north-east that had never had a significant political voice, to align with him by offering them a stake in the new government.

The NRA subsequently earned a reputation for respecting the rights of civilians, although Yoweri Museveni later received criticism for using child soldiers.

The first elections under Yoweri Museveni's government were held on 9 May 1996.

Yoweri Museveni won with 75.5 percent of the vote from a turnout of 72.6 percent of eligible voters.

Yoweri Museveni was sworn in as president for the second time on 12 May 1996.

President Yoweri Museveni got 69 percent of the vote to beat his rival Kizza Besigye.

The 2001 election campaigns were a heated affair with President Yoweri Museveni threatening to put his rival "six feet under".

Yoweri Museveni was elected chairperson of the Organisation of African Unity in 1991 and 1992.

Yoweri Museveni was lauded by some for his affirmative action program for women in the country.

Yoweri Museveni served with a female vice-president, Specioza Kazibwe, for nearly a decade, and has done much to encourage women to go to college.

In official briefing papers from Madeleine Albright's December 1997 Africa tour as Secretary of State, Yoweri Museveni was claimed by the Clinton administration to be a "beacon of hope" who runs a "uni-party democracy", despite Uganda not permitting multiparty politics.

Yoweri Museveni has been an important ally of the United States in the War on Terror.

Yoweri Museveni apparently persuaded an initially reluctant High Command to go along with the venture.

In 2001, Yoweri Museveni won the presidential elections by a substantial majority, with his former friend and personal physician Kizza Besigye as the only real challenger.

Yoweri Museveni responded to the mounting international pressure by accusing donors of interfering with domestic politics and using aid to manipulate poor countries.

On 17 November 2005, Yoweri Museveni was chosen as NRMs presidential candidate for the February 2006 elections.

In 2007, Yoweri Museveni deployed troops to the African Union's peacekeeping operation in Somalia.

Also in this term, Yoweri Museveni held meetings with investors that included Wisdek, to promote Uganda's call centre and outsourcing industry and create employment to the country.

In September 2009 Yoweri Museveni refused Kabaka Muwenda Mutebi, the Buganda King, permission to visit some areas of the Buganda Kingdom, particularly the Kayunga district.

British newspaper The Guardian reported that Yoweri Museveni "appeared to add his backing" to the legislative effort by, among other things, claiming "European homosexuals are recruiting in Africa", and saying gay relationships were against God's will.

In 2023, Yoweri Museveni signed an anti-LGBTQ+ bill and called on other African leaders to reject the "promotion of homosexuality".

Yoweri Museveni was re-elected on 20 February 2011 with a 68 percent majority with 59 percent of registered voters having voted.

On 28 April 2011, Besigye was arrested because Yoweri Museveni said Besigye had attacked first, a charge he denied.

Ugandan lawmakers have voted overwhelmingly to remove the presidential age limits because they want to pave way for the current president Yoweri Museveni to serve a sixth term in office.

In October 2022 Yoweri Museveni apologized to Kenya on behalf of his son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba who tweeted that he could invade Kenya in two weeks.

Yoweri Museveni is an Anglican and a member of the Church of Uganda.

Yoweri Museveni is married to Janet Kataaha Museveni, nee Kainembabazi, with whom he has four children:.