Diaspora community strategic for economic sovereignty

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OPINION

By Amb. Abbey Kigozi Walusimbi

During the recent consultations on the Protection of Sovereignty Bill 2026, the Governor of the Bank of Uganda made it clear. Uganda operates a deficit on the Balance of Payments because it pays out more for imports than it receives from its exports. The deficit is plugged by financial flows, of which a major component is remittances from the Ugandan Diaspora Community.

Recent Bank of Uganda data shows inflows reached $2.5 billion in 2025, equivalent to approximately 3.8 per cent of GDP. This is significantly higher than previous estimates around $1.5 billion. The Governor mentioned that our reserves increased notably because of the net surplus from the remittances. Reserves rebounded strongly in 2025, rising from about $3 billion at the end of 2024 toward around $6 billion. Therefore, the strategic role of the Diaspora cannot be overemphasised, as we can clearly see the impact through the reserve buildup.

One would then rightly conclude that every effort made to significantly improve that number for remittances is a strategic move and directly adds a huge amount of leverage to drive economic growth and sovereignty.

But it is not only remittances. Members of this community are very active in trade, industry and services. I will give an example. Today, we have a multiplicity of FM Radio stations in the country, from less than a handful of channels operated by Radio Uganda till the early 1990s. One name that deserves credit in this regard is Hon. Peter Ssematimba, now proprietor of Super FM. Hon. Ssematimba worked hard to establish CBS Radio, and others followed his lead to set up similar stations. But he got these ideas from the Diaspora, where he was in the United States of America. We have many others operating industries, hotels, schools, commercial farms, to name a few.

For many years, the Diaspora Community arose spontaneously out of main causes. Mostly it was political instability in the Country and bad politics that put the lives of the members of the Diaspora on the line. Preservation of life being of paramount importance, these citizens fled each according to their personal circumstances and got dispersed across the globe.

Arguably, there is almost no country on earth that does not have a Ugandan. But the NRM Government under the visionary leadership of H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda, has instituted deliberate measures to recognise the Diaspora community as an important component in all spheres. The President gave personal support to efforts to mainstream the NRM Diaspora via a constitutional amendment to the NRM Constitution way back in 2006.

As part of the progressive measures, the Government passed The Uganda Citizenship and Immigration Control (Amendment) Act, 2009 to provide for dual citizenship, in addition to the provisions relating to the loss of Uganda citizenship by registration or naturalisation and stipulation for the offices of State which a person holding dual citizenship is not qualified to hold. This was a very commendable step that stopped the alienation of its human resources spread across the world in the Diaspora communities. This was not a cosmetic change but a real move.

Objectively, it would be a great thing if this Diaspora community was homogeneous in terms of political ideology, as then the Government plans better and efforts drive in one direction.

Nonetheless, the NRM Government embraces political pluralism, and so we have some Ugandans in the Diaspora who subscribe to alternative political organisations, and all are served equally without discrimination. Indeed, the President, H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, in his advisory letter on the subject of the vision for the Protection of Sovereignty Bill 2026, highlights the role of the Diaspora, particularly the contribution of the Afro-American Pan-Africanists such as Marcus Garvey in the liberation struggle and quest for self-determination. Regardless of political shade, the Government continues to plan for better ways of harnessing the Diaspora community's potential for effective contribution to the national development agenda and economic growth priorities.

This is the reason behind the ongoing collaborative process geared towards the development of the National Diaspora Policy by stakeholders from the Office of the President, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Gender, Youth and Social Development. This is to help us organise effectively to better support the skilled workers and migrant workers. Currently, the migrant workers have been facing some challenges owing to the operations of rogue players like human traffickers and organised crime syndicates. The Government is up to the task.

Recently, a follow-up stakeholders meeting was convened at the Ministry of Gender, Youth and Social Development by the Permanent Secretary. The key objective is to eliminate such risks and remove distortions that threaten the entire sector. Government is listening to all players: migrant workers, labour externalisation agencies, security agencies and international partners like the International Labour Organisation and foreign host governments via Bilateral Agreements.

The diaspora is no doubt a strategic arm. Countries like China, India and Mexico have harnessed it to the maximum. China has benefited from American technology by sending hundreds of thousands of Chinese students into American premium universities and then repatriating the intellectual dividend. India too has a very huge diaspora community across the world that contributes enormously to the country’s development through financial and technical flows.

The same can be said of Mexico. India's model has transformed its diaspora into a vital asset for national development, while Mexico's approach, centred on the Institute of Mexicans Abroad (IME), has effectively leveraged its 12 million-strong community in the U.S. alone, contributing over $60 billion in annual remittances or economic, social, and cultural benefits.

We are working on strategies that will enable Uganda to harness the potential of its estimated 4 million diaspora members to boost economic growth, innovation, and social cohesion.

Owing to the strategic importance of the Diaspora community, the President of Uganda, H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, appointed a team led by Maj. (Rtd) Pollar Awich and Amb. Abbey Kigozi Walusimbi to carry out the census of the number of Ugandans in the diaspora for proper planning and service delivery.

Planning for the exercise is underway, and implementation is expected in the upcoming Presidential Term 2026-2031. This will enable Government to establish the correct number with stratified data that will help to direct service delivery. Remittances already provide a direct contribution of around 3.8 per cent to GDP while supporting household consumption in areas such as food, education, healthcare, and small businesses, alongside their critical role in foreign exchange reserves and Balance of Payments stability.

To better structure and manage the Diaspora strategy, it has been proposed that the Government establishes a dedicated cabinet-level position. This would involve creating the office of Minister of State for Diaspora Affairs, implementing a streamlined registration process inspired by India's successful Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) scheme and Mexico's Matrícula Consular ID, and launching robust non-partisan programmes focused on welfare, economic facilitation, youth engagement, and community development. It must be emphasised that the Diaspora Agenda has gained steady structural traction since 2004, when H.E. the President first proposed a Diaspora Desk in State House.

Significant progress has since been achieved with the establishment of the office of the Senior Presidential Advisor on Diaspora Affairs in the Office of the President, currently led by Amb. Abbey Kigozi Walusimbi, and the Department of Diaspora Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The creation of the office of Minister of State for Diaspora Affairs would represent a decisive and highly consequential step toward full consolidation and maximum synergy in a mature Diaspora Strategy. This elevation would unlock greater coordination, faster policy implementation, and stronger results for both the nation and its citizens abroad.

We are confident that H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, a proven champion of Diaspora engagement, will grant this progressive and much-needed advancement for a voice in the cabinet. Such a strategic role would build directly on his promise during the September 2025 meeting with the Diaspora delegation at State House, Nakasero, to appoint a respected member of the Diaspora fraternity to the Cabinet after successful elections.

The writer is a Senior Presidential Advisor to H.E. the President of the Republic of Uganda, Diaspora Affairs, Office of the President