Why Museveni eyes 45 years in power

Uganda’s president Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has formally accepted his party’s nomination to run for president in 2026, a move that sets him on course to extend his grip on power to 45 years.

In a speech delivered on July 5, 2025, following his unopposed nomination as the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM)’s presidential candidate, the 80-year-old leader explained why he believes his job is far from over. Museveni framed his candidacy not as a pursuit of power, but as a response to what he called a historic mandate and a pressing national mission.

“Millions of Ugandans have been ordering me with the slogan: ‘Tova ku main’ — ‘Do not leave the main electricity line,’” he said.

The phrase, a popular rallying cry among his supporters, is now the symbolic anchor of his return. In his words, “It is for two reasons.” The first, he said, is ideological clarity — a need to guide Uganda and Africa through a crucial developmental crossroads. The second is to ensure that Uganda makes a “qualitative leap” from its current lower-middle-income status to a high-middle-income economy — a vision he insists is not only achievable but imminent.

Museveni’s latest pitch comes at a pivotal moment for Uganda. At nearly four decades in power, he is among the longest-serving leaders in the world. First seizing power in 1986 after a protracted bush war, Museveni initially promised a new era of democratic governance.

Over time, his government has been praised for stabilizing the country and expanding its economy, yet also criticized for eroding democratic norms, weakening institutions, and marginalizing opposition voices. But in his address on Friday, Museveni returned to the roots of his political legacy — drawing a straight line from Uganda’s post-independence collapse to what he sees as his administration’s historic rescue mission.

He recalled the deep fragmentation that followed independence: a country split along tribal and religious lines, with crumbling institutions, economic collapse and the dictatorship of Idi Amin.

“By 1986, Uganda had suffered three mega traumas: political fragmentation, institutional breakdown and economic collapse,” he said. He cast the NRM’s legacy as a steady arc of progress: liberation, stabilization, recovery and economic transformation. In his telling, the country has gone from shortages of soap and beer to assembling computers and exploring vaccines.

“The economy has expanded fivefold since 1986,” Museveni noted, quoting government figures that place Uganda’s GDP at $61 billion (exchange rate method) and $172 billion (purchasing power parity). He added that per capita income had climbed to $1,263 — moving Uganda out of the UN’s list of least developed countries. But statistics, Museveni argued, are not enough.

The next challenge, he said, is to turn raw potential into real prosperity. Much of Uganda’s export earnings still come from raw materials like coffee, tin and gold — a pattern that Museveni says leaves the country vulnerable to global price swings and robs it of value.

“Our coffee, as de-husked beans, brings in $2.50 per kilogramme. Yet the one who roasts, grinds, and packs the coffee earns between $25 and $40 per kilogramme,” he said.

“Germany, a non-coffee growing country, earns $65 billion from coffee — more than all producing countries combined.”

This economic model, he said, must be transformed through value addition. Uganda must not just grow crops and mine minerals — it must refine, package and manufacture. The president envisions a Uganda where purified gold, refined tin, processed coffee and high- end manufacturing define the economy, not just subsistence farming and raw exports.

“The vertical and horizontal integration of sectors will greatly expand the economy,” he said. Museveni also sees Uganda’s well-educated population as an untapped asset.

He pointed to future gains in the “knowledge economy” — including vaccine development, electric vehicle assembly, diagnostics and electronics. According to his government’s plan, these sectors, combined with value-added exports, could lift Uganda into a $500 billion economy — a goal he insists could be achieved long before 2040. “That is too far for me,” he quipped.

“I believe we can get there earlier — if we eliminate corruption and are aggressive.” This long-term vision comes at a time when many Ugandans are questioning the sustainability of Museveni’s extended leadership. Critics argue that his prolonged rule has stifled political competition, undermined term limits, and fostered a culture of patronage.

In 2017, Museveni removed the age limit for presidential candidates, clearing the path for indefinite re-election. And while he remains popular in rural parts of the country and within the military, his support among urban youth — a fast-growing demographic — has waned.

Museveni addressed those concerns obliquely, suggesting that youth should focus less on “jobology” — or personal ambition — and more on ideological commitment. “Productive politics is about ideology, not biology or careerism,” he said. He urged the new NRM leaders to become “wealth creators” rather than “job seekers,” echoing a long-standing theme of self-reliance and economic productivity.

He credited Uganda’s economic progress to private sector growth, not government expansion.

“Factories have created 1.2 million jobs compared to 480,000 in the entire public service,” he said.

“Agriculture has created over 3.6 million jobs, and services more than five million. The nexus is clear: wealth creates jobs.” Museveni also invoked the legacy of earlier freedom fighters like I.K. Musaazi and the Bataka-Bbu, crediting them with paving the road to independence. But he reserved special praise for the NRM’s 60-year arc of victories — from bush war to ballot box — insisting that the movement still has work to do.

If re-elected, Museveni’s next term would push his leadership into its fifth decade — a feat that is rare even among the world’s most enduring heads of state. For some Ugandans, his longevity signals stability and experience. For others, it raises questions about democratic renewal, generational transition and the future of leadership on the continent.

But Museveni remains resolute. “God has enabled me to lead the NRM for the last 60 years,” he said. “I believe God will see us through the qualitative leap. I am ready to make my contribution in the next five-year phase — both as president and as chairman of the NRM.”

As Uganda heads toward another election, the man at the center of its political history appears determined to also define its economic future.

THE RACE TO 2026 HEATS UP

With the clock ticking toward Uganda’s 2026 general election, the political temperature in the country is rising fast. President Yoweri Museveni, who has led the nation for nearly four decades, now awaits confirmation of his contenders after securing the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) flag for the presidential race.

His most prominent challenger is expected to be Robert Kyagulanyi, better known by his stage name Bobi Wine—the musician-turned-opposition leader who came second in the hotly contested 2021 election.

The Uganda Electoral Commission has reaffirmed the official electoral roadmap, signalling the start of a crucial countdown. According to the schedule, the nomination of parliamentary candidates will take place between September 16 and 17, 2025. Presidential nominations are set for October 2 and 3, while nominations for representatives of Special Interest Groups (SIGs) in local governments will follow in December.

Polling for all levels—including presidential, parliamentary, and local government positions—is scheduled to run from January 12 to February 9, 2026.

A HIGH-STAKES REMATCH IN THE MAKING

For many Ugandans and international observers alike, the upcoming election is shaping into a likely rematch between two vastly different political forces: the 80-year-old incumbent who has dominated the country’s politics since 1986, and the 42-year-old challenger representing a restless, younger generation eager for change.

Robert Kyagulanyi, leader of the National Unity Platform (NUP), emerged as a major political force in the 2021 election, where he galvanized massive youth support, particularly in urban centers.

His platform emphasized government accountability, an end to entrenched corruption, and the creation of economic opportunities for Uganda’s growing youth population. Museveni, meanwhile, continues to position himself as the custodian of stability and national progress.

In his nomination speech delivered earlier this month, he laid out a vision centered on peace, economic transformation and Uganda’s ascent into a high-middle-income country. He argued that continuity in leadership is essential for consolidating decades of hard-won development gains.

But his extended stay in power— approaching 40 years—has become a polarizing subject both at home and abroad. Critics argue that Museveni’s long rule has entrenched authoritarianism, eroded democratic institutions, and stifled political pluralism.

His supporters, however, point to infrastructure growth, macroeconomic stability, and improved security as tangible outcomes of his leadership.

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