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Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Tibuhaburwa (born 15 September 1944) is a Ugandan politician, military officer and Pan-Africanist who has served as the ninth and current president of Uganda since 1986. As of 2025, he is the third-longest consecutively serving current non-royal national leader in the world (after Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo in Equatorial Guinea and Paul Biya in Cameroon).
Born in Ntungamo, Museveni studied political science from the University of Dar es Salaam where he initiated the University Students' African Revolutionary Front. In 1972, he participated in the abortive invasion of Uganda against the regime of President Idi Amin. The next year, Museveni established the Front for National Salvation and fought alongside Tanzanian forces in the Tanzania–Uganda War, which overthrew Amin. Museveni contested the subsequent 1980 general election on the platform of Uganda Patriotic Movement, though claimed electoral fraud after losing to the unpopular Milton Obote. Museveni unified the opposition under the National Resistance Movement and started the Ugandan Bush War. In January 1986, after the decisive Battle of Kampala, Museveni was sworn as president.
As president, Museveni suppressed the Ugandan insurgency and oversaw involvement in the Rwandan Civil War and the First Congo War. He ordered an intervention against the Lord's Resistance Army in an effort to halt their insurgency. His rule has been described by scholars as competitive authoritarianism, or illiberal democracy. The press has been under the authority of government. His presidency has been characterized by relative economic success and, in its later period, an upsurge in Homophobia activity alongside numerous constitutional amendments, like the scrapping of presidential term limits in 2005 and age limits in 2017.
On 16 January 2021, Museveni was reelected to a sixth term with 58.6% of the vote, despite many videos and reports showing ballot box stuffing, over 400 polling stations with 100% voter turnout and human rights violations. , after 36 years of his authoritarian rule, Uganda has been ranked 166th in GDP (nominal) per capita and 167th by Human Development Index.
According to Julius Nyerere, Museveni's father, Amos Kaguta, was a soldier in the King's African Rifles' 7th battalion during World War II. When Yoweri was born, relatives used to say, "His father was a mu-seven" (meaning "in the seventh"). This is how he obtained the name Museveni.
His family migrated to Ntungamo, then within the British Protectorate of Uganda. Museveni attended Kyamate Elementary School, Mbarara High School, and Ntare School for his primary and secondary education. He attended the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania for his tertiary education, where he studied economics and political science. The university at the time was a hot bed of radical Pan-Africanism and Marxism political thought. While at university, he formed the University Students' African Revolutionary Front student activist group and led a student delegation to FRELIMO-held territory in Portuguese Mozambique where they received military training. Studying under the leftist Walter Rodney, among others, Museveni wrote a university thesis on the applicability of Frantz Fanon's ideas on revolutionary violence to post-colonial Africa.
In October 1978, Ugandan troops invaded the Kagera Salient in northern Tanzania, initiating the Uganda–Tanzania War. Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere ordered the Tanzania People's Defence Force (TPDF) to counter-attack and mobilized Ugandan dissidents to fight Amin's regime. Museveni was pleased by this development. In December 1978 Nyerere attached Museveni and his forces to Tanzanian troops under Brigadier Silas Mayunga. Museveni and his FRONASA troops subsequently accompanied the Tanzanians during the counter-invasion of Uganda. He was present during the capture and destruction of Mbarara in February 1979, and involved in the Western Uganda campaign of 1979.
In course of these operations, he alternatively spent time at the frontlines and in Tanzania. While in Tanzania, he discussed the cooperation of various anti-Amin rebel groups as well as the political future of Uganda with Tanzanian politicians and other Ugandan opposition figures such as Obote. He played a significant part in the Moshi Conference which led to the unification of the opposition as the Uganda National Liberation Front (UNLF). Yusuf Lule was appointed as UNLF chairman and the potential President of Uganda after Amin's overthrow. Museveni felt dissatisfied with the results of the conference, believing that he and his followers were not granted enough representation.
The NRA/NRM developed a "Ten-point Programme" for an eventual government, covering: democracy; security; consolidation of national unity; defending national independence; building an independent, integrated, and self-sustaining economy; improvement of social services; elimination of corruption and misuse of power; redressing inequality; cooperation with other African countries; and a mixed economy.
The Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook estimates that the Obote regime was responsible for more 100,000 civilian deaths across Uganda.
Despite these reservations, the NRM/NRA eventually agreed to peace talks presided over by a Kenyan delegation headed by President Daniel arap Moi. The talks, which lasted from 26 August to 17 December, were notoriously acrimonious and the resultant ceasefire broke down almost immediately. The final agreement, signed in Nairobi, called for a ceasefire, demilitarization of Kampala, integration of the NRA and government forces, and absorption of the NRA leadership into the Military Council."Kampala troops flee guerrilla attacks", The Times, 23 January 1986 These conditions were never met.
By 22 January, government troops in Kampala had begun to quit their posts en masse as the rebels gained ground from the south and south-west.
Although Museveni headed a new government in Kampala, the NRM could not project its influence fully across Ugandan territory, finding itself fighting a number of insurgencies. From the beginning of Museveni's presidency, he drew strong support from the Bantu languages south and southwest, where Museveni had his base. Museveni managed to get the Karamojong, a group of semi- in the sparsely populated northeast that had never had a significant political voice, to align with him by offering them a stake in the new government. The northern region along the Sudanese border proved more troublesome. In the West Nile sub-region, inhabited by Kakwa people and Lugbara people (who had previously supported Amin), the UNRF and FUNA rebel groups fought for years until a combination of military offensives and diplomacy pacified the region.
The leader of the UNRF, Moses Ali, gave up his struggle to become the second deputy prime minister. People from the northern parts of the country viewed the rise of a government led by a person from the south with great trepidation. Rebel groups sprang up among the Lango people, Acholi people, and , though they were overwhelmed by the strength of the NRA except in the far north where the Sudanese border provided a safe haven. The Acholi rebel Uganda People's Democratic Army (UPDA) failed to dislodge the NRA occupation of Acholiland, leading to the desperate millenarianism of the Holy Spirit Movement (HSM). The defeat of both the UPDA and HSM left the rebellion to a group that eventually became known as the Lord's Resistance Army, which turned upon the Acholi themselves.
The NRA subsequently earned a reputation for respecting the rights of civilians, although Museveni later received criticism for using child soldiers. Undisciplined elements within the NRA soon tarnished a hard-won reputation for fairness. "When Museveni's men first came they acted very well—we welcomed them", said one villager, "but then they started to arrest people and kill them". "Africa’s child soldiers" , Daily Times, 30 May 2002 "Uganda: A Killer Before She Was Nine" , Sunday Times, 15 December 2002
In March 1989, Amnesty International published a human rights report on Uganda, Uganda, the Human Rights Record 1986–1989.
It documented gross human rights violations committed by NRA troops. According to Olara Otunnu, a United Nations Diplomat argued that Museveni pursued a genocide to Nilotic – Luo people living in the Northern part of the country. In one of the most intense phases of the war, between October and December 1988, the NRA forcibly cleared approximately 100,000 people from their homes in and around Gulu. Soldiers committed hundreds of extrajudicial executions as they forcibly moved people, burning down homes and granary."Uganda: Breaking the Circle", Amnesty International, 17 March 1999. In its conclusion, the report offered some hope:On 13 September 2019, Museveni's former Inspector General of Police (IGP) General Kale Kayihura was placed on the United States Department of the Treasury sanctions list for gross violation of Human rights during his reign as the IGP (from 2005 to March 2018). This was due to activities of the Uganda Police's Flying Squad Unit that involved torture and corruption. Kayihura was subsequently replaced with Martin Okoth Ochola.
In 1997 he introduced free primary education. "Uganda's first Batwa pygmy graduate" , BBC, 29 October 2010
The second set of elections were held in 2001. Museveni got 69 percent of the vote to beat his rival Kizza Besigye. Besigye had been a close confidant of the president and was his physician during the Ugandan Bush War. They had a terrible fallout shortly before the 2001 elections, when Besigye decided to stand for the presidency. The 2001 election campaigns were a heated affair with Museveni threatening to put his rival "six feet under".
The election culminated in a petition filed by Besigye at the Supreme Court of Uganda. The court ruled that the elections were not free and fair but declined to nullify the outcome by a 3–2 majority decision. The court held that although there were many cases of election malpractice, they did not affect the result in a substantial manner. Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki and Justices Alfred Karokora and Joseph Mulenga ruled in favor of the respondents while Justices Aurthur Haggai Oder and John Tsekoko ruled in favor of Besigye.
Perhaps Museveni's most widely noted accomplishment has been his government's successful campaign against AIDS. During the 1980s, Uganda had one of the highest rates of HIV infection in the world, but now Uganda's rates are comparatively low, and the country stands as a rare success story in the global battle against the virus. One of the campaigns headed by Museveni to fight against HIV/AIDS was the ABC program. The ABC program had three main parts "Abstain, Be faithful, or use if A and B are not practiced."Leone, Daniel A., ed. Responding to the AIDS Epidemics. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven Press, 2008. In April 1998, Uganda became the first country to be declared eligible for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, receiving US$700 million in aid.
Museveni was lauded by some for his affirmative action program for women in the country. He had a female vice-president, Specioza Kazibwe, for nearly a decade, and has done much to encourage women to go to college. On the other hand, Museveni has resisted calls for greater women's family land rights (the right of women to own a share of their matrimonial homes). "Gender implications for opening up political parties in Uganda" , Sylvia Tamale, Faculty of Law, Makerere University, from the Women of Uganda Network
The New York Times in 1997 said about Museveni: Uganda Leader Stands Tall in New African Order , James C. McKinley, New York Times, 15 June 1997
These are heady days for the former guerilla who runs Uganda. He moves with the measured gait and sure gestures of a leader secure in his power and his vision. It is little wonder. To hear some of the diplomats and African experts tell it, President Yoweri K. Museveni started an ideological movement that is reshaping much of Africa, spelling the end of the corrupt, strong-man governments that characterized the cold war era. These days, political pundits across the continent are calling Mr. Museveni an African Bismarck. Some people now refer to him as Africa's "other statesman", second only to the venerated South African President Nelson Mandela.
In official briefing papers from Madeleine Albright's December 1997 Africa tour as Secretary of State, 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.
Museveni has been an important ally of the United States in the War on Terror.
In August 1998, Rwanda and Uganda invaded the DRC again during the Second Congo War, this time to overthrow Kabila, who was a former ally of Museveni and Kagame. Museveni and a few close military advisers alone made the decision to send the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) into the DRC. A number of highly placed sources indicate that the Ugandan parliament and civilian advisers were not consulted over the matter, as is required by the 1995 constitution. Museveni apparently persuaded an initially reluctant High Command to go along with the venture. "We felt that the Rwandese started the war and it was their duty to go ahead and finish the job, but our President took time and convinced us that we had a stake in what is going on in Congo", one senior officer is reported as saying. "Uganda and Rwanda: friends or enemies?" , International Crisis Group, Africa Report No. 14, 4 May 2000
The official reasons Uganda gave for the intervention were to stop a "genocide" against the Banyamulenge in the DRC in concert with Rwandan forces, New Vision, 26 and 28 August 1998 and that Kabila had failed to provide security along the border and was allowing the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) to attack Uganda from rear bases in the DRC. In reality, the UPDF were deployed deep inside the DRC, more than to the west of Uganda's border with the DRC. "L'Ouganda et les guerres Congolaises" , Politique Africaine, 75: 43–59, 1999
Troops from Rwanda and Uganda plundered the country's rich minerals and timber. The United States responded to the invasion by suspending all military aid to Uganda, a disappointment to the Clinton administration, which had hoped to make Uganda the centerpiece of the African Crisis Response Initiative. In 2000, Rwandan and Ugandan troops exchanged fire on three occasions in the DRC city of Kisangani, leading to tensions and a deterioration in relations between Kagame and Museveni. The Ugandan government has also been criticized for aggravating the Ituri conflict, a sub-conflict of the Second Congo War. The Ugandan army officially withdrew from the Congo in 2003 and a contingent of UN peace keepers was deployed. In December 2005, the International Court of Justice ruled that Uganda must pay compensation to the DRC for human rights violations during the Second Congo War., ICJ Press Release, 19 December 2005
There was much recrimination and bitterness during the 2001 presidential elections campaign, and incidents of violence occurred following the announcement of the win by Museveni. Besigye challenged the election results in the Supreme Court of Uganda. Two of the five judges concluded that there were such illegalities in the elections and that the results should be rejected. The other three decided that the illegalities did not affect the result of the election in a substantial manner, but stated that "there was evidence that in a significant number of polling stations there was cheating" and that in some areas of the country, "the principle of free and fair election was compromised." "State of Pain:Torture in Uganda" – Part III, Human Rights Watch
Moves to alter the constitution and alleged attempts to suppress opposition political forces have attracted criticism from domestic commentators, the international community, and Uganda's aid donors.
In a press release, the main opposition party, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), accused Museveni of engaging in a "life presidency project", and for bribing members of parliament to vote against constitutional amendments, FDC leaders claimed:As observed by some political commentators, including Wafula Oguttu, Museveni had previously stated that he considered the idea of clinging to office for "15 or more" years ill-advised. "The Travails and Antics of Africa's "Big Men" – How Power Has Corrupted African Leaders" , Wafula Okumu, The Perspective, 11 April 2002 Comments by the Irish anti-poverty campaigner Bob Geldof sparked a protest by Museveni supporters outside the British High Commission in Kampala. "Get a grip Museveni. Your time is up, go away", said Geldof in March 2005, explaining that moves to change the constitution were compromising Museveni's record against fighting poverty and HIV/AIDS. "Ugandans march against Bob Geldof" , BBC News, 22 March 2005 In an opinion article in the Boston Globe and in a speech delivered at the Wilson Center, former U.S. Ambassador to Uganda Johnnie Carson heaped more criticism on Museveni. Despite recognizing the president as a "genuine reformer" whose "leadership has led to stability and growth", Carson also said, "we may be looking at another Robert Mugabe and Zimbabwe in the making"."Uganda: An African Success Turning Sour", Johnnie Carson, speech delivered at the Wilson Center, 2 June 2005 "Many observers see Museveni's efforts to amend the constitution as a re-run of a common problem that afflicts many African leaders – an unwillingness to follow constitutional norms and give up power". "A threat to Africa's success story" , Johnnie Carson, Boston Globe, 1 May 2005
In July 2005, Norway became the third European country in as many months to announce symbolic cutbacks in foreign aid to Uganda in response to political leadership in the country. The UK and Ireland made similar moves in May. "Our foreign ministry wanted to highlight two issues: the changing of the constitution to lift term limits, and problems with opening the political space, human rights and corruption", said Norwegian Ambassador Tore Gjos. "Norway cuts aid to Uganda" , Reuters, 19 July 2005 Of particular significance was the arrest of two opposition MPs from the FDC. Human rights campaigners charged that the arrests were politically motivated. Human Rights Watch stated that "the arrest of these opposition MPs smacks of political opportunism".
A confidential World Bank report leaked in May suggested that the international lender might cut its support to non-humanitarian programmes in Uganda. "We regret that we cannot be more positive about the present political situation in Uganda, especially given the country's admirable record through the late 1990s", said the paper. "The Government has largely failed to integrate the country's diverse peoples into a single political process that is viable over the long term... Perhaps most significant, the political trend-lines, as a result of the President's apparent determination to press for a third term, point downward." "World Bank may cut aid" , Paul Busharizi, New Vision, 17 May 2005
Museveni responded to the mounting international pressure by accusing donors of interfering with domestic politics and using aid to manipulate poor countries. "Let the partners give advice and leave it to the country to decide ... developed countries must get out of the habit of trying to use aid to dictate the management of our countries." "Museveni advises donors" , New Vision, 27 May 2005 "The problem with those people is not the third term or fighting corruption or multiparters", added Museveni at a meeting with other African leaders, "the problem is that they want to keep us there without growing". "Donors Fear Me, Says Museveni" , Frank Nyakairu, The Monitor, 26 May 2005
In July 2005, a constitutional referendum lifted a 19-year restriction on the activities of political parties. In the non-party "Movement system" (so-called "the movement") instituted by Museveni in 1986, parties continued to exist, but candidates were required to stand for election as individuals rather than representative of any political grouping. This measure was ostensibly designed to reduce ethnic divisions, although many observers have subsequently claimed that the system had become nothing more than a restriction on opposition activity. Before the vote, the FDC spokesperson stated, "Key sectors of the economy are headed by people from the president's home area... We have got the most sectarian regime in the history of the country in spite of the fact that there are no parties." Uganda: Nation decides on political parties , UNOCHA-IRIN, 27 July 2005 Many Ugandans saw Museveni's conversion to political pluralism as a concession to donors – aimed at softening the blow when he announces he wants to stay on for a third term. "Uganda backs multi-party return" , BBC, 30 July 2005 Opposition MP Omara Atubo has said Museveni's desire for change was merely "a façade behind which he is trying to hide ambitions to rule for life"."Referendum ends 20-year ban on political parties", Reuters, 1 August 2005
Widespread speculation as to the cause of the crash led Museveni, on 10 August, to threaten the closure of media outlets that published "conspiracy theories" about Garang's death. In a statement, Museveni claimed that the speculation was a threat to national security. "I will no longer tolerate a newspaper which is like a vulture. Any newspaper that plays around with regional security, I will not tolerate it – I will close it." The following day, popular radio station KFM had its license withdrawn for broadcasting a debate on Garang's death. Radio presenter Andrew Mwenda was eventually arrested for sedition in connection with comments made on his KFM talk show. "Banned Ugandan radio back on air" , BBC News, 19 August 2005
The arrest of the main opposition leader Kizza Besigye on 14 November – charged with treason, concealment of treason, and rape – sparked demonstrations and riots in Kampala and other towns. "Uganda riots over treason charge" , BBC News, 14 November 2005 Museveni's bid for a third term, the arrest of Besigye, and the besiegement of the High Court during a hearing of Besigye's case (by a heavily armed Military Intelligence group dubbed by the press as the "Black Mambas Urban Hit Squad"), led Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom to withhold economic support to Museveni's government because of their concerns about the country's democratic development. On 2 January 2006, Besigye was released after the High Court ordered his immediate release. "Col Besigye Case Opens" , New Vision, 16 November 2005
The 23 February 2006 elections were Uganda's first multi-party elections in 25 years and were seen as a test of its democratic credentials. Although Museveni did worse than in the previous election, he was elected for another five-year tenure, having won 59 percent of the vote against Besigye's 37 percent. Besigye alleged fraud and rejected the result. The European Union and independent Ugandan electoral observers described the 2006 elections as not a fair and free contest. The Supreme Court of Uganda later noted that the election was marred by intimidation, violence, voter disenfranchisement and other irregularities; it voted 4–3 to uphold the results. "Uganda's Museveni wins election" , BBC, 25 February 2006
Also in this term, Museveni held meetings with investors that included Wisdek, to promote Uganda's call centre and outsourcing industry and create employment to the country. "President Receives Call Centre Investors Says Project Will Create Employment" , State House of the Republic of Uganda, 8 October 2010.
Museveni and members of NRM continue to use the terms 'gay' and 'homosexuals' to degrade opponents and in particular members of the National Unity Platform. In 2023, Museveni signed an anti-LGBTQ+ bill and called on other African leaders to reject the "promotion of homosexuality".
Following the fall of Egypt's Hosni Mubarak and Libya's Muammar Gaddafi, Museveni became the fifth-longest serving African leader.
In October 2011, the annual inflation rate reached 30.5 percent, principally due to food and fuel increases. Earlier in 2011, opposition leader Kizza Besigye staged "Walk to Work" protests against the high cost of living. On 28 April 2011, Besigye was arrested because Museveni said Besigye had attacked first, a charge he denied. Besigye's arrest led to more riots in Kampala. Besigye promised that "peaceful demonstrations" would continue. The government's response to the riots has been condemned by donor nations. in August 2014|223x223px]]In more recent years, infringements on press freedom have increasingly been a central focus. According to Human Rights Watch, "Between January and June 2013, a media watchdog organization registered 50 attacks on journalists, despite multiple pledges to respect media freedom."Human Rights Watch. (2013). World Report 2013 (Uganda) During this period, two widely read periodicals, Daily Monitor and The Red Pepper, were shut down and seized by the government because they published allegations about a "plot to assassinate senior government and military officials who were opposed to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni ... and his plans to hand over power to his son when he retires".Natabaalo, Grace. (2013). Ugandan Police Shutdown Papers Over 'Plot'. Al Jazeera.
Another issue of human rights became an issue in early 2014 when Museveni signed an anti-homosexuality bill into law. In an interview with CNN, Museveni called homosexuals "disgusting" and said that homosexuality was a learned trait. Western leaders, including United States Barack Obama, condemned the law.
Museveni has criticized the US's involvement in the Libyan Civil War, and in a UN speech argued that military intervention from African countries produces more stable countries in the long term, which he calls "African solutions for African problems".
The Uganda Law Society and members of the opposition house sued and challenged the bill in court, citing that the process leading to the vote was in violation of Articles 1, 2, 8A, 44 (c), 79 and 94 of the Ugandan constitution because the Speaker of Parliament Kadaga closed debate on the Amendment after only 124 out of 451 legislators had debated the bill. They also argue that the use of force by the army and police during the bill debate was inconsistent with and in contravention of Articles 208(2), 209 and 259 among others. The third argument they make is that the bill violates other constitutional clauses in relation to the extension of terms and electoral procedures. One legislature Mbwaketamwa is quoted as saying, "when the president to the bill, it might be legal, but it will be illegitimate, and we are going to challenge it."
A group of legislators from the ruling party, the National Resistance Movement (NRM), clandestinely agitated to remove the age limit because it would give Museveni leeway to run for another term in the 2021 elections.
A three-month survey conducted between September and November by civil society organizations recorded that 85 percent of the sampled population opposed the removal of the age limit, with only 15 percent in support.
Ugandan lawmakers have voted predominantly to remove the presidential age limits because they want to pave way for the Museveni to spend a sixth term in office. Human rights lawyer Nicholas Opiyo said that removing the age limitone of the most important safeguardswill entrench a dictatorial and autocratic regime in Uganda.
In June 2021, 44 people were arrested at an LGBT center, with the pretext of violating COVID SOPs.
In July 2022, Museveni hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, saying that "We don't believe in being enemies of somebody's enemy."
In October 2022 Museveni apologized to Kenya on behalf of his son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba who tweeted that he could invade Kenya in two weeks.
In July 2023, Museveni attended the 2023 Russia–Africa Summit in Saint Petersburg and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Without specifically mentioning the Russian invasion of Ukraine or any other war, Museveni said that the "only justified wars are the just wars, like the anti-colonial wars. Wars of hegemony will fail and waste time and opportunity. Dialogue is the correct way."
After the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023, Museveni expressed concern over the situation and called for dialogue and a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
In June 2025, Yoweri Museveni announced his candidacy for the January 2026 presidential election. He was formally declared the candidate of his party the following month.
He is married to Janet Museveni, née Kainembabazi, with whom he has four children:
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