Why Uganda must worry about the future of her children

Writing from the heart and directed by conscience

Those who have read my work since my first book was published in 1997 will have realized that I am writing from my heart with no grudge against anyone. I am not writing to be praised. I am providing information as a basis for debate. My conscience and observations tell me that something is wrong in our country and society under the leadership of Museveni. I see a country that has lost direction and with no prospects for recovery under the current government. To find a solution we must get to the heart of the matter which is corruption, sectarianism and Museveni ambition to create a Tutsi Empire using Uganda as a spring board. I have advocated peaceful means for solving our problems. Force can only be used in self-defense. I call on all Ugandans do discuss these sensitive and controversial topics substantively, constructively and in a civil manner. Furthermore I call on all Ugandans regardless of their profession to work towards finding a peaceful solution so that we create a solid foundation for all our children.

Hidden agenda

The high population growth rate in Uganda

In its report on Uganda dated January 2009, the African Peer Review Forum included a section on population growth (pages 283 through 285). The report noted that “Historically, high fertility rates strongly correlate with poverty and high child mortality rates…). The report further noted that “Recovering from civil war and an HIV prevalence rate that peaked at 30 percent in the 1990s, Uganda now has the third highest population growth rate in the world, estimated at 3.2 percent… The high population growth rate is driven by the country’s high average total fertility rate of 6.9 children, one of the highest in the world”. The report did not mention the influence of migration on Uganda’s population growth. Uganda has a very liberal policy on migration and refugees. This dimension must be factored into Uganda’s demographic equation. The report also did not mention that fertility has begun to decline albeit slowly.

The report covered some causes of the high fertility rate. They include socio-cultural factors like early marriage, low educational levels, especially among females, pervasive poverty, low contraceptive use, general low socio-economic status of women and political statements that encourage large families in part because Uganda has low population density with negative political economy consequences.