Kampala – The Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs has endorsed the Ministry of Education and Sports as the ideal institution to host the Uganda National Kiswahili Council, citing its crucial role in curriculum development and supervision of the education sector.
“The Uganda National Kiswahili bill, 2023 does not clearly specify who the minister for Kiswahili will be; it does not spell out the domicile ministry to host the council. The council would be most suitably hosted under the Ministry of Education and Sports given its role in language education and curriculum development,” said James Mutabazi, Undersecretary in the Defence Ministry, while appearing before the Committee on Gender, Labour and Social Development on Wednesday.
The Defence Ministry presented its submission on the Uganda National Kiswahili Council Bill, 2023, during the meeting.
Mutabazi emphasized that the Education Ministry would work in unison with other government bodies, such as the National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi, which already runs Kiswahili programs.
“Kiswahili is one of the areas of study at NALI; if you meet anybody who has trained from there, he has studied and has been assessed in Kiswahili,” added Maj. Gen. Henry Matsiko, UPDF Representative.
Kyotera District Woman Representative, Fortunate Rose Nantongo, supported the proposal, stating, “The ministry has the mandate over curriculum development right from nursery to university. I think they can do a better job on promoting the language, they have the biggest audience considering the number of children in schools, when children learn language at an early age it is very possible that they will take it up.”
MPs sought clarification on the Defence Ministry’s representation on the Kiswahili Council, with Nakaseke Central County MP Allan Mayanja, asking, “We need to know your relevance as representatives on the Council. What are you going to add to the council and what would be your input?”
MP Innocent Kiyaga (Mawokota County North) inquired about the army’s strategies for promoting Kiswahili, asking, “We are deliberating on the strategies of how Kiswahili can be promoted to the population. I would like to know how the army has managed to have Kiswahili as their language? Do we impose it on people and do we make it compulsory in schools?”
The Defence Ministry’s endorsement of the Education Ministry to host the Uganda National Kiswahili Council highlights the importance of a unified approach to promoting the Kiswahili language in Uganda. By leveraging the Education Ministry’s expertise in curriculum development and supervision, the council can effectively promote Kiswahili as a key language for national unity and regional integration