JINJA, Uganda — President Yoweri Museveni called for the political integration of the African continent Tuesday, warning military officers that regional division poses a strategic danger to future security and economic survival.
Museveni, serving as commander in chief of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces, made the remarks during a lecture to military officers at the Senior Command and Staff College in Kimaka, Jinja.
The president criticized historical African monarchs and colonial-era leaders for failing to unite against foreign domination, attributing their failure to tribal self-interest.
The chiefs and kings were here glorifying themselves when their building was falling down, Museveni said. This strategic danger was known but neglected by kings and chiefs.
Museveni said the ruling National Resistance Movement has spent six decades advocating for regional economic and political integration to ensure African nations can compete globally. He urged the younger generation to prioritize continental unity over personal distractions.
One of the factors to help you prosper is economic integration of the African market, Museveni said. If we don’t integrate, we shall be in problems.
The president tied political integration directly to defense capabilities, arguing that national borders drawn during the colonial era limit the strategic reach of individual African nations. He noted that true security requires operations across land, air, sea, and space.
Can Uganda have a space program? Or can we go to the ocean? No, we are cut off by the irrational colonial borders, Museveni said. That’s why the answer there is political integration. We have been talking about the East African integration, but if presidents want to remain big fish in small ponds, then that issue will not be addressed.
Addressing internal challenges, Museveni described tribal and religious sectarianism as ideological bankruptcy, calling the politics of identity the politics of parasites.
He also downplayed the regional impact of global conflicts, including those in the Middle East, asserting that Africa possesses the necessary raw materials and resources to remain self-sufficient if utilized correctly.
In response to concerns over land shortages driven by population growth, Museveni argued that the issue stems from underdevelopment and an over-reliance on manual agriculture. He noted that a modern money economy shifts the labor force away from the land and into manufacturing, services, and information technology.
The college commandant, Brig. Gen. Michael Kabango, thanked Museveni for his strategic guidance, noting that the current class consists of 52 student officers. The cohort includes 38 Ugandan officers alongside 14 international students from Burundi, Egypt, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, and Tanzania.
The student officers began the yearlong course in July 2025 and are scheduled to graduate July 2.
