Uganda Repatriates Over 1,000 Citizens From South Africa:Kyankwanzi Hosts Returned Ugandans For Ideological Training.NALI Provides Counselling And Economic Education To Returnees.
In the wake of escalating xenophobic attacks in South Africa, Uganda has repatriated over 1,030 citizens, now undergoing rehabilitation and ideological training at the National Leadership Institute in Kyankwanzi. The program, backed by senior government advisors, aims to heal psychological wounds, restore dignity, and equip returnees with economic skills for reintegration into the country.
At least a total of 1,030 Ugandans have been repatriated from South Africa and are undergoing transformation at the National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi, with the first batch of 266 Ugandans returning on the first flight, 32 on the second, 266 on the third and 166 on the fourth, totaling up to 1,030. The returnees are receiving counseling and psychosocial support to help them recover from the emotional and psychological effects of the violence, alongside providing economic education and more.
This comes after xenophobic attacks in South Africa started to systematically escalate, driven by severe economic stagnation and high youth unemployment, and vigilante groups have intensified anti-immigrant protests, reportedly killing three Ugandans.
Speaking during one of the training sessions at Kyankwanzi, Ms. Hellen Seku revealed that the program has attracted attention from hundreds of other Ugandans who returned independently from South Africa, changing their mindset and now wishing to benefit from the same ideological training.
The Senior Presidential Advisor on Special Duties and Chairperson of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID), Mr. Odrek Rwabwogo, also addressed the returnees, highlighting Uganda's long-term economic strategy.
Senior Presidential Advisor on Political Mobilization, Moses Byaruhanga, one of the guest lecturers at the program, condemned xenophobic violence, warning that such actions undermine Africa's collective economic progress, and emphasized the need for unity among African countries.
Leaders, together with returnees, commended the government for its efforts in repatriating Ugandans. They urged authorities to sustain the initiative and continue bringing citizens that could have been left behind.
The training is set to end on 17th July 2026, ready to integrate returnees, as African governments are equally actively running voluntary repatriation and emergency evacuation programs to bring citizens home from South Africa, evacuating those affected and reintegrate returnees into local economies
