Increasing political tension in Uganda’s election season has Christian educators concerned.
President Yoweri Museveni has held office for nearly 40 years. Ever since he seized power in 1986, Uganda has been “comparatively stable, but increasingly authoritarian,” according to a 2025 report from the U.S.-based Congressional Research Service. Uganda has never had a democratic transition of power.
Whether or not Museveni receives a seventh term in office will be determined in the January general elections. But Uganda’s 2021 elections were marred by a number of killings, enforced disappearances and other human rights abuses. Months ahead of the elections, David Durance with TeachBeyond said local staff are starting to see more of the same.
“[They tell us] that this is much more intense than it has been before, that there’s already pressure and even violence,” he said.
As in most cases, the outcome of national government elections will affect ministry. Durance says there are two dimensions that TeachBeyond is mindful of and praying about. The first layer is that education policy changes can change the landscape.
“[For example,] we spent years working on a school project that’s now open and really flourishing. But one swipe of a pen in Kampala could wipe that away,” Durance said.
The second layer that TeachBeyond is praying about is practical. Political unrest can prevent students from attending school or even make parents hesitant to send kids to a Christian school.
“There’s all these [underlying] tensions that happen that impact our ability to really reach the communities that we’re trying to reach,” Durance said in summary.
Yet in Uganda’s turbulence, Christians carry the gospel as the answer. One Sunday, Durance visited a Ugandan church where half of the worship songs were prayers for their nation. “It was amazing to see how this community of believers recognized that it was their responsibility as followers of Jesus to be praying for their country and that they want to be the active agents of having the gospel heard,” he said.
“I thought what was interesting was not that they were actually praying for some sort of political revolution or even change. They were praying that people would turn to Christ, knowing that all those other things will fall into place.”
Pray with TeachBeyond for political favor for ministry and for the next generation of Ugandans to be grounded in the Lord.
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This story originally appeared at Mission Network News and is republished here with permission.