Today Saturday, July 25, 2026, normal life across Uganda came to an abrupt halt between 7:00 AM and 10:00 AM. Shutter doors remained closed, transport networks fell silent, and streets deserted their usual bustle as millions of citizens rallied to inaugurate the mandatory National Cleaning Day.
The national directive, enacted by Cabinet and championed by top government figures, requires all Ugandans, residents, and visitors to dedicate the last Saturday morning of every month to clearing waste, opening drainage channels, and sanitizing public spaces.
At the national launch in Kampala’s Kisenyi suburb, top government officials traded boardroom attire for boots and slasher tools. Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabbanja was seen hauling dustbins and clearing trenches, emphasizing that keeping Uganda clean is a non-negotiable national duty.
She noted that roughly 75% of preventable diseases in the country stem from unhygienic environments.
Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba reinforced the message, describing cleanliness as a spiritual and physical discipline. He emphasized that the last Saturday of every month is now gazetted for cleanliness, adding that maintaining proper hygiene is essential to preventing all kinds of diseases from affecting the population.
Speaking during the national launch, the Minister of Health and Member of Parliament for Kinkizi East in Kanungu District, Hon. Dr. Chris Baryomunsi, PhD, urged citizens across the country and specifically in his home constituency of Kanungu to own the initiative.
Dr. Baryomunsi stressed that every single person who wakes up in Uganda on this day, including tourists, is required to clean their nearby surroundings between 7:00 AM and 10:00 AM. He clarified that police presence is intended to maintain order and stop unnecessary travel, emphasizing that government is calling on all citizens to embrace the spirit of “Kwebereramu” to protect their own health and fight illnesses caused by dirty environments.
Kanungu District Status Report:
Kanungu District joined the nationwide exercise with high energy across its lower local governments, supported by security and administrative leadership headed by Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Amanyire Mwesigye Ambrose, District Police Commander (DPC) Aziira Grace, and UPDF Brigade Commander Lt. Col. Robert Nahamya. Business activities, public transport, and educational institutions paused operations completely as residents swept streets and cleared blocked channels.
Kanungu Town Council
Community members, alongside students from Kinkizi High School, MotherCare Primary School, and Kanungu Model Primary School, cleared plastics and polythene waste around Kanungu Daily Market and unblocked drainage lines along Kabale Road.
Local business figures Mr. Swaleh Kanyonyi and AMOSPA Glass Mart generously provided fueled trucks free of charge to transport collected rubbish to disposal sites.
However, compliance was mixed. While police enforced shop closures, some traders hid indoors and only opened after 10:00 AM. The Town Council entity itself faced criticism for failing to deploy official trucks, citing fuel shortages, alongside short notice for community mobilization.
Kanyantorogo Town Council
Active mobilization was recorded across Kibox, Kanungu Road, Butogota Road, and Kihiihi Road. Technical staff, traders, and motorists stopped by security actively joined the exercise. A public health talk on solid waste management was conducted immediately after the cleaning. A challenge noted was that the 7:00 AM start caught a few residents unprepared.
Buhoma Town Council
Primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions turned out in large numbers alongside political and technical staff supervised by Mayor Moses Basheija. Roads and commercial premises were thoroughly cleaned with support from the Uganda Police Force. On logistics, narrow and steep terrain in parts of the town council made waste trucks unreachable, necessitating local motorcycle hires to ferry trash to dumping grounds.
Butogota Town Council
Joint supervision by the Town Clerk, Police and UPF personnel saw broad participation from local leaders and business communities. Ntungamo Health Centre III provided Personal Protective Equipment to ensure participant safety as streets, trading hubs, and residential zones were cleared. Collected waste was loaded onto trucks for disposal, though waste generated outside the main urban core had to be burned on site due to transport limitations.
Kambuga Town Council
Activities included the systematic opening of drainage channels to remove stagnant water, alongside deep cleaning of local markets, Kambuga Hospital grounds, primary and secondary schools, and public sanitary facilities. A short mobilization window was cited as the main hurdle to reaching outer areas.
Nyakabungo Town Council
Strong technical and police teamwork led to visible reduction of street litter, with basic safety gloves utilized by several volunteers. However, a lack of official transport left collected piles on roadside collection points, while several participants worked barefoot or in open shoes due to shortages of protective boots.
Kihiihi Town Council
Extensive sweeping was carried out along the main highway, Kawere Street, and Nzabandora Street. The daily market and local abattoir surroundings underwent thorough grass slashing and channel clearing under the supervision of the Public Health Inspector. Garbage collection was severely stalled by a breakdown of the primary waste collection truck.
A general review across Kanungu District revealed limited evidence of implementation in rural sub-counties such as Rutenga and Nyamirama, indicating that the initial exercise was heavily concentrated in urban town councils. Furthermore, reports were still awaited from Rutenga and Nyamirama Town Councils by this Communication time.
The Assistant District Health Officer for Kanungu, Mr. Kato Besisira, commended compliant residents while cautioning those who treated the mandated clean-up as an opportunity to sleep in. He stressed that poor hygiene directly breeds preventable illnesses like malaria, diarrhea, and dysentery.
Mr. Besisira praised the security and administrative leadership headed by RDC Amanyire Mwesigye Ambrose, DPC Aziira Grace, and UPDF Brigade Commander Lt. Col. Robert Nahamya for maintaining tranquility and monitoring compliance across the district until business resumed after 10:00 AM.
Dr. Ahimbisibwe Gad Rugaju, PhD, the Deputy Resident District Commissioner, Kanungu District, also called upon the public:
“I call upon all residents, leaders, schools, boda riders, market vendors, and businesses in Kanungu to fully participate in the National Cleaning Exercise every last Saturday of the month from 7:00am – 10:00am.
Let us clean our homes, markets, roadsides, and health facilities.
A clean Kanungu is a healthy and dignified Kanungu.
FOR GOD AND MY COUNTRY”
Mr. Awuye Abdallah, the Chief Administrative Officer, Kanungu District, thanked all those who participated in the exercise. He noted:
“Just thanking those who have been involved in the exercise. We need it as per the guidelines from Ministry Of Local Government MoLG) bearing in mind that a healthy environment is a must if we are to overcome the several diseases that we may experience in our communities. Thnx soo much for all and be blessed.”
Regional and local health institutions strongly backed the initiative.
Onesmas, Operations Manager at Bwindi Community Hospital (BCH), along with regional health partners, embraced the call, emphasizing that institutional support, health worker engagement, and structured community coordination are essential for maintaining hygiene standards across health facilities and surrounding communities.
Mr. Didad, Head of Quality Improvement at Kabale and leader of the Kigezi Joint Review Health Team, called on the entire Kigezi region to adopt the unified slogan: “Keep Kigezi Clean, Protect Our Health.”
Mr. Onesmas, Public Relations Officer, Bwindi Community Hospital (BCH), appreciated the leadership and said:
“Thank you and your leadership for the good work. We also participated as BCH and UNSB.
We observed that there’s too much need to watch, especially those living near the rivers who dispose a lot of waste there. It exposes all of us who use it and whose animals are beneficiaries.”
Addressing transport concerns raised during the exercise, Buhoma Town Council Mayor Moses Basheija reassured the public of Buhoma Town Council that fuel and vehicles will be fully coordinated in subsequent events to ensure complete coverage across all neighborhoods.
To ensure greater efficiency in upcoming monthly cleaning exercises, local health and administration officials highlighted several key priority areas:
- Strengthen community sensitization and issue timely advance reminders through local radio and public channels.
- Enforce compliance measures across both urban centers and rural sub-counties.
- Improve waste transportation logistics by allocating dedicated fuel and operational budgets at the Lower Local Government level.
- Increase supervision at the parish and village levels to monitor participation.
- Provide adequate personal protective equipment (PPEs) and basic cleaning tools to volunteers.
- Require all lower local governments to draft clear implementation work plans prior to scheduled cleaning dates.
Authored & Published by:
Kanungu District Local Government
Issued by:
Twongyeirwe Mwajuma Twaha Adams,
Communications Officer
Unauthorized additions or alterations to this official release are not endorsed by Kanungu District Local Government.
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KeepKanunguClean #KeepKigeziClean #NationalCleaningDay #Kwebereramu #PublicHealthUG