Parliament of Uganda

The Parliament of Uganda is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Uganda. One of its primary functions is to pass laws that support effective governance in the country. Government ministers are required to answer to the people's representatives on the floor of the house and may be appointed from amongst its members.

Parliament of Uganda Bunge la Uganda
Eleventh Parliament
Type
Type	Unicameral
History
Founded	1962
Preceded by	Legislative Council
New session started	24 May 2021
Leadership
Speaker	Anita Among, NRM since 25 March 2022
Deputy Speaker	Thomas Tayebwa, NRM since 25 March 2022
Prime Minister	Robinah Nabbanja, NRM since 21 June 2021
Government Chief Whip	Denis Obua, NRM since 16 August 2022
Leader of the Opposition	Joel Ssenyonyi, NUP since 9 January 2024
Chief Opposition Whip	John Nambeshe, NUP since 24 May 2021
Structure
Seats	529
Political groups	Government (336)   NRM (336) Opposition (109)   NUP (57)   FDC (32)   DP (9)   UPC (9)   JEEMA (1)   PPP (1) Others (84)   Independents (74)   Military (10)
Length of term	5 years
Elections
Voting system	Parallel voting: First-past-the-post voting (499 seats)[a] Indirect election (30 seats)[b]
First election	25 April 1962
Last election	14 January 2021
Next election	12 January 2026
Meeting place
Parliament Avenue, Kampala
Website
www.parliament.go.ug
Constitution
Constitution of Uganda

The Presiding Officer of the Senedd greets delegates from the Ugandan Parliament; 2012

Through the various parliamentary committees, parliament scrutinises government programmes, particularly as outlined in the State of the Nation address^[1] by the president. Fiscal matters, such as taxation and loans, require parliamentary approval after appropriate debate.^[2]Parliament also holds the authority to confirm certain presidential nominations and, through a motion of censure, may compel a Minister to resign.

Composition

See also: List of constituencies in Uganda

The 11th Parliament (2021–2026) has a total of 557 seats, including 353 representatives elected using first-past-the-post voting in single winner constituencies. Using the same method, 146 seats reserved for women are filled, with one seat per district. Finally, 30 seats are indirectly filled via special electoral colleges: 10 by the army, 5 by youths, 5 by elders, 5 by unions, 5 by people with disabilities and 28 Ex Officio Members. In each of these groups, at least one woman must be elected (at least two for the army group).^[3][4][5][6]

In 2016, it was composed of 288 constituency representatives, 121 district woman representatives, ten Uganda People's Defence Force representatives, five representatives of the youth, five representatives of persons with disabilities, five representatives of workers, and seventeen ex officio members.^[7]

History

The Ugandan parliament was established in 1962, soon after the country's independence.^[8]

First Parliament (1962–1963)

The tower that separates the east from the north wing buildings at the Uganda Parliament. this tower together with the parliament was built by the British colonial government in the late 1950s as a gift to Uganda just before it attained its independence.

This body was then known as the National Assembly. It had 92 members and was presided over, as speaker, by Sir John Bowes Griffin, a British lawyer and former Ugandan Chief Justice.

Second Parliament (1963–1971)

During this period, Prime Minister Milton Obote abrogated the constitution and declared himself President of Uganda in 1966. This parliament also witnessed the abolition of Uganda's traditional kingdoms and the declaration of Uganda as a republic. This decision was impacted by the legal council of Member of Parliament A. G. Mehta following the Ugandan Constitutional Conference in which Uganda became an independent nation.^[9][10] The speaker during the Second Parliament was Narendra M. Patel, a Ugandan of Indian descent. This parliament ended when Idi Amin overthrew Milton Obote's government in January 1971.

Third Parliament (1979–1980)

Following the overthrow of Idi Amin in April 1979, a new legislative body known as the Uganda Legislative Council was established. With an initial membership of 30, the membership was later increased to 120. This was the Third Parliament and was chaired by Edward Rugumayo. This legislative body continued to function until the general elections of December 1980.

Fourth Parliament (1980–1985)

This period marked the return to power of Milton Obote and the Uganda People's Congress (UPC), following the disputed national elections of 1980. The speaker of the Fourth Parliament was Francis Butagira, a Harvard-trained lawyer. the Fourth Parliament ended when General Basilio Olara Okello overthrew Obote and the UPC government in 1985.

Fifth Parliament (1986–1996)

Known as the National Resistance Council (NRC), the Fifth Parliament was established following the end of the Ugandan Bush War (1980–1986). Starting with 38 historical members of the National Resistance Movement and National Resistance Army, the legislative body was gradually expanded to include representatives from around the country. The speaker during the Fifth Parliament was Yoweri Museveni, who also concurrently served as the President of Uganda.

Sixth Parliament (1996–2001)

The Sixth Parliament was constituted during one-party rule (NRM). James Wapakhabulo served as speaker from 1996 until 1998. From 1998 until 2001, Francis Ayume, a member of Parliament from Koboko District, served as speaker.

Seventh Parliament (2001–2006)

The Seventh Parliament was presided over as Speaker by Edward Ssekandi. The most controversial legislation passed during this period was the amendment of the constitution to remove presidential term limits.

Eighth Parliament (2006–2011)

See also: Ugandan general election, 2006 and List of members of the eighth Parliament of Uganda

This was a continuation of the Seventh Parliament, with Edward Ssekandi as speaker and Rebecca Kadaga as deputy speaker.

Party		Constituency			Women			Seats
		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Appointed	Total
	National Resistance Movement			141			58	14	213
	Forum for Democratic Change			27			10	0	37
	Uganda People's Congress			9			0	0	9
	Democratic Party			8			0	0	8
	Conservative Party			1			0	0	1
	Justice Forum			1			0	0	1
	Independents			28			11	1	40
Uganda People's Defence Force								10	10
Total				215			79	25	319
Registered voters/turnout		10,450,788	68		10,450,788	–
Source: IPU

Ninth Parliament (2011–2016)

See also: Ugandan general election, 2011 and List of members of the ninth Parliament of Uganda

The Ninth Parliament was presided over by Rebecca Kadaga as speaker, and Jacob Oulanyah as deputy speaker.

Party		Constituency			Women			Seats
		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Appointed	Total	+/–
	National Resistance Movement	3,883,209	49.22	164	3,803,608	51.56	86	13	263	+50
	Forum for Democratic Change	1,070,109	13.56	23	1,242,218	16.84	11	0	34	–3
	Democratic Party	476,415	6.04	11	325,660	4.41	1	0	12	+4
	Uganda People's Congress	265,568	3.37	7	237,477	3.22	3	0	10	+1
	Justice Forum	50,120	0.64	1	10,796	0.15	0	0	1	0
	Conservative Party	48,276	0.61	1	1,084	0.01	0	0	1	0
	Uganda Federal Alliance	23,585	0.30	0	34,346	0.47	0	0	0	New
	People's Progressive Party	15,692	0.20	0	26,320	0.36	0	0	0	New
	Forum for Integrity in Leadership	8,871	0.11	0				0	0	New
	Social Democratic Party	5,664	0.07	0				0	0	New
	Popular People's Democracy	3,399	0.04	0				0	0	New
	People's Development Party	2,526	0.03	0	1,853	0.03	0	0	0	New
	Liberal Democratic Transparency	2,035	0.03	0	3,997	0.05	0	0	0	New
	Green Partisan Party	297	0.00	0				0	0	New
	Uganda Economic Party	207	0.00	0				0	0	New
	Independents	2,034,250	25.78	30	1,689,389	22.90	11	2	43	+3
Uganda People's Defence Force								10	10	0
Vacant				1				–	1	–
Total		7,890,223	100.00	238	7,376,748	100.00	112	25	375	+56
Source: Election Passport, UC

Tenth Parliament (2016–2021)

See also: Ugandan general election, 2016 and List of members of the tenth Parliament of Uganda

In the Tenth Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga and Jacob Oulanyah remained in their posts as speaker and deputy speaker respectively.

Party		Constituency			Women			Seats
		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Appointed	Total	+/–
	National Resistance Movement	3,945,000	48.88	199	3,566,617	48.95	84	10	293	+30
	Forum for Democratic Change	1,027,648	12.73	29	929,860	12.76	7	0	36	+2
	Democratic Party	349,962	4.34	13	246,284	3.38	2	0	15	+3
	Uganda People's Congress	172,781	2.14	4	236,164	3.24	2	0	6	–4
	Justice Forum	20,089	0.25	0	16,741	0.23	0	0	0	–1
	Ugandan Federal Alliance	18,146	0.22	0				0	0	New
	Conservative Party	10,792	0.13	0	2,902	0.04	0	0	0	–1
	Social Democratic Party	5,972	0.07	0				0	0	New
	Republican Women and Youth Party	2,311	0.03	0	8,502	0.12	0	0	0	New
	People's Progressive Party	2,185	0.03	0	16,720	0.23	0	0	0	New
	Uganda Patriotic Movement	470	0.01	0				0	0	New
	Activist Party	175	0.00	0				0	0	New
	Independents	2,515,163	31.16	44	2,261,897	31.05	17	5	66	+23
Uganda People's Defence Force								10	10	0
Total		8,070,694	100.00	289	7,285,687	100.00	112	25	426	+51
Registered voters/turnout		15,277,198	–		15,277,198	–
Source: EC, Election Passport

2017 Parliament fight

On September 27, 2017, a fight ensued during a legislative session of the Ugandan parliament. The legislation in discussion at the time was to remove the presidential age limit of 75 from the Ugandan constitution. Following accusations from the parliamentary speaker against certain lawmakers in the chamber of disorderly conduct, a full-fledged fight broke out in which chairs were thrown, microphone stands used as clubs, and eventual removal of some members by plain clothes security officers.^[11]

Eleventh Parliament (2021–present)

See also: Ugandan general election, 2021 and List of members of the eleventh Parliament of Uganda

On March 25, 2022, Thomas Tayebwa was voted as the new Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Uganda.^[12]

Party		Constituency			Women			Seats
		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats	Appointed	Total	+/–
	National Resistance Movement	4,158,934	41.60	218	4,532,814	44.81	101	17	336	+43
	National Unity Platform	1,347,929	13.48	43	1,607,425	15.89	14	0	57	New
	Forum for Democratic Change	729,247	7.29	24	674,154	6.66	8	0	32	–4
	Democratic Party	245,248	2.45	8	181,364	1.79	1	0	9	–6
	Uganda People's Congress	180,313	1.80	7	229,884	2.27	2	0	9	+3
	Alliance for National Transformation	72,018	0.72	0	82,318	0.81	0	0	0	New
	Justice Forum	24,843	0.25	1	22,625	0.22	0	0	1	+1
	People's Progressive Party	10,076	0.10	1				0	1	+1
	Uganda Economic Party	6,199	0.06	0				0	0	New
	Ecological Party of Uganda	4,287	0.04	0				0	0	New
	Conservative Party	1,071	0.01	0				0	0	0
	Social Democratic Party	719	0.01	0				0	0	0
	Forum for Integrity in Leadership	122	0.00	0				0	0	New
	Congress Service Volunteers Organisation	68	0.00	0				0	0	New
	Independents	3,217,480	32.18	51	2,785,676	27.54	20	3	74	+8
Uganda People's Defence Force								10	10	0
Total		9,998,554	100.00	353	10,116,260	100.00	146	30	529	+103
Source: Electoral Commission

Ugandan legislation

Examples of Uganda's legislation include:

• The amendment of the constitution to remove presidential term limits.^{[clarification needed]}
• The Employment Act, 2006, Act 6 of 2006 ^[13]
• The Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2014
• The Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023

The Uganda Legal Information Institute (ULII) publishes the laws of Uganda, allowing for free online access.^[14]

See also

• List of legislatures by country
• List of speakers of the Parliament of Uganda
• Apollo Ofwono
• Politics of Uganda

Notes

1. Of the 499 seats, 353 are elected by constituency, while 146 seats reserved for women are elected by district.
2. Out of the 30 seats, 10 are reserved for the Uganda People's Defence Force, while 5 seats each are allocated to the youth, the elderly, workers, and citizens with disabilities.