Kampala, Uganda: The First Son and Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has announced the establishment of a Shs1 billion wealth creation fund aimed at supporting Ugandans with viable income-generating projects, pledging structured management, oversight, and annual accountability.
Gen Muhoozi, who is also Senior Presidential Advisor on Special Operations, revealed the decision in a series of posts on X, saying the fund, now dubbed the MK Fund, will support projects “that make sense,” with administrators to be appointed to manage day-to-day operations.
The announcement followed an earlier declaration in which Muhoozi had initially committed Shs500 million for the same purpose, before later increasing the amount to Shs1 billion, a move he attributed to his Christian faith.
“I’m sorry. My God, Jesus Christ, has ordered me to increase it to Shs1,000,000,000. The administrators will advise me how to manage it. Muraregye,” Gen Muhoozi wrote.
In a subsequent post, the CDF said the MK Fund will operate under a formal governance structure, with administrators required to produce annual reports on how the money is allocated and utilised. “The administrators will be tasked with giving an annual report of the fund. I will announce the administrators tomorrow. Of course, I will be the Chairman of the fund. God bless you all,” he emphasized.
Anchored in NRM’s wealth creation doctrine
Muhoozi’s initiative aligns closely with the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM)’s long-standing wealth creation agenda, championed by his father and Uganda’s President, Gen Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, over the past two decades.
Since the early 2000s, the NRM government has shifted national policy focus from consumption-based economics to household income generation, rolling out programmes such as Bonna Baggagawale, NAADS, Operation Wealth Creation, Parish Development Model (PDM), Emyooga, and targeted youth and women enterprise funds.
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has consistently argued that political stability must be matched with economic empowerment, a thinking that underpins programmes such as Operation Wealth Creation, Emyooga, and the Parish Development Model (PDM).
The MK Fund is expected to complement these initiatives by targeting individuals and small-scale entrepreneurs, particularly youth, whose projects may struggle to access financing through conventional banking channels.
Analysts say the approach mirrors Museveni’s long-held belief that Ugandans already have ideas, but are often constrained by lack of seed capital, delayed financing, or rigid lending conditions.
If structured transparently, the fund could complement government efforts by acting as a pilot accelerator, identifying scalable ideas that could later benefit from state-backed financing under PDM or other frameworks.
Youth mobilisation and political signalling
Beyond economics, the initiative is also seen as part of Muhoozi’s broader engagement with Uganda’s youthful population, which forms the majority of his social media following.
As both CDF and senior presidential advisor, Muhoozi has increasingly positioned himself as a mobiliser around themes of wealth creation, patriotism, innovation, and national stability, echoing core NRM ideological messaging.
The announcement comes at a time when the government is intensifying post-election focus on economic delivery, with officials under pressure to demonstrate tangible improvements in household incomes following the 2026 polls.
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