Prince Rahim Aga Khan V, the new leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslim community, has begun a three-day official visit to Uganda at the invitation of President Yoweri Museveni.
The visit, which runs from Sept. 10 to 12, is Prince Rahim’s first to the country since he assumed the role of 50th hereditary Imam in February 2025. His program includes inaugurating a new Aga Khan University campus in Kampala and commissioning construction of the Aga Khan University Hospital.
Prince Rahim, accompanied by Princess Zahra Aga Khan and Prince Aly Muhammad Aga Khan, landed Wednesday at Entebbe International Airport. They were greeted by Uganda’s health minister, Dr. Jane Aceng; Arzina Kurji, head of the Ismaili Council for Uganda; and Amin Mawji, the Aga Khan Development Network’s representative for East Africa.
The delegation later traveled to State House Entebbe, where they met President Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni. Talks focused on the long-standing relationship between the Ugandan government and the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), which operates across health, education, media and energy.
On social media, Museveni described the meeting as an important moment.
“I warmly welcome His Highness Prince Rahim Al-Hussaini Aga Khan V to Uganda and offer my condolences for his father’s death,” the president wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Tomorrow, we will commission the Aga Khan University and begin construction on the Aga Khan Hospital.”
In a separate post, he added: “We have many successful Ismailis in Uganda, and I am pleased with the significant investments they have made in the health, education, and tourism sectors. We discussed the critical need for an integrated East African Community market, which is essential for everyone.”
The Aga Khan network has operated in Uganda for nearly a century. Its schools date back to the 1930s, while the Aga Khan Foundation today reaches about half a million learners nationwide. In energy, the 250-megawatt Bujagali Hydropower Plant supplies roughly a third of Uganda’s electricity, easing chronic shortages. In media, AKDN owns Monitor Publications, the publisher of the Daily Monitor, and NTV Uganda. Its Serena hotels and resorts employ hundreds across the country.
On Thursday, Prince Rahim is expected to preside over the opening of the university’s first academic buildings at its new Kampala campus, as well as the groundbreaking for the planned hospital. On Friday, he is scheduled to meet members of Uganda’s Ismaili community, acknowledging their contributions to the country while underlining the Imamat’s commitment to improving lives “regardless of faith or background.”
