By Leonard Kamugisha Akida,
NATIONAL
Ugandans have been asked to embrace the use of Kiswahili as an African language to promote unity both in the East African region and the continent.
Speaking to journalists on the forthcoming World Kiswahili Language Day 2023 celebrations at Hotel Africana on Wednesday, the first deputy prime minister and the minister of East African Community Affairs in Uganda, Rt. Hon. Rabbecca Kadaga said the use of Kiswahili will promote regional integration and economic growth in East Africa.
She said that in the past Kiswahili had earned a bad reputation because it was used in pre-colonial times by slave traders from the East African Coast but disclosed government plans to promote the use of Kiswahili in the country such as the recruitment of Kiswahili teachers fill the gaps in schools as well as making the language a compulsory and examinable subject in all education levels starting from primary.
“Kadaga further disclosed that the East African Legislative Assembly further passed a resolution in 2016 to have Kiswahili adopted as an official language of the Community.
The EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of the Infrastructure, Productive, Social and Political Sectors, Hon. Andrea Aguer Ariik Malueth, who represented EAC Secretary General Hon. (Dr.) Peter Mathuki, described Kiswahili as a language that carries African culture.
“Kiswahili as a language enables us to express ourselves, showcase our culture to the rest of the world, carry our aspirations and project our beauty as Africans,” said Hon. Malueth.
Dr. Caroline Asiimwe, the Executive Secretary of the East African Kiswahili Commission (EAKC) said that the EAC Treaty recognizes Kiswahili as the lingua franca for the region. She said the status of Kiswahili has since been elevated after it was adopted by the Summit as one of the official languages of the Community in addition to English and French.
Dr. Asiimwe appealed to Ugandans to change their negative attitudes towards Kiswahili language as this will open up immense opportunities in trade, media, criminal justice system and healthcare, among other sectors.
“The negative perceptions and attitudes towards Kiswahili are misplaced. The negative attitude is carried by personalities, not the language,” she explained
About World Kiswahili Day
The World Kiswahili Language Day 2023 is the second celebration since the UN institution of UNESCO recognized Kiswahili as an official indigenous language of Africa in November 2021 and proclaimed July 7 every year as the day to celebrate the Kiswahili Language across the globe.
The first celebration was held in Zanzibar Tanzania last year and this year’s celebration is at Hotel Africana Kampala on July 7.
The event is organized under the theme; “Kiswahili and Multilinguism: Achieving More Together”.
The event will bring together different stakeholders in the East African Community, education sector, public and private corporations among others.
