The Kabaka Foundation, the social development arm of the Buganda Kingdom, has partnered with Jubilee Insurance Company to roll out a joint health insurance policy aimed at improving access to healthcare for the Kabaka’s subjects.
The scheme, code-named Tubeere Balamu Mu Yinsuwa (Let’s Live Healthy with Insurance), was officially commissioned on August 12, 2025, by Prince Daudi Chwa, a sibling of Kabaka Ronald Mutebi II, during a medical camp at Kyaggwe Ssaza headquarters in Ggulu Ward, Mukono Central Division.
Delivering the Kabaka’s message, Prince Chwa said research had revealed that many people in Buganda were struggling with poor health and needed medical attention.
He commended volunteer medical personnel for consistently supporting the kingdom’s medical outreach programs, and thanked the Kabaka Foundation and Mengo Ministry for Social Services for their “inevitable input” in organizing the camps.
“Healthy bodies are key to fighting poverty,” said Cotilda Nakate Kikomeko, the Mengo Minister for Social Services, stressing the importance of proper family diets. She also decried poor living conditions in some communities where residents share housing with livestock, calling it a public health hazard.
Former West Buganda Diocese Bishop and Kabaka Foundation Deputy Board Chairman, Bp. Tamale Katumba, urged political aspirants to encourage communities to enroll in health insurance policies, noting that this would spare them from having to meet costly medical bills during their tenure.
He welcomed the coalition’s decision to extend the insurance eligibility age to 70 years and encouraged Ugandans in the diaspora to buy policies for their relatives back home.
Mukono Diocese Bishop Enos Kitto Kagodo used the occasion to criticize politicians for ignoring church development projects, such as the ongoing Mukono Cathedral extension. Turning to government, he called for increased collaboration with the kingdom in health service delivery.
“It would be unfortunate for people to get treatment in such camps only to return home and die due to lack of follow-up in government health units,” he cautioned.
Buikwe South MP and National Vice Chairman for the People’s Front for Freedom, Dr. Michael Lulume Bayigga, also urged government to adopt the medical camp model, citing Zambia as a successful example.
He explained that in Zambia, medical camps operate like full-fledged hospitals with facilities for x-rays, surgeries, admissions, and all essential services in one location.
The Tubeere Balamu Mu Yinsuwa partnership marks a new milestone in Buganda’s community health strategy, aiming not only to treat illnesses but also to foster a culture of preventive healthcare through affordable insurance coverage.
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