Uganda’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) and Malawi’s United Democratic Front (UDF) have pledged to strengthen cooperation and deepen political ties following a meeting between leaders of the two parties in Kampala.
Speaking at the NRM headquarters on Wednesday, NRM Secretary General Richard Todwong welcomed Atupele Austin Muluzi, President of Malawi’s UDF, who together with his delegation was in Uganda to attend the swearing-in ceremony of President Yoweri Museveni.
Todwong said the two leaders had built a longstanding relationship after meeting during a training course in China and expressed optimism about expanding cooperation between the parties.
“We want to build the synergies of working together. We want to build our cooperation to another level,” Todwong said. “We look forward to a better future of cooperation between the parties.”
He described Uganda as a peaceful country with strong potential for further growth and highlighted the historical evolution of the NRM from a movement system into a political party.
Todwong explained that after taking power in 1986, the NRM operated under a Movement system that emphasized individual merit rather than party-based politics because of divisions that had previously existed along religious and tribal lines.
He said Uganda later reintroduced multi-party politics following constitutional reforms, leading to the transformation of the movement into the National Resistance Movement party in 2006.
“From 2006, 2011, 2016, 2021 and now 2026, we have continued winning national elections,” Todwong said. “We are growing in strength, expanding our membership and deepening our partnerships in villages and communities.”
According to Todwong, the NRM inherited a country in crisis in 1986 after years of political instability and economic collapse following Uganda’s independence from Britain in 1962.
He said the government under President Museveni had since rebuilt the country step by step, improving economic conditions, infrastructure and social indicators.
Todwong also thanked the Malawian delegation for visiting Uganda and reaffirmed the NRM’s commitment to working closely with political partners across Africa.
Speaking on behalf of the Malawian delegation, Muluzi congratulated the NRM and President Museveni on the inauguration ceremony and the start of a new term in office.
“I would like to wish you all the very best,” Muluzi said.
Muluzi conveyed greetings from former Malawian President Bakili Muluzi, the founding patron of the UDF, as well as from Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera.
He described the engagement as important for strengthening relations between political parties and fostering cooperation between Uganda and Malawi.