State Minister for Tourism, Martin Bahinduka Mugarra, has hailed the return of a significant batch of cultural heritage artifacts to Uganda, marking the second-largest single return of such items in the country’s history. This momentous occasion follows the first return during the independence celebrations in July 1962 when the Kibuuka regalia were repatriated.
On Saturday, June 8, 2024, officials from the Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, along with representatives from the Uganda National Museum, received 39 cultural heritage artifacts that had been held at the Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology for over a century. These artifacts were taken from Uganda during the 1890s.
Minister Mugarra emphasized the significance of these artifacts, highlighting that they were removed from Uganda during the late 19th and early 20th centuries by British colonial administrators, anthropologists, missionaries, and soldiers. The repatriation process began in 2016 under the ‘Rethinking Uganda Museum’ project, conducted in collaboration with the University of Michigan.
The return of these artifacts marks a broader trend across Africa, with many other countries, including Nigeria, Namibia, Ghana, and Kenya, also witnessing the repatriation of cultural treasures taken during colonial rule.
A statement from the Uganda National Museum expressed gratitude for the artifacts’ return, describing it as a historical milestone in reclaiming Africa’s lost heritage.
The Uganda National Museum expressed jubilation, stating, “Finally home! 39 treasured objects taken from Uganda in the 1890s and early 1900s during the British Colonial rule made it to the Uganda Museum. This is historical and a milestone in the repatriation of Africa’s lost heritage. Thank you to the team that made this possible.”
