Busoga King Calls on Fathers to Fight Child Marriage and Teenage Pregnancy

Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1748 EAT on Thursday 4 September 2025

“At the Busoga Kingdom headquarters in Igenge, Bugembe, Kyabazinga William Gabula Nadiope IV’s message resonates clearly from the moment you arrive.”

In bold letters, banners across the kingdom declare: Abasaadha Ne Mpango — “Men are the pillars.” To an outsider, it might seem like just another slogan. But in Busoga, it signals a cultural and political shift. Men — long viewed as part of the problem — are now being called to lead the fight against teenage pregnancy, school dropout, and child marriage.

The message is no accident. Local leaders say the silence and absence of fathers have played a central role in a crisis that has derailed the futures of thousands of girls.

Spearheaded by the Kyabazinga, William Gabula Nadiope IV, in partnership with UNICEF and other UN agencies including UNAIDS and UNFPA, the campaign goes beyond raising awareness — it’s a call to action aimed at transforming long-held social norms.

The initiative seeks to mobilize men at the grassroots level, reassert family responsibility, and address challenges that have long been considered private or taboo.

Through community dialogues, school outreach, and cultural events, the Kyabazinga’s campaign is reframing teenage pregnancy and child marriage as collective social issues — ones that demand the involvement of men, especially fathers.

“We are telling men: You are not just bystanders. You are part of the solution,” said Yudaya. “When a girl gets pregnant or drops out, the whole community is affected — not just her parents.”

The initiative focuses on prevention, encouraging fathers to engage more actively in their daughters’ lives, support education, and speak openly about sexuality and reproductive health — topics once considered taboo in many homes.

But the campaign also seeks to hold men accountable, especially those who prey on underage girls. Working with local leaders and law enforcement, the movement is amplifying the call for justice and protection for girls.

“Culture must evolve,” said Kalembe. “Tradition should never be used to justify harm.”

“When a girl drops out of school, it’s not just her future that’s at stake — the entire community suffers.”

That is the driving belief behind Abasaadha N’Empango — a campaign born in direct response to the rising crisis of teenage pregnancy and early marriage in Busoga.

According to Minister Babirye Yudaya, the Kyabazinga commissioned the Kyabazinga Initiatives, in collaboration with cultural leaders, government officials, and development partners such as UNICEF and the joint UN 2gether4SRHR initiative, to develop a program that addresses not just the symptoms — but the root causes — of the crisis.

Those root causes, she explained, include the breakdown of family and community values, entrenched poverty, limited economic opportunities, and fragile social norms that leave girls especially vulnerable.

The campaign aims to reverse this pattern by placing men and boys at the center of the solution.

Traditionally regarded as decision-makers and protectors in Busoga households, men are now being called not only to guide — but also to take responsibility.

“In the context of Busoga, ending teenage pregnancy means putting men and boys at the heart of change,” said Minister Yudaya. “This programme will mobilize, inspire, and empower them — while also holding them accountable — to end teenage pregnancies and early marriages.”

Leading that effort is the Kyabazinga himself, who has taken on the role of advocate-in-chief. In a significant endorsement of his leadership, UNAIDS appointed him Uganda’s National Goodwill Ambassador to end teenage pregnancy and early marriage in 2023 — a symbolic yet powerful recognition of his cultural influence on global health and development issues.

Implementation of the campaign is designed to run through the Kyabazinga’s cultural structures — including clan heads, chiefs, and local committees.

Each village will establish an Empango Committee, while both Igombolola (sub-county) and Chiefdom levels will have dedicated teams responsible for delivering on the Abasaadha N’Empango mandate.

This report includes information published by The Observer.

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