1. Background

The Protection of Sovereignty Act, 2026 (the "Act") was passed by Uganda's Parliament on 5th May 2026 and received Presidential Assent on 17th May 2026, days after the President was sworn in for his seventh presidential term, making it the last piece of legislation enacted by the 11th Parliament and the first law assented to by the President in his seventh term. The Act creates a new regulatory regime for persons acting on behalf of foreign governments, organisations, and individuals within Uganda. Its stated constitutional basis is Article 1(1) of the Constitution, which vests all sovereign power in the people of Uganda.

The Act underwent significant amendment during its passage. A Joint Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs, and Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, received comments from a wide range of stakeholders including government institutions, civil society organisations (CSOs), international organisations, private sector bodies, financial institutions, religious bodies, and academic institutions, most of whom were opposed to the Act (“Bill” then) in its original form.

The stakeholder comments pushed the Attorney General to suggest modifications which narrowed the Act’s scope, subsequently adopted by the Committee and recommended for passing to Parliament. The most material changes included: unlisting of Ugandans residing abroad as foreigners, a shift from a prior ministerial approval model for foreign funding to a declaration regime; the introduction of criminal intent requirements for key offences; the insertion of judicial safeguards for inspections; and the express addition of exemptions for commercial, humanitarian, and investment activities.

The Act will take effect upon being gazetted and the appointment of a commencement date. Critically, the Act contains no transitional provisions hence placing no grace period once commencement is declared.

To read the full article, download it by clicking the button below.

Download here