Ugandans urged to learn, speak Kiswahili to promote regional integration

Ugandan First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for East African Community (EAC) Affairs Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga has urged fellow Ugandans to learn and speak Kiswahili (Swahili language) as part of efforts to promote regional integration and economic growth in East Africa.

A statement issued on Wednesday by the EAC headquarters in Tanzania's northern city of Arusha said Kadaga made the call during a media briefing on the 2nd World Kiswahili Language Day celebrations slated for July 5-7 in the Ugandan capital of Kampala.

Kiswahili, widely spoken in the Eastern African region, has received more recognition across the African continent in recent years.

Kadaga said it was a great honor for East Africa as the home of Kiswahili to have it as the first indigenous African language to be recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Kadaga said Kiswahili is a widely spoken language that could be utilized to unite not only East Africa but the entire African continent, adding that Ugandans should therefore embrace it as an African language.

The 41st session of the General Conference of UNESCO proclaimed July 7 of each year as World Kiswahili Language Day, making it the first African language to be recognized in such a manner by the UN.

Kiswahili has now been adopted as a working language for the EAC, the Southern African Development Community, and the African Union.