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Ugandan creatives have been implored to utilise the four days a week opportunity to learn Swahili language in classes being conducted at the Uganda National Cultural Centre (UNCC) to boost their career opportunities beyond Uganda. There are two classes every evening of Wednesdays and Thursdays and rest of the classes are conducted on weekends.

Swahili language, also known by its local name as Kiswahili, once an Island dialect of the African Bantu tongue, has been spoken for centuries especially by the East African Coastal communities in Tanzania, Kenya and Zanzibar. Kiswahili is now the most widely spoken language in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Mr Emmanuel Lubega, the Kiswahili teacher, consultant and coordinator from Kiswahili teaching and enhancement program (KITENHAP), said they are partnering with National theatre to see that thespians, actors and artists, learn Kiswahili and start making compositions and productions in a language that can enable them breakthrough at the international arena.

Mr Lubega told Monitor that KITENHAP works from National theatre and is committed to promote creatives through Kiswahili language to scale up regional and international productions to reach wider audiences.

The Kiswahili class initiative comes at a time when Ugandan creatives, including actors, visual artists, and poets are facing challenges in accessing opportunities that require proficiency in the Kiswahili language. Ugandan productions are thus mainly consumed within the country.

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