Christian Daily International

President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni was sworn in for a seventh consecutive term on May 12, 2026. President Museveni has been in power since 1986. @KagutaMuseveni X Governments in East Africa are increasingly turning to churches and religious institutions as partners in promoting morality, social stability and economic development, even as faith leaders continue to challenge state power on governance and human rights concerns. Recent statements from leaders in Tanzania and Uganda highlighted the close relationship between governments and the church, reflecting a long-standing dynamic in the region where religious institutions often serve both as allies of the state and critics of political authority. In Tanzania, Prime Minister Mwigulu Nchemba said religious organizations play a key role in strengthening moral values and social cohesion, which he described as necessary for national development.  Speaking during a church service organized by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania in Iringa Region, Nchemba praised churches for helping preserve peace, discipline and unity in society. “Religious institutions continue to be pillars of morality and national unity,” he said. He warned that growing competition for resources and outside influence could divide communities if citizens fail to remain united.  The statement echoed similar remarks made in Uganda by President Yoweri Museveni, who recently acknowledged the long-standing partnership between the government and the church in transforming Ugandan society. Speaking during a church gathering, Museveni said religious institutions had contributed to education, health care and economic development alongside spiritual guidance. He urged churches to encourage productivity and economic self-reliance among their followers. “The church has not only preached the Gospel but has also helped communities move out of poverty,” Museveni said in remarks published by Uganda State House. The comments come at a time when governments across East Africa continue to rely on religious institutions for social influence. Churches remain among the most trusted public institutions in many African countries, especially where political polarization and economic hardship have weakened confidence in political systems. But the relationship between church and state has often been complicated. In both Uganda and Tanzania, Anglican, Pentecostal and Catholic leaders have at times openly challenged governments over democracy, human rights and political freedoms. In Uganda, retired Anglican Bishop Zac Niringiye became one of the country’s most outspoken religious critics of Museveni’s administration during periods of political unrest and contested elections. Niringiye defended the role of clergy in political debates after government officials accused church leaders of interfering in politics.  Other Anglican bishops have also publicly criticized the treatment of opposition politicians and political detainees. Earlier this year, bishops in Uganda called on the government to release political rivals and warned against criminalizing political competition.  Religious leaders in Uganda have repeatedly spoken out against election violence and restrictions on civil liberties. During previous election cycles, church leaders questioned security crackdowns on opposition supporters and warned against attempts to silence dissent.  At the same time, some critics argue that parts of the church establishment have grown too close to political power. Donations and speeches from politicians in church services have fueled debate about whether some religious leaders have become reluctant to criticize authorities. In Tanzania, tensions between the government and religious leaders became more visible during the administration of former President John Magufuli and have continued in different forms under President Samia Suluhu Hassan. Last year, Tanzanian authorities deregistered a church linked to Pentecostal preacher and politician Josephat Gwajima after he criticized alleged human rights abuses and enforced disappearances. Officials said the church had violated regulations governing religious organizations, while critics described the move as politically motivated.  Researchers and political observers say churches in East Africa continue to occupy a delicate position, balancing cooperation with governments while also attempting to preserve their role as moral voices in society. In Kenya, church leaders have also sought to redefine the relationship between religion and politics amid growing concerns over political polarization. The National Council of Churches of Kenya recently announced that politicians will no longer be allowed to use church altars to advance political agendas during worship services.  The council said the decision followed increasing cases of political leaders using church gatherings to trade accusations and deepen divisions among congregants. Church leaders said the restriction is intended to preserve the sanctity of worship spaces, lower political tensions within churches and restore respect for the altar as a place of prayer rather than partisan debate.  A 2025 study published by Cambridge University Press noted that churches in several African countries have played major roles in defending democratic institutions, though their influence and willingness to confront governments vary from country to country.  Despite periodic tensions, governments across the region continue to publicly embrace religious institutions as important partners in maintaining peace and shaping national identity. For millions of East Africans, the church remains more than a place of worship. It is also a center of political conversation, community organization and public accountability, a role that continues to place religious leaders at the center of national debates about power, morality and the future of democracy.

Retired Maj. Gen. Imad Ma'ayah (left), president of Jordan's Evangelical Council, shakes hands with Sen. Michael Nazzal following their meeting in Amman. Daoud Kuttab for Christian Daily International A senior Jordanian senator visited the country's Evangelical Council last week, offering a gesture of outreach after evangelicals were left out of an earlier parliamentary meeting with Christian church leaders. Sen. Michael Nazzal, who chairs the Tourism Committee in Jordan's upper house, met with Retired Maj. Gen. Imad Ma'ayah, president of the Evangelical Council, and members of the council's board at the council's headquarters at the Evangelical Free Church in Amman's Khalda neighborhood on Monday, May 11. The earlier meeting, held at the Parliamentary Senate offices, had brought together Catholic and Orthodox church leaders to map out plans for Jordan's 2030 millennium celebrations marking the anniversary of Jesus's baptism. Evangelicals were not included. Nazzal said his office had asked the Council of the Heads of Churches to invite relevant church leaders, but that body does not include evangelicals and generally opposes their participation in public events. Ma'ayah briefed Nazzal on the history of evangelicals in Jordan, which he traced to the late 19th century — predating the modern Hashemite Kingdom. He described how five evangelical denominations — Baptist, Evangelical Free Church, Assemblies of God, Nazarene and Christian & Missionary Alliance — formed the council in 2007. Today the council encompasses 57 churches across the country, along with institutions and parachurch organizations that provide educational, medical and humanitarian services to Jordanians and refugees, including prison ministry. Ma'ayah also noted that he chairs the Alliance of Evangelical Councils in Palestine and Israel, and spoke of the World Evangelical Alliance's recent selection of Rev. Botrus Mansour — a Nazareth-born pastor and advocate — as its secretary general at a general assembly in Korea last October. From left: Engineer Nidal Qaqish, Rev. George Zananiri, Sen. Michael Nazzal, Evangelical Council President Retired Maj. Gen. Imad Ma'ayah and Rev. Moutasm Dababneh during their meeting in Amman. Daoud Kuttab for Christian Daily International Nazzal said he was unaware of the breadth of evangelical ministry in Jordan. He encouraged evangelicals in Jordan and internationally to support the country's pilgrimage initiative and the planned 2030 event at the site traditionally identified as the location of Jesus's baptism on the east bank of the Jordan River. Ma'ayah, who commanded the Jordanian army's royal engineering unit, told Nazzal that following the 1994 Jordan-Israel peace treaty he led the effort to clear landmines from the former border area west of the Jordan River. He also gave Nazzal a copy of his autobiography. Ma'ayah welcomed the visit and said he hopes it signals a shift. "We hope that decision makers in Jordan will understand the value and importance of being open to all Christians and work with us as a bridge to the evangelical world," he told CDI.

Attendees worship and hear Scripture at the 19th UBF World Mission Conference at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, reaffirming their commitment to global mission. UBF Korea University Bible Fellowship held its 19th World Mission Conference last Saturday at KINTEX convention center in Goyang, drawing roughly 4,000 members from across South Korea and more than 700 missionaries from multiple countries. It was the organization's first in-person global gathering in approximately 10 years, following disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Christian Daily Korea. About 1,000 attendees — most of them university students — responded to a mission commitment call during the event, filling out pledge cards indicating their intention to serve as long-term or short-term missionaries, the report said. The conference centered on Isaiah 6, using the passage's question "Whom shall I send?" as its theme. UBF World Representative Rev. Ranward addressed the gathering, saying that "God is calling people even today for the work of world mission," and urged young attendees to respond to that call through campus evangelism and missionary service. Ron Ward, UBF world representative pastor, delivers a sermon titled "Who Will Go for Us?" at the 19th UBF World Mission Conference at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, on May 17. UBF Korea Four young adults from Kazakhstan, Japan, Mexico and the United States gave testimonies during the event. Each described lives they said were marked by aimlessness before encountering the gospel through Korean missionaries, and all four said they are now engaged in evangelism among university students in their home countries. The conference also featured a drama and dance performance drawn from the Book of Isaiah, choral and orchestral music, and a video marking UBF's 65th anniversary that reviewed the organization's history and ministry trajectory. Young college students and missionaries gather at the UBF World Mission Conference — the first in-person convening in roughly a decade since the COVID-19 pandemic — to share their vision for campus evangelization. UBF Korea Following the conference, UBF planned a Missionary Shepherd Retreat at Alpensia Resort in Gangwon Province from May 18 to 20, with roughly 800 participants expected, including missionaries and Korean members. The retreat's agenda includes presentations on continental ministry direction and strategies for developing the next generation of missionaries, Christian Daily Korea reported. Separately, a K-Mission Camp for about 100 overseas young people and university students was scheduled to run concurrently at a facility in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, giving participants exposure to Korean church and campus ministry contexts. UBF was founded in 1961 by the late Rev. Samuel Lee and American Southern Presbyterian missionary Sara Barry, beginning with Bible study groups at two universities in southern South Korea. The organization now operates through roughly 90 chapters across more than 120 campuses nationwide and says it has sent approximately 2,000 missionaries to 94 countries.