The annual awards, organised by the Cross-Cultural Foundation of Uganda, aim at raising awareness about the importance of safeguarding national cultural heritage for future generations.
Annet Nandujja, the co-founder of a traditional Uganda dance troupe named the Planets, has won the first prize in the 2018 National Cultural Heritage Awards.
Nandujja was recognised in the Intangible Cultural Heritage category for helping to preserve traditional Kiganda dances such as Bakisimba, Aamaggunju and Nankasa. The second prize went to the visual artist Taga Nuwagaba, who produced the first ever comprehensive compilation of totems of Buganda.
Robert Rukahemura, a private forester and owner of Apuuli Forest in Kiryanga, Kibaale district in western Uganda, won the third prize in the same category for helping to preserve traditional medicine. He is also a traditional healer and has sensitised communities about the need to conserve indigenous trees for their medicinal value.
The fourth prize went to Father Richard Kayaga Gonzaga of Jinja Catholic Diocese in eastern Uganda.
Father Gonzaga has written extensively in Lusoga, contributing to educational and research materials in the language, and has spearheaded the establishment of a research centre through several publications in Lusoga.
The first prize in the Tangible Cultural Heritage category went to the Mugula family for preserving, defending and maintaining the Entebbe za Mugula — a site of political and cultural significance in Buganda Kingdom and Uganda in general.
The second prize went to the management of the Villa Maria Church in Masaka district in central Uganda, for safeguarding and renovating the old church (built in 1892) without compromising its original architectural design and integrity.
The third National Cultural Heritage Awards ceremony was held at the Mayor’s Parlour, at the Kampala City Capital Authority premises on May 24.
The annual awards, organised by the Cross-Cultural Foundation of Uganda, aim at raising awareness about the importance of safeguarding national cultural heritage for future generations.
They recognise contributions made by individuals, families and institutions to preserve and promote this important heritage.
