news 28 April 2026 Daily Monitor (Uganda)
Busoga Bishop Lubaale Sparks Debate by Encouraging Families to Have Up to Seven Children
Bishop Grace Lubaale of Busoga Diocese has called on families to aim for up to seven children, viewing them as a divine blessing, but the advice has drawn mixed responses amid economic pressures. He rated family sizes, urging youth to marry early and parents to provide responsibly. Source: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/mixed-reactions-as-bishop-lubaale-urges-families-to-have-up-to-seven-kids-5439036
Bishop Grace Lubaale of Busoga Diocese stirred varied opinions during his pastoral visit to St. Mark’s Mission in Kamuli, where he urged families to have as many as seven children.
Speaking at Kamuli St. Mark Church, Starlight Boarding School, and Kamuli Girls Boarding Primary School, the bishop described children as God’s blessing. He likened three children to a 50% score, while four to seven earned ratings from good to excellent.
Lubaale advised young people to wed soon after studies and begin families promptly, citing the biblical command to multiply. He stressed parental duty to support children fully, regardless of circumstances.
Reactions were split. MP-elect Mastula Namatovu praised parental resilience for the holidays. Charles Galimaka from Buyende supported the idea for preserving lineage despite economic woes, and Royal Prince Henry Kitimbo Woira noted only those with ample land can manage large families.
The bishop and his wife, Clare Louise Atuheirwe, have four children. Uganda’s fertility rate has fallen from 7.1 children per woman in 1991 to 4.5 in 2024, per the National Planning Authority’s 2025 report.