KARACHI: The Aga Khan University (AKU) inaugurated a new campus in Kampala, Uganda.

The inauguration marks the first “full-scale campus expansion outside of Pakistan” since the AKU’s founding in 1983, according to a press release issued on Thursday.

The ceremony was presided over by Prince Rahim Aga Khan, who is AKU’s chancellor, and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni.

Princess Zahra Aga Khan, the AKU’s pro-chancellor, and Uganda’s First Lady Janet Museveni were also present. The establishment of a campus outside Pakistan “is a fulfilment of the charter granted by the Pakistan government, which designated the AKU as an international university”, the statement said.

“At this campus, the AKU will invest in developing the potential of Ugandans,” the Aga Khan said in his address. “My hope is that ambitious young people and skilled professionals will not need to leave their home country to study or practise at the highest level.

“And many Ugandans will not have to travel abroad to obtain advanced health care,” he added.

The inaugural academic session of the AKU’s Kampala campus will commence later this year with the enrolment of the first batch of undergraduate students to a four-year Bachelor of Nursing Science programme.

President Museveni conferred Uganda’s highest civil award — the Most Excellent Order of the Pearl of Africa — on Prince Rahim Aga Khan during the ceremony.

The AKU has maintained a presence in Uganda and the East African region since 2000. “These countries have benefited immensely from the foundational knowledge, capacity, and technological advancements pioneered and established in Pakistan,” the press release said.

Published in Dawn, September 12th, 2025