Ugandan Community in South Africa Lost 49 Members to Death in 2025

By Mbalire Brian Kisuule ll, (Your Daily Friend)

The Ugandan Community in South Africa lost 49 members to death in 2025, a devastating loss that has deeply affected the community.

The year 2025 has ended, but it has left the Ugandan community in South Africa carrying deep wounds of loss. In that year, the tragedy of losing 49 community members impacted us greatly, with death snatching away souls too soon, leaving a void that mourns their absence, men and women who walked among us, shared our struggles, laughter, dreams, and hope. Indeed, the loss of 49 members affected us profoundly, highlighting how the community lost its beloved members.

As the year closed, some registered successes in life while others faced hardships. Yet none of these experiences can erase the painful truth that we entered 2025 together with our brothers, sisters, uncles, friends, and loved ones but did not get to witness the end together. They were full of life, full of promise, and deeply connected to us. Sadly, 2025 saw 49 valued members pass away, deeply affecting the Ugandan community in South Africa.

Life, indeed, is a journey whose end no one knows. Each person walks their own path, unaware of the hour or the moment when it will conclude. For many, these were not just names; they were people you shared a bed with, shared meals with, worked with, laughed with, and loved deeply. Their absence has left a silence that words can never fully fill, especially because 49 members of this Ugandan community departed in 2025.

The Pearl of Africa News stands with you in this time of grief. We mourn with you, we cry with you, and we honor the memories of those lost. As we remember how in 2025 our Ugandan community in South Africa lost 49 beloved members, we share below the names of our departed community members, so that their lives may be acknowledged and their memories preserved:

• Ssenoga Ben Kigozi – died on 2 January 2025 in Lesotho

• Nte-Yaffa Brian – died on 3 January 2025 in Pietermaritzburg, KZN

• Nabunya Kadijah

• Ssewaya Almanzhan

• Lubega Eddie

• Mpagi Farahani

• Siraje Yahaya

• Ssebugwawo Paul

• Muwanguzi Sam

• Ssali Vincent

• Kibuuka Richard

• Ssegona Haman Lwabenge

• Kawadwa Sammy

• Kasumba Ali

• Ntege Ronald

• Ssenkungu Allan

• Namanda Tom

• Gyoloba Elias

• Nkweba Aidah

• Galiwango Tezibula-Mukwate

• Bibi Dan Jafari

• Bisegerwa Richard

• Lukwago Siraje Bidagala

• Sseremba David

• Juuko Abel

• Agaba Denis Junior

• Lukonge Alex

• Nansamba Allen

• Bashif Ekoba

• Ndoli Saidi Muhamad

• Nsubuga Ronald

• Kigongo Moses Muhamad

• Tamale Godfrey

• Baligeya Sadick

• Kawanga Samuel Ssali

• Kayiira Sulaiman

• Mitala Umar

• Kimuli Jafari

• Kagga Charles

• Namukwaya Birabwa

• Ssebudde Charles

• Kiwanda Catherine Ssemakula (Tendo)

• Nabisere Margaret

• Nsamba Swaibu

• Nsinsi Simon

• Kabuleta Marlick

• Tumwine Aron

• Busulwa Herbert

• Kaaya Thabit – died on 30 December 2025 in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape Province

Kaaya Thabit’s passing marked the final loss of the year, closing 2025 with sorrow and reflection. Indeed, the year ended with the Ugandan community in South Africa mourning 49 members lost to death, devastating our hearts.

As a community, we commit all our departed brothers and sisters into prayer, asking God to forgive them for any shortcomings in their lifetime and to grant them eternal rest. May He also comfort the families, friends, and loved ones they left behind, and grant them strength to endure the pain of separation.

Gone from our sight, but never from our hearts.

May their souls rest in eternal peace.

Credit to Dj Maple Julio who compiled the list

The Pearl of Africa News