KAMPALA, Uganda — The highly anticipated 2026 Uganda Film Festival (UFF) has been postponed indefinitely following a rigid public health directive from the Ministry of Health and the National Taskforce on Ebola Response, regulators announced Thursday afternoon.
The decision, officially made public by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), freezes all planned festival activities across the country. This includes highly anticipated public film screenings, workshops, and the hallmark Uganda Film Festival Awards Gala, which had been scheduled to take place on Friday, June 5, 2026.
According to official communications from the UCC, the disruption stems directly from a Ministry of Health circular issued on May 26, 2026. The strict directive placed immediate restrictions on mass public gatherings within the Kampala Metropolitan Area, a proactive intervention to stall the spread of the deadly Ebola virus and secure national health security.
“While we recognise the disappointment this may cause to filmmakers, nominees, sponsors, exhibitors, and festival audiences, the health and safety of the public remains our highest priority,” the UCC stated in a public notice. Commission officials characterized the postponement as an essential preventative action designed to bolster ongoing national containment efforts and safeguard highly populated urban centers.
The postponement deals a substantial psychological and logistical blow to the local creative economy, particularly the visual arts sector, which relies heavily on the annual festival for regional distribution, networking, and critical acclaim. Nominees and corporate sponsors will now have to wait for the epidemiological situation to stabilize before a new timeline can be established.
UCC management confirmed it is collaborating closely with emergency medical authorities and line ministries to review public safety metrics regularly. The commission assured stakeholders that fresh dates for the multi-day festival would be broadcast as soon as technical clearances are granted by health authorities.
In the interim, the government has called upon the public to strictly adhere to standard sanitation protocols, maintain level-headedness, and track official updates via the UCC and Ministry of Health digital communication platforms.
