Uganda moves to link Martyrs fete to Jesus historic trail in Egypt

Uganda is exploring a partnership with Egypt that could link the annual Uganda Martyrs pilgrimage at Namugongo to Egypt's historic Holy Family trail, which follows sites associated with Jesus Christ

The proposal would allow pilgrims travelling to Uganda for the June 3 Martyrs Day celebrations to extend their journey to Egypt and visit sites associated with Jesus Christ and the Holy Family. Christian tourists visiting Egypt could, in turn, travel to Uganda to experience the story and heritage of the Uganda Martyrs.

Officials discussed the plan during a Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) delegation's visit to Egypt as the two countries explored ways to expand religious and faith tourism.

On August 24, 2026, the Ugandan delegation visited the Religious Complex in Old Cairo as part of a wider tourism study and benchmarking programme.

The team toured the Hanging Church and other historic Christian sites. It also visited a historic synagogue and the Amr Ibn Al-As Mosque, giving officials an insight into how Egypt packages its religious heritage for tourists.

Egypt occupies a prominent place in Christian history because of the Holy Family's journey through the country. Christian tradition holds that Mary and Joseph fled with the infant Jesus to Egypt to escape King Herod.

Churches, monasteries and other sacred locations associated with that journey now form part of Egypt's religious tourism industry.

Uganda has developed its own major Christian pilgrimage around the Uganda Martyrs, who are commemorated at Namugongo every June 3.

The celebrations draw hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, including visitors from across Africa and other parts of the world.

Tourism officials believe connecting the two experiences could create a wider African Christian pilgrimage route rather than marketing each destination separately.

Under the proposed arrangement, tour operators could develop packages combining the Uganda Martyrs pilgrimage with visits to Holy Family sites in Egypt.

The two countries could also bring together tourism authorities, airlines, churches, tour operators and pilgrimage organisations to develop and market the packages.

The initiative could help Uganda attract Christian tourists already travelling to Egypt while giving visitors arriving for Martyrs Day another African destination to add to their itinerary.

Nancy Abdelhady, Uganda Tourism Goodwill Ambassador in Egypt and chief operating officer of the African Tourism Board, said the two countries possess Christian histories that could complement each other.

“Egypt and Uganda have two important Christian pilgrimage stories in Africa. Egypt is distinguished by the heritage of the Holy Family’s journey, while Uganda welcomes pilgrims from across Africa and around the world to commemorate the Uganda Martyrs,” Abdelhady said.

“There is an opportunity to explore the development of integrated programmes that encourage pilgrims to visit both destinations, contributing to the growth of intra-African tourism.”

Uganda also hopes to draw lessons from Egypt's experience in preserving religious landmarks, training specialised guides and incorporating sacred sites into wider tourism packages.

Egypt could, in turn, learn from Uganda's experience in handling large pilgrim numbers and organising the annual Martyrs Day celebrations.

The discussions formed part of UTB's broader engagements in Egypt covering tourism marketing, cultural heritage, air connectivity, hospitality, health and wellness tourism, infrastructure and destination development.