The late Prince Karim Al- Hussaini, Aga Khan IV
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I The hand of death robed us of one the greatest investors and philanthropists, His Highness Aga Khan IV, who passed away on 4 February 2025, in Lisbon, Portugal, at the age of 88 years.
Prince Rahim al-Hussaini, a son of the Aga Khan IV, was named as his successor recently, inheriting the role of spiritual leader of millions of Ismaili Muslims around the world.
Speaking about the late Aga Khan, President Yoweri Museveni described him as an industrious man, who was still young and innovative.
“I was surprised when I heard about his death because at 88 years old, he was not old,” he said yesterday during his meeting with Princess Zahra Aga Khan, the daughter of the late Prince Karim Al- Hussaini, Aga Khan IV.
During a meeting held at State Lodge- Nakasero, President Museveni extended his condolences to the family of Aga Khan for the loss of the Spiritual leader of Ismaili Muslims and businessman.
He recalled awarding him a medal during a visit to Bushenyi.
Princess Zahra Aga Khan pause for a picture with President Museveni
“I wrote a piece on social media when I started seeing his pictures from 1957. Back in our village, we had an Indian forum, and I believe they were all from the Ismaili community. Their shops always displayed three pictures: the Queen of England, Aga Khan, and our local king,” he recounted.
He further shared his childhood memories of first learning about the Aga Khan’s leadership.
“It must have been around 1957-1958, when I was 12 years old, that I noticed four Indian families in Ntungamo hanging pictures of a young man. They told us he was the new ‘King’ (Mukama) of the Indians. We thought he was the King of all Indians,” President Museveni said.
He mentioned some of the Indian families he remembered from his childhood, including Budala (Abdallah) and Mamudali (Mohammed Ali), along with two Basiiri families from Yemen.
“In the Indian shops, alongside the picture of the young Aga Khan, there were also pictures of Queen Elizabeth and Omugabe Gasyonga, the King of the Banyankore,” he noted.
Officials from the Aga Khan Trust, Princess Zahra Aga Khan in a Kodak moment with President Museveni after discussions
Princess Zahra, shared her long-standing connection with Uganda, saying she has been here many times.
“The first time I came here was in 1990, and I was here last year and the year before. My role as a board member of the Aga Khan University, which has a presence in Uganda and plays a vital role in higher education and healthcare, tasks me to be in Uganda often” she said.
The meeting was also attended by Dr. Sulaiman Shahabuddin, the President of the Aga Khan University and Amin M Mawji Obe, the Diplomatic Representative, at Aga Khan Development Network accredited to Uganda and Kenya.
