Elioda Tumwesigye


Elioda Tumwesigye is a Ugandan politician, physician, and epidemiologist who has served as minister of science, technology and innovation in the cabinet of Uganda since June 2016. From March 2015 until June 2016, he served as the minister of health.
Tumwesigye has been the elected member of parliament representing Sheema Municipality in Sheema District, since 2018.From 25 July 2013 to 28 February 2015, he served as state minister for health. He was promoted to minister of health on 1 March 2015, taking a slot left vacant since 18 September 2014.

Background and education

Tumwesigye was born in Sheema District on 5 April 1964 to Yekonia and Edinance Kasyamutwe. He was their second child. He attended Ntare School for his O-Level education, graduating in 1981, and for his A-Level studies where he was elected Head Boy, and later graduated in 1984 as the third best performing student in the country. He obtained a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree from Makerere University in 1990. While attending Makerere, he started the Sheema University Student's Association, which was still active as of March 2015. He was also elected health secretary of University Hall, a men's hall of residence at Makerere. In 1997, he obtained a Master of Science in epidemiology from Case Western Reserve University.

Early career

From 1990 until 2001, he worked as a medical officer at the Uganda Ministry of Health, serving in the Epidemiology Studies Unit during the last four years. In 2001, he contested the parliamentary seat of Sheema County North, in Sheema District, on the National Resistance Movement political party ticket. He won and was re-elected in 2006 and 2011.