Kampala/Islamabad: The Aga Khan University (AKU) has embarked on its most ambitious expansion since its founding in 1983, inaugurating a landmark campus in Kampala, Uganda, while also securing land in Islamabad for the establishment of a new university hospital campus in Pakistan’s capital.
In Kampala, AKU’s Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan, and Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni presided over the official inauguration of the new 60-acre campus — the University’s first full-scale development outside Pakistan. The event also marked the start of construction for the Aga Khan University Hospital, Kampala. Distinguished guests included First Lady Janet Museveni, AKU Pro-Chancellor Princess Zahra Aga Khan, and Prince Aly Muhammad Aga Khan.
The new campus features state-of-the-art facilities including a seven-storey University Centre, a nine-storey student residence, and a four-storey ambulatory care building. Once fully operational, it will accommodate 700 students and 100 faculty members. The first batch of students will soon begin the four-year Bachelor of Nursing Science programme, furthering AKU’s legacy of training more than 1,500 Ugandan nurses over the past two decades.
Complementing its academic expansion, the 101-bed Aga Khan University Hospital, Kampala, will provide advanced medical services locally while training physicians and specialists in fields such as surgery and cardiology. “At this campus, AKU will invest in developing the potential of Ugandans,” His Highness the Aga Khan said. “Ambitious young people and skilled professionals will not need to leave their home country to study or practice at the highest level. And many Ugandans will not have to travel abroad to obtain advanced health care.”
Dr. Sulaiman Shahabuddin, AKU Vice Chancellor and President, said the institution would now expand its School of Nursing and Midwifery in Kampala and, for the first time in Uganda, train physicians through postgraduate medical education programmes.
The inauguration also became a moment of national recognition, with President Museveni conferring Uganda’s highest civilian honour, the Most Excellent Order of the Pearl of Africa (Grand Master), on His Highness the Aga Khan, and the Excellent Order of the Pearl of Africa (Grand Commander) on Princess Zahra for their long-standing contributions to health, education, and development.
Even as AKU marked this historic international milestone, it also looked inward. In Islamabad, the federal government has allocated land for the establishment of a new Aga Khan University Hospital campus, expanding the institution’s presence in Pakistan beyond its flagship Karachi operations.
The Islamabad campus is expected to bring world-class medical care, research, and education facilities to the heart of the country, complementing AKU’s teaching hospitals and academic programmes already serving millions in Pakistan.
The new campus in the capital is part of AKU’s broader vision to strengthen healthcare delivery and higher education in Pakistan. Officials say the facility will not only cater to patients in northern Pakistan but will also serve as a training ground for nurses, doctors, and healthcare leaders at a time when the country faces a shortage of qualified professionals.
Established in Karachi in 1983 as Pakistan’s first private university, AKU has steadily expanded across East Africa, Afghanistan, and the UK, with its model rooted in academic excellence, research, and service. Its latest moves — the Kampala campus and the forthcoming Islamabad hospital campus — demonstrate the University’s dual commitment: reinforcing its leadership role in Pakistan’s health and education sectors while also extending its international presence.
“From Karachi to Kampala, AKU is fulfilling its Charter as an international university, committed to building capacity, advancing knowledge, and serving societies in need,” an official statement from the University said.
With these simultaneous expansions, AKU is positioning itself as a truly global institution anchored in Pakistan yet responsive to the healthcare and educational needs of the wider region.
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