SCAM: President Museveni Is Not Giving Away UGX 150,000 to Ugandans

Background:

A website link is being shared across social media platforms, especially in WhatsApp groups in Uganda, along with captions, “YOWERI MUSEVENI UGX150,000 DEVELOPMENT CASH GRANT FOR UGANDANS” and is hosted at the domain uganda-grant.giveout.live, an unofficial, non-governmental website. Debunk Media Initiative is not linking to the site directly to protect readers. 

The link has been shared widely on WhatsApp, accompanied by a message reading: “PRESIDENT YOWERI MUSEVENI UGX150,000 DEVELOPMENT CASH GRANT FOR UGANDANS — HOW TO GET IT: Visit the link below and answer the following questions and you will receive UGX150,000 instantly. I just got mine. Click Here 👇 https://uganda-grant.giveout.live”.

 

The message is accompanied by a photo of President Museveni and a link to the site. Notably, in the same WhatsApp thread where this link was shared, another user flagged it immediately, writing: “This is scam plz”, a warning that many users may overlook before clicking.

Given the nature of the claims and the significant harm these types of scams cause to Ugandan internet users, we investigated whether this website represents a legitimate government programme.

Claim:

The website makes the following claims:

• President Yoweri Museveni is giving UGX 150,000 in cash to Ugandans as a “Development Cash Grant”
• Users who complete a short survey and a prize-picking game will be guaranteed to win
• Thousands of prizes are still available, with a counter showing limited remaining stock
• Sharing the link with WhatsApp groups and friends is required to claim the prize
• A final “subscription step” is necessary to verify the user’s phone number and release the funds

Findings

Our investigation shows this website is a SCAM. It has no affiliation with the Government of Uganda, President Museveni, or any official institution. It uses well-documented deceptive techniques to manipulate users into sharing their personal data, spreading the scam, and subscribing to third-party services that may charge hidden fees or install malicious software.

1. The Domain Is Not a Government Website

The website is hosted at uganda-grant.giveout.live. All official Ugandan government websites use the .go.ug domain for example, statehouse.go.ug or finance.go.ug.

A domain ending in .live hosted on a service called giveout.live has no connection to any Ugandan government institution. There is no record of this site on any official government communications channel.

Additionally, a WHOIS lookup conducted on the domain giveout.live showed that the website is privately registered through NameSilo, LLC, with no indication of ownership or management by any Ugandan government body. The domain was registered on October 29, 2023, and uses external name servers unrelated to official government infrastructure. 

Official Ugandan government websites typically use the “.go.ug” domain space managed under recognised government systems. The use of a privately registered “.live” domain further undermines the credibility of the alleged cash grant programme.

2. The Prize Game Is Rigged to Always Produce a “Winner”

During testing, the website displayed a pop-up message claiming: “Congratulations You are qualified for President YOWERI MUSEVENI UGX150,000 DEVELOPMENT CASH GRANT FOR UGANDANS.” The site then prompted users to click a “WITHDRAW UGX150,000” button despite no legitimate verification process taking place. This type of scripted reward mechanism is commonly used in scam funnels to create excitement and reduce scepticism before users are redirected to monetised pages. 

After completing the survey questions, the site displayed another message stating: “Congratulations! Your answers have been saved” and instructed users to participate in a box-selection game for a chance to “win” UGX150,000. The page falsely claimed users had “3 chances” to locate a prize hidden inside virtual boxes, a manipulation tactic commonly used in fake giveaway scams. 

3. Mandatory Sharing Is a Viral Spread Mechanism, Not a Verification Step

Before allowing users to “claim” their prize, the site requires them to share the link with five WhatsApp groups or fifteen friends, with a progress bar that fills as shares are made. This step has no logical connection to verifying eligibility for a government grant. Its sole purpose is to spread the scam link to more potential victims.

4. False Scarcity and Urgency Are Used to Pressure Users

The site displays a counter claiming “Only 7,289 gifts remain” and a message that “prizes are still available.” These figures do not change regardless of how many users visit the site or how much time passes. This is a fabricated urgency technique designed to prevent users from pausing to question the legitimacy of the page.

The website also displayed fabricated testimonial-style comments from supposed beneficiaries claiming they had already received the money. Examples included comments such as “I received 150k last month from this program” and “I never thought I will have this grace in my life.” These comments appeared designed to create artificial social proof and pressure users into trusting the scheme without verification. 

5. No Official Government Announcement Exists

A search of official Ugandan government channels, including the State House Uganda website, and the presidential initiatives website, returns no record of any UGX 150,000 Development Cash Grant programme announced by President Museveni. Legitimate government cash transfer programmes in Uganda, such as the Parish Development Model (PDM), are announced through official channels and administered through registered financial institutions and local government structures, not through WhatsApp links and online prize games.

What Real Government Cash Grants Look Like in Uganda

Legitimate government cash support programmes in Uganda — such as the Parish Development Model (PDM), the Social Assistance Grants for Empowerment (SAGE), or the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme (UWEP), share the following characteristics:

• They are announced through official government websites (.go.ug domains), press conferences, and verified social media accounts
• They are administered through recognised financial institutions, SACCOs, or local government structures
• They require in-person registration and verification using a National Identification Number (NIN)
• They never ask citizens to share links on WhatsApp, subscribe to third-party services, or install applications to receive funds

If you are unsure whether a government programme is real, you can verify by visiting finance.go.ug, statehouse.go.ug, or calling the Uganda National Information Technology Authority (NITA-U) helpline.

6. Other Verification Platforms and Media Reports Have Flagged Similar Claims 

Searches conducted through the Debunk Info Verifier tool returned multiple related warnings and previously published reports concerning similar “Museveni cash grant” claims. Among the results was a fact-check published by PesaCheck titled: “HOAX: This purported President Museveni development cash grant is fake.”

The verification results also surfaced scam-related reporting from Watchdog Uganda cautioning Ugandans against fraudsters using President Museveni’s name to deceive internet users.

These findings further support the conclusion that the circulating UGX150,000 “development cash grant” link forms part of a wider pattern of recurring online scams exploiting the President’s image and promises of financial assistance to lure victims.

Methodology

To investigate this claim, we conducted a direct analysis of the website, including its domain structure, page behaviour, and user flow. We examined the survey process, prize-selection system, sharing requirements, and final subscription prompts to identify potential scam patterns.

We also carried out a WHOIS lookup on the domain to review its registration details and infrastructure, and searched official Ugandan government communication channels for any announcement related to the alleged UGX150,000 cash grant programme.

Additionally, we reviewed related verification results and previously published reports surfaced through the Debunk Info Verifier tool and other publicly available sources concerning similar scam claims.

Verdict: SCAM

The website uganda-grant.giveout.live is not affiliated with President Yoweri Museveni, the Government of Uganda, or any official institution. It is a coordinated online scam designed to spread virally through WhatsApp, collect personal data, and funnel victims into subscription traps that may result in financial loss or device compromise.

The claim that President Museveni is distributing UGX 150,000 cash grants through this website is completely false and a scam.

If you received this link, do not click it, do not share it, and warn the person who sent it to you that it is a scam.

If you have been affected by this scam or similar online fraud, you can report it to the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) at www.ucc.co.ug or call the UCC toll-free line: 0800 222 777.