Overview:

Uganda wins its first-ever recognition in the Toyota Dream Car Art Contest, as two Mbarara children are named best finalists on the world stage.

MBARARA, UGANDA – Two schoolchildren from western Uganda have become the first from their country to be recognised at the global stage of an annual art competition run by Japanese carmaker Toyota, in which children imagine the future of mobility.

Dariona Gibson Nyehangane, who was six years old when she entered, was named a best finalist in the category for children aged seven and under for a drawing titled “Lonely-Lifting Smiling Car”. Natasha Mahoro Williams, who was 10, was recognised in the eight-to-11 category for “The Dispute-Melter Peace Bus”. Both attend Friends International Christian Academy in Mbarara, a city about 270km southwest of the capital, Kampala.

Each received $3,000 (about 11 million Ugandan shillings) from Toyota Motor Corporation towards their education, along with a commemorative plaque. The awards were presented at a school assembly by CFAO Mobility Uganda, the carmaker’s distributor in the country and part of a pan-African trading group that operates across much of the continent.

The two were selected from a large international field. Organisers said national contests were held in 87 countries and regions, drawing about 260,000 entries by March 2026. At the world stage, one grand prize and seven best-finalist places were awarded in each of three age categories, meaning Uganda took two of the 21 finalist places available worldwide.

Isaac Tegule, marketing manager at CFAO Mobility Uganda, said the result was a source of pride for the country and the school. “Dariona and Natasha have shown that an idea imagined and drawn by a child in Uganda can earn recognition on the global stage,” he said.

The pair advanced through Uganda’s third national edition of the contest, launched in October 2025, which invited children aged 15 and under to illustrate their ideas for future transport. National entries were judged by a panel that included Ugandan painter and illustrator Alex Kwizera and art teacher Godwin Nabimanya, with the leading entries in each age group going forward to represent Uganda. At the international level, a panel drawn from art, design, motorsport and journalism, along with Toyota representatives, assessed entries on their message, originality and artistic quality.

The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest has run since 2004. According to the company, it has drawn more than 10 million entries from 153 countries and regions over its history, making it one of the largest children’s art competitions in the world.