For millions of Ugandans under the age of 40, Yoweri Museveni is the only president they have ever known. And that's unlikely to change soon, as he prepares for yet another campaign after the Ugandan electoral commission confirmed the final list of candidates for the presidential election in February. Museveni, 81, came to power in 1986 following an armed rebellion that deposed Milton Obote, and has become one of the world's longest-serving leaders. His tenure has been marked by both praise and criticism. Supporters say he has brought stability and development, while critics say Uganda has increasingly experienced democratic backsliding, human rights violations and entrenched corruption. A legacy of stability "Museveni has made a remarkable change in our country and most notably, real peace and stability," said Agnes Atim Apea, a social entrepreneur and politician. She added that this stability has spurred economic growth. "That [stability] is really one of the areas the president has evidently invested in. It has triggered all the developmental changes that you see in the country, because without peace and stability, you can't do the roads, you can't do the electricity," she said. Robert Onyango, who was born after Museveni took office, is looking forward to voting in the upcoming election. He sees the president's legacy in a positive light, telling DW: "We have grown up with this government. We would only talk about the positive side of what we have seen." A controversial crude oil pipeline 09:39 Economic shifts and Uganda's oil prospects Uganda's economy has seen mixed growth under Museveni, with agriculture remaining a key pillar. "We have seen diversification of the agriculture sector. We've seen other crops coming on board, no longer coffee only. Coffee itself has become commercial, and there's been a lot of investment," said Apea. She is also optimistic about the gains made in other areas of Uganda's economy. "Our exports, especially in the East African Community, we've seen the surplus, as well as in the tourism and the transport sectors," she said. Uganda also has an estimated 6 billion barrels of oil reserves near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects that, once production begins, Uganda's growth could reach double digits. However, like many African nations, Uganda still relies heavily on foreign aid. The World Bank recently resumed funding after a two-year suspension over Uganda's controversial anti-LGBTQ+ law. Cracks in democratic credentials Despite economic strides, corruption remains a major concern. Uganda reportedly loses nearly 10 trillion Ugandan shillings (about €2.4 billion) annually to graft, according to Uganda's Inspector General of Government. Sarah Bireete, the executive director of the Ugandan watchdog Center for Constitutional Governance (CCG), told DW there are "higher levels of corruption within the government." "When we collect 32 trillion [shillings] and about 10 trillion [shillings] is lost through corruption. It shows you the state of democracy in Uganda," she said. Uganda ranks 126 out of 140 countries on the World Justice Project's Rule of Law Index, scoring poorly on rights protection, institutional independence and accountability. Bireete also criticized Uganda's electoral process. "Our elections have been deteriorating one after the other, where the abuse of money and security agencies dominate the political scene," Bireete said. She does not blame Museveni completely for this, but rather the entire political class. Bireete added that rising electoral violence discourages voter participation, often benefiting the incumbent. "Recent data shows we have an increase of electoral violence since 2001, and each election gets worse than the previous one," she said.