The first foreigners in Uganda were the Arab caravan traders who were interested mainly in trade relations with the indigenous peoples. The first of them all was Ahmed Bin Ibrahim who reached Buganda in the 1840’s. trade items included cloth, mirrors, beads, jewelry, guns, spices and later on slaves.
The Arab Caravan traders were welcomed to Buganda and at the King’s(Kabaka’s) palace where they took up residence. Though mostly traders, the Arabs also talked about Allah. By 1869, Kabaka Mutesa 1 of Buganda had converted to Islam and joined other muslim faithfuls in the Middle East and other parts of the muslim world to celebrate the month of Ramadan which is a holy one for muslims and involves purification of the soul and body by intensive prayer and fasting. Two other religions of Christian faith were to follow in 1877 and 1879 and these were the Anglophile protestants and Francophone catholics.