Emirati vlogger couple attend nanny’s wedding in Uganda

Roshin George

A housemaid cum children’s nanny who worked for an Emirati couple has been in the news when her former employer flew down with family to attend her wedding in Kampala, the Ugandan capital. The Arab YouTuber had also fully funded the April 11 wedding.

Khalid Al Ameri is one the most famous content creators on social media from the United Arab Emirates. Ameri and his wife Salama Mohamed’s social media empire has 6.1 million followers.

In December 2020, Al Ameri had shared a video bidding farewell to his Ugandan housemaid, Sarah Nasanga, who had worked for his family for six years. He also surprised her with a send-off gift in cash.

The couple told the nanny then that it was in appreciation for her services and the great care she had shown to their children, one of whom is autistic. The video was seen by 35 million people.

When Al Ameri touched down in Kampala on April 6 along with eight family members, the Ugandan Tourism Board arranged a buffet of traditional dances and ululation to welcome them. They were then flown to the western part of Uganda to go gorilla tracking in Bwindi forests followed by excursions to the Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Later, they returned to Kampala to attend Nasanga’s wedding at Namirembe Anglican Cathedral.

Our nanny is leaving

Not only the Arab couple but also the Queen of Buganda, Sylvia Nagginda, graced the wedding at Namirembe Cathedral. Buganda is a Bantu kingdom within Uganda, and the capital Kampala comes within it.

Sarah apparently can return to the UAE after her honeymoon, and she will be free to go home to check on her husband whenever she wants to.

Al Ameri’s visit – his first as a family after the COVID lockdown – has given Ugandan tourism a major shot in the arm. Ameri has also visited India including Kerala, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The Arab star comes across as a genial person with a tremendous amount of positive energy that he transmits to his viewers. Ameri’s videos have also helped break barriers and stereotypes about Arabs.

In a recent interview to Khaleej Times Wknd, Khalid said: “What we are doing essentially is building a bridge to facilitate communication. There have been people who wonder if they can walk up to an Emirati and say, ‘Hi’. Even when we are fully formal, people come up to us to say hello, no matter what their background is, and for us, that’s a beautiful thing. When people say Emiratis and expats, they always, by default, think of them as two separate brackets. They think Emirati home has some secret — but, hello, we wake up, brush our teeth, watch TV. I think approachability is something Salama and I have done a good job of.”

Born to an Emirati father and Scottish mother, Al Ameri had left a full-time job to chart his own social media profession. He started with Twitter and Snapchat, and then progressed to Facebook and YouTube and Instagram.

Al Ameri has not shied from revealing to his audience that his younger son comes under the autism spectrum and his wife has a skin condition called vitiligo. Salama has modelled for various skin-care companies including Nivea.