Uganda has stepped up its push to build a modern, innovation led economy after MTN and the Science, Technology and Innovation Secretariat in the Office of the President (STI-OP) held strategic talks in Johannesburg aimed at fast tracking collaboration between government and industry.
The meeting brought together officials from MTN South Africa, MTN Uganda, STI-OP and Kiira Motors Corporation as the parties explored how to jointly scale Ugandan innovations especially in mobility and digital connectivity.
STI-OP’s Superintendent of Support Services Catherine Muwumuza said the engagement was timely, noting that Uganda’s innovators were now producing ready to market solutions that require strong private sector partnerships to reach full scale.
“The Kayoola Electric bus is proof that what we created truly works. Moving people requires connectivity and that is where MTN comes in,” she said, emphasizing the need to pair Uganda’s engineering breakthroughs with MTN’s digital footprint across the continent.
MTN South Africa’s Head of Enterprise Solutions Sudipto Moitra expressed optimism about Uganda’s growing innovation space and reaffirmed MTN’s readiness to collaborate.
“We have seen a lot of innovations from Uganda and are well poised to co-create with the country. The MTN leadership is willing to support and scale Uganda’s innovation agenda,” he said.
The discussions also focused on expanding partnerships in green mobility, digital transformation and technology driven services under Uganda’s innovation bureaus. Delegates noted that the Kayoola E-Coach’s successful trip to South Africa had demonstrated the potential for cross border deployment of Ugandan technologies.
With MTN showing willingness to integrate connectivity solutions into Uganda made technologies, officials said the collaboration could unlock new opportunities for local manufacturers, expand access to digital services and position Uganda as a serious player in Africa’s innovation ecosystem.