Safety, cost concerns still limiting uptake of mobile banking by Ugandans

More Ugandans subscribing to mobile banking are using the platforms to withdraw money from their bank accounts, than those using them to deposit, according to the service providers. This is one of the findings and developments in the banking and financial technology (Fintech) industries that will form the discussions at the 6th Annual Bankers Conference next Monday. Various reasons are forwarded for this low uptake of banking money using the mobile phone, including the fear of the transaction not being complete therefore loss of money, as well as the high cost of transacting. Speaking ahead of the conference, Richard Yego, MTN Mobile Money Uganda Managing Director said Shillings 4 billion was withdrawn from banks to the mobile wallet last year as opposed to Shillings 2.6 billion deposited from the wallet to the bank. However, to prove the importance of the Fintech industry, Yego said Shillings 90 trillion was moved around electronically by MTN alone, while Shillings 400 billion went out in mobile loans. Some banks charge as high as Shillings 5,000 to deposit money from the mobile wallet to the bank account compared to the charge on withdrawal from the bank to the wallet of between Shillings 1,000 and 1,700. They say sometimes it makes more business sense to deposit cash via the counter or move physical cash from one bank to another. Yego said they hope the establishment of a national switch, the process of which is underway, will help reduce the costs.

Witness the moment when an emotional Sheebah Karungi abruptly left the press conference in anger, leaving Cindy Sanyu seated.

Fans and followers of musician Sheebah Karungi were left in disbelief when the self proclaimed Queen Karma left the stage in the middle of a press conference that was staged to re-fuel her battle with Cindy Sanyu whom she left calm and settled. All this drama took place at Victoria University where they had staged a press conference that saw mammoth crowds gather to witness history in the making. Cindy Sanyu arrived early at the press conference escorted by her husband Prynce Joel Atiku and was later followed by Sheebah who came in with a motor-cade of bikes and huge cars. Each performer was then given an opportunity to speak up and field questions as the press conference got underway. Drama unfoled when Bukedde Tv entertainment journalist Josephat Sseguya issued questions that seemingly didn’t settle well with Sheebah.

Women shatter gender barriers in Uganda’s fish farming industry

In a groundbreaking turn of events, women in Bugiri District, Eastern Uganda, have defied societal norms and broken into the traditionally male-dominated fish farming industry. Through the Women Economic Empowerment Programme launched by UN Women, these women have not only mastered the art of fishing but also revolutionized their economic prospects. Rose Nakimuli, a resident of Bugiri, vividly recalls her journey into fish farming. “When I was selected to be trained in fish farming, I embraced the opportunity. I approached it as a job,” Ms. Nakimuli says with determination. With the support of the UN Women project, she learned the ins and outs of aquaculture, swimming, and fishing, becoming a skilled fish farmer. Today, she proudly feeds her family and earns a descent livelihood from her newfound expertise. Ms. Nakimuli is one of 1,400 women trained in fish farming. The Programme, initiated in 2019, has set ambitious goals to enhance women’s income security, promote decent work, and empower them with economic autonomy by 2025. The success achieved in the fish farming industry in Bugiri District stands as a shining example of the program’s impact. With funding from the Government of Sweden and Standard Bank, UN Women partnered with the Bugiri District Local Government to support rural women in engaging in fish farming activities on the waters of Lake Victoria. As a result, 28 cages brimming with Tilapia fish now stand as a testament to the women’s unwavering dedication and determination. Amina Nakiranda, the project’s production manager, explains that it went beyond teaching women how to fish as the programme also equipped them with essential business management skills. “Before this programme, many of us struggled with small businesses selling fresh produce or silverfish in local marketplaces,” Nakiranda reveals. “However, through the comprehensive training provided by the project, we learned how to run our businesses efficiently, from start to finish.” The cage fish project has also strengthened the women’s capacity in governance, financial literacy, and the entire fish value chain. Inspired by their achievements, the women established a private company called “Women Economic Empowerment Bugiri (WEEB).” Success stories Immaculate Were, the CEO of WEEB, proudly highlights the transformational journey of these women. “Although 85% of the beneficiaries are illiterate, they have become specialists in various aspects of fish farming, including feeding, harvesting, preservation, marketing, and trading,” Ms. Were remarks, adding that “Once a woman gets wealthy, that’s wealth for the whole nation.” The project has also made significant strides in improving gender relations at the household level. With women contributing to the family budget and gaining financial independence, gender-based violence has notably reduced. Judith, a member of the executive board of WEEB, shares her experience: “The project has reduced gender-based violence because we no longer sit home and beg our husbands for everything. We are no longer burdens; the project has empowered us.”

Govt defends cost of digital number plates, going ahead with project in October

The cost of the new number plates that are expected to be rolled out later in the year were a result of a financial model used for their pricing. The Minister for Security Jim Muhwezi stated this while appearing before the Committee on Physical Infrastructure on Tuesday, 08 August 2023. Muhwezi, said the Ministry of Finance participated in the financial model that dictated the price of the new digital number plates. “Government is not putting a shilling in this project but the investor is putting all his money in it and he has to recover it,” he said. AUDIO Muhwezi Muhwezi and the Works and Transport Minister, Gen. Katumba Wamala were before the committee chaired by Dan Atwijukire. The committee is considering a petition by Tororo District Woman Representative, Sarah Opendi on the high cost of the new number plates. New vehicle and motorcycle owners will be pay shs714,000 for the the digital number plates while already registered road users will be required to pay shs150,000 and shs50,000 for vehicles and motorcycles. The Intelligent Transport Monitoring System (ITMS) is to be implemented in a phased manner and will be managed by Joint Stock Company Global Security for 10 years, before it is handed over to government. Muhwezi also revealed that the project will commence its rollout on 31 October 2023. “We shall begin with Kampala and because that is where most of the vehicles are and it is where most of the crime is committed. We shall rollout out to the rest of the country in a phased manner,” the minister added. According to Winston Katushabe, the Commissioner for Transport Regulation and Safety at the Ministry of Works and Transport, government will receive a share of the non-tax revenue generated over the 10-year period. He added that a financial model covering the total investment of the Intelligent Transport Monitoring System, including selling number plates and traffic fines, informed the pricing of the new digital number plates. “Even when it was not a security issue, government had already started initiating a new regime of replacing these number plates. Here we have a total solution where the number plate has a tracker for security purposes,” said Katushabe. AUDIO Katushabe Opendi said the cost of the new digital number plates is prohibitive to road users. “Why are we not using Ugandan companies that are already printing number plates? I am aware that these number plates will be imported and maybe that is why they are so costly,” said Opendi. AUDIO Opendi Patrick Oshabe (NUP, Kassanda County North) reiterated that the cost of the digital plates is too high for ordinary Ugandans. “I do not know why the ministry does not take into consideration that the people they are bringing the technology to, cannot afford it. If I already have a number plate, why charge me shs50,000? Leave Ugandans and just replace the number plates” said Oshabe. AUDIO Oshabe Atwijukire tasked the ministers to present documentation showing the process of generating the charge for the digital number plates. “The cost of a motorcycle is about shs5 million and if one pays for it on a loan period of about three years, it brings the total to about shs8 million. If you add the cost of the digital plate, it will cover 20 per cent of such a cost which is too high,” said Atwijukire. Nathan Byanyima (NRM, Bukanga North County) expressed reservations about how government will benefit from the non-tax revenue to be generated after the project has been rolled out. Susan Kataike, the Head of Communications at the Ministry of Works and Transport said they are implementing a communication strategy to sensitize stakeholders and the public on the rollout of the Intelligent Transport Monitoring System and what it entails.

MPs want NITA’s E-Govt infrastructure impact evaluated

The Shadow Cabinet has called for an expedited appraisal of the impact of the National Data Transmission Backbone Infrastructure and e-Government Infrastructure that was rolled out during the Financial Year 2006/2007 to benefit Ministries, Departments, and Agencies – MDAs. The government through the National Information Technology Authority Uganda (NITA-U) has announced the extension of more high bandwidth data connection among MDAs onto an optical fibre cable-based network. The newly announced national infrastructure backbone routes include Kampala-Wakiso, Mbarara-Ibanda-Kamwenge, and Ntungamo-Mirama Hills with an expected coverage of 4,298 kilometers across the country. The project will be financed by the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank under the refugee protection framework. Through the Uganda Digital Acceleration Project (UDAP-GOVNET), 53 district headquarters, and 61 local government sites have been connected to the national backbone infrastructure (NBI) under the last mile connectivity project. NITA-U Executive Director, Dr. Hatwib Mugasa, told URN that under the renewed Digital Acceleration Project, 12 districts hosting refugees will soon be connected to high-speed internet in a bid to promote digital inclusion across the country. They will deploy 80 mobile broadband masts, purchase additional bandwidth, develop a telecentre for refugee-hosting communities, set up an e-waste management center, and expand Wi-Fi hotspots. Currently, Uganda hosts at least 1.5 million refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan among others across 13 districts of Adjumani, Isingiro, Kampala, Kamwenge, Kikuube, Kiryandongo, Kyegegwa, Koboko, Lamwo, Madi-Okollo, Obongi, Terego, and Yumbe. But, Mawogola County South Member of Parliament, Gorreth Namugga, the Shadow Minister for Science, Innovation and Communication Technology tasked NITA with their impact on improving e-services across the beneficiary local governments and MDAs citing poor performance of the system which she described as being ‘on and off. Meanwhile, Joyce Bagala Ntwatwa, the Mityana District Woman Representative expressed concern about the increasing level of insecurity arising from Uganda’s internet backbone system. The Authority reported that the current cyber threat awareness in the country stands at 87 percent. To address the fears of the legislators on impact and security, Richard Obita, the Director for Planning, Research and Development at NITA-U said public sensitization is ongoing to create awareness on existing cyber security threats. Obita also revealed that the Authority contracted an independent firm to undertake the assessment of the Digital Acceleration Project as a requirement by the World Bank, and the report analysis will soon be shared with Parliament’s Committee on ICT for feedback. The NITA officials also revealed that they are providing a platform to integrate the different systems used at the administrative centers, and pushing for the reduction of taxes on the unit cost of a smartphone on the market aimed at improving access to e-governance services. World Bank’s GovTech Maturity Index (GMTI) 2022 report that reflects trends in the Public Sector Digital Transformation in 198 Global Economies indicated that Uganda’s GovTech Maturity index value has risen from 0.639 in 2020 to 0.858, thus Uganda moved from Group B to Group A among the GovTech Leaders. The World Bank`s GovTech approach represents the current frontier of government digital transformation which focuses on 4 areas; Core Government Systems, Public Service Delivery, Citizen Engagement, and GovTech Enablers.

Nyege Nyege Festival Returns to Jinja for 'Nyege Wonderland', to Be Set on 50 Acres of Land

Last year’s majestic Itanda Falls proved to be too far and complicated, so this year, organizers of Nyege Nyege Festival have brought it back for its 8th edition in an exciting new location setting it up on three conjoined sites: The Jinja Golf Course, Source of the Nile and the Jinja Showground. With over 300 hotels, the city will provide accommodation for all guests just minutes away from the venue. The safety and comfort of all artists and revelers will be a top priority, and camping will no longer be provided on site but smaller, safe and comfortable campsites will be set up by partnering hotels. In 2022, after a 3 year hiatus and entering a new site at Itanda Falls, the new site proved to be too inconvenient for the logistics of production and for revelers alike, bad weather and roads led the organizers to search for a new and better home until the day Itanda rises again. With over 500 shows internationally, the festival and its associated labels and collective have defined the vanguard of new sounds emerging from the Continent and the festival is widely considered to be the greatest showcase of traditional and contemporary African music in the world, attracting music fans and industry movers and shakers to come and discover new music genres, breakthrough artists and blossoming talents at every edition. This year the festival will start with a 2 day music conference (November 7th and 8th) for artists and east African industry players to connect and learn in order to strengthen the East African music industry through workshops, networking sessions and showcases. The line-up will be announced in September but will include East Africa’s most exciting new acts, as well as artists from music power houses such as Nigeria, South Africa and Brazil. Styles and genres will cover the diversity of African sounds, from South African amapiano to Nigerian cruise beat, from afrobeats to gengetone, dancehall, singeli, soukous and more. A real treat for the ears, the mind, the soul and the body. This year the whole city of Jinja will take part in the festival, by working with local businesses, hotels, artists, builders and volunteers, this year’s edition will be a real showcase in community involvement, and how music festivals can spark the imagination and dedication of an entire community and boost the local economy in order to leave a positive impact. This year again Nyege Nyege will partner with Uganda’s leading event production company Talent Africa who has been with the festival since its second edition and with its long-term sponsor Uganda Breweries, who will host 3 distinct experiences, in addition to a new Hakuna Kulala stage going on for a 96H music and performance marathon and comprising both live acts, DJs and dance and theatre performances. The festival will once again showcase the diversity of Ugandan traditional music with traditional acts coming from all over the country as well as Burundi, Tanzania and Comoros. The festival runs a year-long music residency and community space where musicians and creatives from all over the continent can meet and create together. Harnessing that energy, the festival has evolved from a small party into the most adventurous festival on the continent - a party no Ugandan can miss. Despite past challenges of rain and government shutdown, the festival has never drifted from its vision; in 2023 Nyege Nyege aims to inspire and amaze even more.

Airtel Uganda unveils 5G Network with a promise to transform productivity in Uganda

Airtel Uganda’s First 5G Network has demonstrated 5G’s potential to foster digital inclusion and connectivity in Uganda. This was during a 5G showcase event held at Kampala Serena Hotel Monday night. Airtel Uganda unveiled one of its industry firsts, the 5G network, ushering in a new era of connectivity and innovation for the country. The Telecom giant indicated in February 2023, it was 5G ready and had applied for the required spectrum to start rolling out the revolutionary technology. 11 sites were tested in Kampala in ahead of the official launch. 5G is the 5th generation mobile network that enables a new kind of network that is designed to connect virtually everyone and everything together including machines, objects, and devices at very high speeds. It delivers higher multi-Gbps peak data speeds, more reliability, massive network capacity, increased availability, and a more uniform user experience to more users. 5G can support up to 1 million connected devices per square kilometre compared to 4G which can only support up to 100,000 connected devices in a similar area. This makes 5G the suitable network over which remote teams can collaborate to undertake tasks like surgery, shared online school classes, farmers can share live video farming tips, engineering tasks over video and stream gaming and other entertainment experiences. Airtel Uganda MD Manoj Murali said, “Our 5G network is not just a technological advancement, it’s a catalyst for progress, an enabler of dreams, and a testament to our commitment to bring the world closer.”