Roaming in Uganda

with Nickey Mannya

It has been a hectic 8 days of trade show, sight seeing and business in downtown Kampala. A few things are worth noting about this country apart from the five ecosystems the country boasts, ever happy people and enthusiastic teenagers. Where ever I visit in the rest of the continent I look out for development with a bias to Information Communication and Technology (ICT). This is one of the sectors that African governments across the continent tend to put lower on the agenda amid the economic growth potential the sector has proven in other parts of the emerging world.
In Uganda, ICT is not utilised to its full potential. There is neither a national identification system nor a national credit bureau and the licensing system is still undergoing modifications. This is a cash country. What caught my eye though was the telecommunication industry. Uganda boasts 3 national telecoms providers namely MTN Uganda, Africa’s largest mobile phone operator and Uganda’s largest tax payer; Celtel Uganda and Uganda Telecom. The companies service the different parts of the country with MTN as the local market leader.
Bulk of our time in Uganda was spent at a trade exhibition. Being a Johannesburg dweller and used to 3G wireless and ADSL broadband at my fingertips, Uganda was more than a challenge. There were no wireless internet hotspots at the trade centre which made my geeky life feel a little incomplete. Internet is now a part of my life as my children are and there is no questions as to what would life be like without it.
Uganda depends on WiMax for broadband. Projects like the East African Submarine Cable System (EASSy) were initiated to put to death telecommunications problems countries like this are facing. Recently a survey has revealed that Ugandans spend more money buying cellphone airtime than any other purchase they make. This is evident in the number of mobile airtime kiosks and telephone bicycles across Kampala. This is to prove the need for cables like EASSy. If Ugandans buy so much airtime, it goes to show that mobile connectivity is king in Africa and it will continue to be for years to come. Something I’ve evidenced Ugandans enjoy doing also is to surf the internet. The enthusiastic teenagers in the city stick to computers in the internet cafés like glue.
At the trade fair, there was a free internet kiosk provided by MTN Uganda. This was always packed for most of the trade show and continued at the internet cafés across the city. What came to mind was the cost involved in the surfing of the internet, buying of airtime and voice communication in Uganda. There were a good number of students in uniform including those that enquired at our exhibition desk which told me Uganda is planning for the future in terms of educating future leaders and citizens. The country is still poverty stricken but with sights like these, one can almost be guaranteed of a better tomorrow for Uganda. Telecommunication problems are continent wide and one can only wonder when the governments across the continent would stop talking and start doing. EASSy has been making news since 2005 but to date no progress in terms of project implementation has been made.
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In the meantime, the power of WiMax rules Uganda. Whether from home or from the office, Ugandans are able to access wireless broadband which of course comes at a cost due to the technology used. Internet is becoming a media of communications for many citizens amid the high costs. It costs about 220 000 Ugandan Shillings (R1000.00) per month to get a 500 megabytes for a home Internet connection from MTN Uganda with 1 gigabytes ranging anything from R1500.00 to R2000.00 depending on the network.

Though the telecommunication industry’s competitiveness in Uganda is healthy between the 3 major players (the government of Uganda recently privatised the fixed line telecoms operator, Uganda Telecom and any of the 3 operators are lawfully allowed to offer a combination of mobile and fixed line services), it can only do so much to reduce the consumer telecommunications costs. In terms of access, the companies are doing their best to cover the country; otherwise they wouldn’t be experiencing the excellent growth they currently enjoy. ICT is a growth sector and with competitive costing, better and faster connectivity coupled with a conducive regulatory environment, governments across the continent would have gone far in battling poverty out of the continent. India and China are proof and Bangladesh seems to be following suite.

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