Hon. Nyombi Thembo

This morning, I joined my team from the Department of ICT and Research, led by Director Eng. Christine Mugimba, to open the two-day UCC Testbed Hackathon 2026 at the Uganda Institute of Information Technology (UICT) in Nakawa.

Our mandate centres on inclusivity, ensuring that nobody is left behind in Uganda's digital revolution. We should be proud as a nation of young innovators developing AI solutions for online safety.

When we speak of "nobody," we must consider our country's demographic reality; most of our population is under 18. Inclusion means ensuring our children can access the digital world, learn, create, and connect with other users.

I have advocated for over 15 years that children should be allowed to carry mobile phones, even at school, provided they are properly regulated and well monitored. The educational and developmental opportunities of digital connectivity far outweigh the challenges, but when those risks arise, they can be devastating.

Children are no longer interacting only with trusted physical neighbours but also with an online world of over 6 billion people, which includes both incredible learning opportunities and serious risks, such as cyberbullying, harmful content, online grooming, and exploitation.

Child Online Protection is not solely the government's responsibility. Parents are the primary gatekeepers.
As regulators, we plan to launch major annual engagements that bring parents together with key community organisations to raise awareness of online child safety.

We are also exploring regulatory mechanisms that require parents to disclose all SIM numbers used by minors. This will allow telecom operators to create dedicated databases for child-held devices, enabling targeted technological safeguards to take effect.

To our hackathon participants, stay curious, collaborate, and build solutions that protect the privacy and well-being of our young digital citizens.

Last evening, I had the honour of serving as the Chief Guest at the 2026 Financial Reporting (FiRe) Awards, organised by CPA Uganda at the Serena Hotel, Kampala.

As regulators of the communications sector, we recognise that high-quality financial and sustainability reporting is fundamental to building trust, attracting investment, and strengthening governance across our institutions and businesses.

Connectivity is no longer our primary challenge; our focus must now shift to closing the usage gap as satellite technology and emerging digital infrastructure expand reach.

While powerful tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), data analytics, and cloud computing enhance accuracy and streamline reporting, technology is not an end in itself. Ultimately, a digital outcome is only as good as the human behind the screen.

To drive meaningful economic transformation, we must build organisations that are not only profitable but also well-governed, accountable, and transparent.

Congratulations once again to all the award winners for their dedication to corporate governance. I encourage more organisations to benchmark their reporting practices in future editions.

Yesterday, alongside the Director, Economic Regulation, Content and Consumer Affairs, Mrs Julianne R. Mweheire @JulesMweheire, we had the honour of hosting a delegation from the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), led by Hon. Mary Mugenyi (EALA Commissioner), at UCC House.

Our in-depth discussions focused on accelerating cross-border connectivity, breaking down communication barriers, and strengthening digital integration across the East African Community.
As a landlocked nation, Uganda’s socio-economic progress depends heavily on seamless and affordable regional communication.

During our engagement, we reviewed the major milestones achieved under the One Network Area framework.

By eliminating regional surcharges and harmonising termination rates, we have made cross-border communication easier for families, traders, and citizens while significantly reducing financial strain.

We also discussed the critical need to future-proof these frameworks. As technology evolves rapidly and data services dominate digital traffic, our regulatory structures must adapt to emerging challenges, including data roaming bundles, asymmetric taxation, and service quality in border zones.

Fully integrating nations such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia into this ecosystem remains vital to ensuring equitable regional access.

We remain committed to working closely with EALA legislators, national operators, and regional regulators.

It was an honour to serve as Chief Guest at the 20th-anniversary celebration of Roke Telkom at its headquarters in Bugolobi.

Accompanied by the Director for Economic Regulation, Content and Consumer Affairs at @UCC_Official, Mrs Julianne R. Mweheire, we joined the founders, management and dedicated staff to mark two decades of remarkable growth in Uganda’s telecom landscape.

A business rests on two primary pillars: its customers and its staff. The longevity of homegrown enterprises depends on building internal capacity, fostering workplace discipline, and avoiding bad work attitudes.

"The reason many local businesses fail to reach their first anniversary is rarely just about the business model; it largely comes down to staff conduct.”

“Ugandan workers must avoid 'Kina U' (playing dirty games) and work diligently. The directors may originate the vision, but the real owners of any company are the customers who support the service and the members of staff who drive daily operations."

There is no way any telecom business can operate without a licence in Uganda. While we recognise the initiative of illegal hotspot operators, they cannot continue operating as they are; their business model must transform.

We have established clear compliance pathways for hotspot operators transitioning into licensed Public Service Providers (PSPs), which requires deep structural reform and operating legitimately under accredited Agent models.

We will continue to support homegrown operators through enabling regulation, infrastructure sharing, and fair market practices.

Here’s to seeing Roke Telkom scale into a global multinational over the next 20-plus years.

Last year in Dubai, Uganda joined the Administrative Council of the Universal Postal Union (UPU). Yesterday, I had the distinct honour of representing Uganda at our first council meeting in Berne, Switzerland, alongside delegates from Uganda.

While traditional mail volumes have shifted globally, the postal sector is experiencing a powerful resurgence driven by two critical pillars, namely e-commerce and the transformation of postal networks into vital government service centres.

Someone might ask, “Why is the UPU important?” Since the breakup of the Uganda Posts and Telecommunications Company, a key agency in Uganda, many Ugandans may not understand the importance of the post.

Today, Uganda has an organisation called Posta Uganda Limited, which is 100% government-owned and one of the 40 postal and courier organisations regulated by UCC. People may not always appreciate what the postal and courier sector does. But if you understand how e-commerce is evolving, you'll understand what we mean.

As e-commerce redefines global trade, physical parcels require reliable last-mile delivery, secure customs handling, and robust national address systems.

Following the successful refurbishment of our Kampala Road post office, we’re modernising more outlets nationwide, turning them into accessible service hubs for citizens, as seen in successful models across developing nations.

During my engagements here in Berne, I had the privilege of meeting the UPU Secretary General, Masahiko Metoki, and the Deputy Secretary General, Marjan Osvald, to deepen our institutional collaboration.

Our discussions focused mainly on expanding digital capabilities for our designated postal operator, enhancing last-mile logistics, including the rollout of our 70 postal motorbikes, and securing invaluable technical expertise for Uganda’s National Addressing System under the NDPIV framework.

The postal sector is no longer just about letters; it is a vital engine of modern logistics, digital trade, and inclusive public service delivery.

@UCC_Official remains committed to positioning Uganda at the forefront of the evolving global landscape.