Strengthening Uganda’s BPO Sector Through Collaboration

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance, Dr. Aminah Zawedde, held a productive engagement with the United Kingdom Trade Partnerships (UKTP) Project Team, led by Haifa Ben Salem, Associate Programme Officer at the International Trade Centre (ITC) headquarters in Geneva, and Donald Byamugisha, UKTP National Coordinator for Uganda. The discussion focused on advancing Uganda’s Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Information Technology (IT) ecosystem through strategic collaboration to position Uganda as a competitive global player in the digital services industry.

The United Kingdom Trade Partnerships (UKTP) Programme aims to increase trade between the United Kingdom and African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) countries. It is implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC), a joint agency of the United Nations (UN) and the World Trade Organisation (WTO), with the goal of supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their ecosystems in emerging economies.

In Uganda, the UKTP initiative aims to support ten export-ready IT and BPO enterprises to accelerate their business development and expand their service exports to the UK. Participating companies will benefit from tailored export marketing plans, cost-shared participation in a matchmaking business mission to the UK, and a series of specialised training and advisory sessions. These will focus on areas such as the UK’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), sales strategies, and positioning value propositions for the UK market.

Eligible companies include those engaged in mobile, web, software, and app development; cloud solutions; graphics design and image processing; big data; business intelligence; artificial intelligence; system integration; and both voice and non-voice BPO services such as call centres and data entry. To qualify, companies must be officially registered and operating in Uganda, have an active domestic client base, and be committed to expanding into the UK market.

During the meeting, Dr Zawedde commended the UKTP initiative, emphasising that it directly complements national efforts under the Digital Transformation Roadmap and the National ICT Policy. She noted that such partnerships are key to strengthening export capacity, creating digital jobs, and enhancing Uganda’s reputation as a reliable destination for IT and BPO services.

Through this collaboration, Uganda seeks to build a unified national BPO brand that showcases the country’s youthful talent, innovation, and service excellence. The engagement also reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to fostering partnerships that not only accelerate sector growth but also align with Uganda’s broader vision of digital transformation and economic competitiveness.

The meeting concluded with a shared commitment to continue working together to identify and empower local enterprises to take advantage of global opportunities, positioning Uganda as a credible player in the international outsourcing market.