The Ministry of ICT & National Guidance, in collaboration with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), convened the second Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) meeting
for the UJ-Connect Project yesterday, 8th February 2024 at the National ICT Innovation Hub.
Dr. Aminah Zawedde, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of ICT & National Guidance, chaired the meeting, with participation from key stakeholders representing both the private and public sectors.
Launched in July 2023, the UJ-Connect Project aims to fortify Uganda's ICT industry by establishing a growth model for priority sub-sectors.
The project's objectives, articulated during the first JCC, encompass four main outcomes: Policy Support, Human Resource Development, Business Matching, and Mentorship. In her opening remarks, Dr. Aminah Zawedde highlighted the significant achievements made under the project.
Notably, she mentioned the development of a skill set standard booklet for 7 identified priority skilling areas under output 1, the priority areas include Application Software (mobile/web); Database Management and Analysis; Cybersecurity; Cloud
Services; Data Science; Artificial Intelligence; and Big Data by collaboration with UICT which is crucial for enhancing the quality of ICT services in Uganda.
“Under this same output, we have also reviewed and revised the Intellectual Property Policy Guidelines, incorporating insights from global practices” She spoke.
Under Output 2, the Uganda Institute of Information and Communications Technology has developed a training curriculum to meet the human resource needs of the identified priority areas.
Several short courses have been designed to equip Ugandan youth with essential skills.
Over 2,000 beneficiaries are expected to benefit from these programs and Capacity
building for trainers of these programs is already underway.
Exciting prospects lie ahead with the upcoming business matching event between Japanese
and Ugandan ICT companies, scheduled for late February 2024, as part of Output 3.
This event will foster collaboration through a six-month pilot project, amplifying Uganda's presence on the international stage. Additionally, a successful webinar was held for Japanese companies
to share information about the Ugandan ICT sector and companies and over 40 people from ICT, manufacturing, and development consulting companies in Japan participated.
Finally, from output 4, a mentorship program aimed at nurturing technology-driven entrepreneurship was launched today during the 2nd JCC. From a pool of 303 applicants, 15 exceptional start-up founders were selected to refine their ideas and business models.
This initiative not only cultivates market-fit products but also opens doors for collaboration with both Japanese and Ugandan companies.
This mentoring program also targets entrepreneurs who are in the early stages, and the Project will support them in building their business model and accelerating their business development by conducting mentoring to selected entrepreneurs. Through the 6-months
the mentoring program, the entrepreneurs are expected to grow their revenue, increase their employment, gain skills for fundraising, and step up to be able to join acceleration programs like Project NINJA, Uganda.
Ugandan entrepreneurs need to gain skills to be selected to join the accelerator program to grow their businesses.
In his speech, Mr. Yoichi Inoue, the JICA Chief Representative emphasized the importance of project sustainability and urged the Ministry of ICT & National Guidance to focus on the future of the project and the ICT industry over the next three years of implementation.
In conclusion, the UJ-Connect Project continues to make significant strides towards its
objectives through the dedication and collaboration of all stakeholders involved. The Ministry of ICT & National Guidance remains committed to fostering an innovative and vibrant ICT ecosystem in Uganda.
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