Telecommunication regulator:
The Uganda Communications Act 1997 established the Uganda Communications
Commission which is responsible for regulating the communications sector. Prior
to this, the Uganda Posts and Telecommunications Corporation (UPTC) provided postal and
telecommunications services and was in charge of the regulation of the telecommunications
sector and the granting of licences to other operators (UPTC Act 1983).
Telecommunication operator:
The Uganda Communications Act 1997 provides also for the establishment of the Uganda
Telecommunications Ltd (UTL) as a telecommunication operator. The Ugandan
Government has concluded a deal to sell off 51% of its shares in UTL to a consortia made
up of Detecon GmbH of Germany, Telcel International Ltd. of Switzerland and Orascom
Telecom of Egypt.
In April 1998, Uganda moved to
increase its telephone density when it finally cleared Mobile Telephone Networks (MTN)
Uganda to operate a second telecommunication network. This marks the end of a
partial monopoly enjoyed by the state-owned Uganda Posts and Telecommunication
Corporation.
Teledensity:
- Total: 0.26
(1999)
- Largest cities:
3.74 (1998)
- Rest of the country:
0.08 (1998)
The development of
telecommunications infrastructure is heavily skewed to the capital region: 47% of the
installed lines are in Kampala City; if the suburban areas around Kampala are included,
this number is increased to 57%. Telephone penetration for the Kampala region is 2.83 per
hundred population. The latest equipment is found in the Kampala area, where most of the
telecommunications demand exists. Eighty percent of the digital telephone lines and the
most modern switching technology are located in Kampala. The equipment in the rural
centers tends to be older and, in many cases, in poor condition.
Digital main lines: 90.6%
(1998)
Waiting list for a telephone
line:
- Total: 9,000 (1998)
- Average waiting time:
1.5 years (1998)
- Total demand (k):
65.9 (1998)
- Satisfied demand:
86.4% (1998)
Telephone Tariff
(1998):
| PSTN
connection charge |
US$
137.00 |
| PSTN monthly
susbscription |
US$ 8.1 |
| PSTN 3 minutes
local call |
US$
0.18 |
| 1 minute trunk
call 320 kms |
US$
0.57 |
Source:
World Telecommunications Development Report, 1999
Public telephone (coin and
card): 1,333 (1998)
Public telephone per 1,000
inhabitants: 0.06 (1998)
Mobile cellular subscribers:
56,400 (1999)
CelTel, a consortium of internationally acclaimed organisations, is the major
cellular telephone network in Uganda.The network covers the areas from Entebbe through
Kampala and all the way to Jinja and Iganga. The network is expected to expand toward
Masaka and Mbarara.With nearly 5,000 subscribers in 1998, CelTel plans to introduce
VoiceMail Service, prepayment for airtime, international roaming, and fax and data
services.
Mobile Telephone Networks
(MTN), the second national teleommunication operator, is also engaged in the
provision of cellular telephone services.
There are also small operators
providing cellular telephone services, mobile radio communication and mobile trunked radio
services.
Cellular subscribers as a % of
total telephone subscribers: 49.6 (1999)
Mobile cellular tariff: na
Telecommunications revenue (M
US$): 32.8 (1998)
Telecommunications investment (M
US$): 2.0 (1998)
Telecommunications investment as
a % of revenue: 6.1 (1998)
Telecom equipment exports
(M US$): na
Telecom equipment imports
(M US$): na
Telecentres:
Project site: Nakaseke, Duration:
3 years. Starting date: 1 Oct. 97 (delayed to January 98).
International partners:
ITU, UNESCO/DANIDA, IDRC, British Council
National partners: Uganda
Telecom Ltd (UTL), Uganda Public Library Board, and Uganda National Commission for UNESCO
Status: Project
document signed (by all the above partners) in December 97/January 98.
National executing agency:
National UNESCO Commission in collaboration with other national partners. However, Uganda
Telecom Ltd (UTL former UPTC) will execute the telecom infrastructure required to link the
Nakaseke MCT with Kampala. A separate agreement with ITU is being developed which will
stipulate how they will use the ITU contribution allocated for this purpose.
Achievements: National and
local steering committees have been established. A national co-ordinator has been
appointed. The Nakaseke sub-county council will initially own the MCT. After three
years, transfer of ownership to a private entrepreneur is envisaged.
The Uganda Telecom Ltd (UTL) is
providing the telecommunication link to Nakaseke, waiving the justification in terms of
economic potential and financial viability normally required. The cost of this link will
be partly covered by the ITU contribution allocated for this purpose. The link is expected
to be in operation by December 1998.
The local council will provide the
building for the MCT. The building is currently being refurbished and secured. The
council will also be responsible for maintaining the building and providing local
assistants. A small branch library based in the Telecentre is already stocked with donated
books, and the IDRC, within the framework of its Acacia programme, will fund the
implementation of four additional MCTs in Uganda that will be linked to Nakaseke pilot
project.
The Nakaseke Multipurpose Community
Telecentre is expected to start operating by the end of 1998.
Further information can be found at
the ITU Rural
Development and Universal Access Page.
Facsimiles: 3,000 (1998)
The Institute of
Computer Science at Makerere University has been at the centre of computer networking in the country.
MUKLA, the academic Network for Uganda managed by Charles Musisi, the present
Uganda Internet Domain administrator, has played an instrumental part in developing the
Internet in this part of the world. MUKLA was founded in 1990 as a FIDOnet-based network.
MUKLA serves the academic and research community, but is also open to the general public
from all sectors. It has been in existence for well over five years, tracing its origins
to an IDRC-funded research project to link up the leading universities in the Eastern and
Southern Africa region. MUKLA is also the Uganda gateway to the East African network
backbone.
HealthNet Uganda,
which serves the medical and health community, runs by an NGO called SatelLife
Uganda. HealthNet Uganda is located at the Makerere University Medical
School and benefits from developments at MUKLA.
The Uganda National Council
on Science and Technology (UNCST) has a mandate to support scientific and
academic research in the country. UNSCT is also the IDRC's Acacia programme national
strategy executive body and it locates the secretariat of the Steering Committee.
Uganda Science and Technology Society: Uganda Science and
Technology Society (UST) is a non-profit professional organisation, founded in September
1997. It is based in Silver Spring, Maryland, which is a suburb of Washington, DC.
Its goals include the following:
A network of
institutions offer training course in the areas of information and communication
technologies. These institutions are: Makerere University, Uganda Management Institute,
Uganda Posts and Telecommunication Training Institute, the National College of Business
Studies, and the Management Training Advisory Centre.
The Institute of
Computer Science at Makerere University, established in the 1985/86 academic year, offers
postgraduate diploma in Computer Science. The East African School of Librarianship within
Makerere provides also courses leading to the following awards: Certificate in
Librarianship, Postgraduate Diploma in Librarianship after a one year's training, and
Bachelor of Library Information Science (BLIS). The Department of Electrical Engineering
within the Faculty of Technology has a Bachelor Degree programme in Electrical
Engineering. Further information can be found at the Makerere University web site.
Services provided
by the Uganda Ministry of Information: Radio Uganda: 4 channels and Uganda Television:
1 network
The media in Uganda comprises a number of news agencies and publishers, and various
publications in different languages covering a variety of subjects.
The newly-formed Uganda
Broadcasting Agency is to run programmes to generate income. Accordingly,
the Agency has come with proposals for the setting-up of district information and
communications units, sub-county information and communication centres, libraries,
archives and documentation centres, and for the promotion of the use of languages and
traditional communication skills.
Radios per
100 inhabitants: 12.3 (1996)
Television
receivers per 100 inhabitants: 2.60 (1998)
Cable TV
subscribers: na
Home
satellite dishes/antennas: na
