The fourth cohort comprises 83 student innovators who will receive intensive entrepreneurship training, mentorship, and industry exposure designed to help transform their innovative ideas into commercially viable technology startups.
The Uganda Institute of Information and Communications Technology (UICT), in collaboration with the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), has launched the fourth batch of the UJ Connect Entrepreneurship Training and Mentorship (ETM) Programme, reinforcing its commitment to promoting technology-driven entrepreneurship in Uganda.
The programme was officially unveiled by Dr. Aminah Zawedde at the National ICT Innovation Hub. The new cohort comprises 83 student innovators who will participate in intensive entrepreneurship training, mentorship, and industry exposure aimed at turning their innovative ideas into commercially viable technology startups.
Under the programme, participants will gain practical business knowledge, develop an entrepreneurial mindset, and access professional networks that can help them build sustainable enterprises capable of creating jobs and solving real-world challenges. The initiative is part of wider efforts to strengthen Uganda’s digital economy by enabling young innovators to commercialize their ideas and contribute to national development.
The fourth batch represents the final implementation cohort under the Uganda-Japan ICT Industry Promotion Project, a joint initiative between Uganda and Japan aimed at advancing the country’s ICT innovation ecosystem. However, UICT noted that while the project is concluding, it also marks the start of a new chapter, with entrepreneurship becoming a permanent component of the institute’s innovation and commercialization strategy.
UICT added that it will continue collaborating with partners, including Lwera Electronics and Semiconductors, to support emerging innovators and foster a vibrant technology startup ecosystem that will help shape Uganda’s digital future.
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