Uganda, Microsoft sign innovations exchange pact

The Permanent Secretary Ministry of ICT, Mr Vincent Bagire Waiswa signed the deal on behalf of the government of Uganda while Mr Sebuh Haileleul the Country manager Microsoft East Africa signed on behalf of the American multinational technology company. ICT Minister Frank Tumwebaze witnessed the signing.

What you need to know:

  • The agreement was sealed at the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance officers in Kampala with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.
  • Microsoft is a productivity and platform industry leader for the mobile-first and cloud-first world, whose mission is to empower every person, organisation and government to achieve more and realise their potential.

KAMPALA: Government of Uganda Monday signed a deal with Microsoft Corporation which will ensure collaboration between the two parties in enhancing innovation and skills in the country’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector.
The agreement was sealed at the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance officers in Kampala with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding.

A joint statement issued by the ministry of ICT and Microsoft East Africa, said the agreement will create a framework for successful collaboration between the parties to create sustainable, scalable projects and initiatives which “will leverage the usage of Microsoft technologies and expertise” to transport the ICT sector.
The Permanent Secretary Ministry of ICT, Mr Vincent Bagire Waiswa signed the deal on behalf of the government of Uganda while Mr Sebuh Haileleul the Country manager Microsoft East Africa signed on behalf of the American multinational technology company.

The ICT ministry will on behalf of the government provide personnel for pilot programmes and proofs for concepts and subsequent projects whereas Microsoft will partner with academic institutions to provide content and software to prepare students for jobs for the future.

The ministry will also allow Microsoft to create case studies for successful rollout to projects under the MoU; facilitate access to licenses and other approaches necessary to execute the collaboration; provide legal and regulatory landscape to meet the objectives; and provide timely sign-offs to Microsoft for tasks completed.
On the other hand, Microsoft will support the government to develop platforms for App acceleration in Uganda; support establishment of innovation hubs; develop technical excellence in developing next generation applications; and partner with academic institutions in country to provide content and software that will prepare students for the job market.

The commercialisation of intellectual property will be done through an online Internet Protocol (IP) registration prototype for the region.
ICT Minister Frank Tumwebaze describing this as access to technological innovations said it will make Uganda’s Vision 2040 a reality.
He said that Microsoft a technology multinational partnering with Uganda is a milestone because they will transfer skills and improve the quality of the local innovators so that the country can also export innovations.
“We recognise that in today’s ever-changing environment, successful implementation of initiatives requires additional support from government departments and partners alike. As an established leader in productivity and platform technology, it makes sense to partner with Microsoft as we share common goals for empowering organisations and individuals,” Mr Tumwebaze said.

In his brief speech, Mr Haileleul, the Country manager Microsoft East Africa said they will provide the necessary tools and skills and develop technical excellence in Uganda. He added that key in rolling out the partnership will be bringing initiatives such as Microsoft’s Partner Skills Hub and identifying the correct AppFactory model for Uganda.
“We have committed to provide technical support the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance in equipping the government innovation hubs with the necessary tools and skills that will harness a 21st Century developer ecosystem in the region,” Mr Haileleul said.

The MoU that Daily Monitor has seen does not require any financial exchanges between the government and Microsoft during its implementation but it indicates that each party will be responsible for its own costs and expenses where necessary.