As part of its programme to recognise Women, MTN Uganda is delighted to announce the unveiling of 118 exceptional women entrepreneurs who have been selected as service providers under the Advancing Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program.
Launched in October last year, this initiative underscores MTN’s commitment to empowering and uplifting women in business across Uganda.
The AWE program was designed with the aim to; grow the female MTN supplier base, build the capacity of women businesses through skills development as well as building sustainable business eco systems through mentorship and coaching programs.
Through a rigorous selection process following its expression of interest call, MTN has identified and partnered with talented women entrepreneurs from diverse sectors including I.T, network, commercial, professional, and facility-related services.
According to MTN Uganda Chief Executive Officers, Sylvia Mulinge, the selected women have demonstrated exceptional skills, passion, and determination; showcasing the incredible potential and versatility of female-led businesses in our country.
“We are thrilled to unveil these remarkable women entrepreneurs who have not only met but exceeded our expectations,” said Mulinge. “By choosing these women entrepreneurs as service providers to MTN Uganda, we are not just investing in their businesses; we are investing in the future of Uganda. We believe that by empowering women economically, we create a ripple effect that benefits families, communities, and ultimately, our nation’s prosperity.”
As part of MTN Uganda’s commitment to gender diversity and inclusion, the company has significantly increased the representation of women suppliers.
“By enlisting these exceptional 118 women entrepreneurs as part of the MTN supplier base, I am pleased to note that we have moved the needle from 7% women suppliers in 2023 to 15% in 2024,” added Mulinge.
The event was presided over by renowned entrepreneur and founder of the Gudie Farm, Prof. Gudula Naiga Basaza, who also doubles as the Chairperson of the Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Limited (UWEAL) advised the women entrepreneurs to be focused, resilient, tenacious and compliant, for their businesses to thrive.
MTN Uganda extends its gratitude to all partners and mentors who have contributed to the success of the Advancing Women Entrepreneurs program, including DFCU Bank (Women in Business), PSFU, NSSF Hi Innovators, ATC, UN Women, The Innovation Village, and MTN MoMo.
“MTN is committed to supporting women-owned businesses across Uganda, backed by the strong belief that Together, we’re unstoppable,” Mulinge said.
Dorothy Kabagambe Semanda- CEO ATC Uganda said, “ATC Uganda is committed to working alongside MTN Uganda to ensure the success of the AWE program. As ATC, we have already ring-fenced work that is to be done by women. We shall focus on training women on running successful construction companies with emphasis on practical skills that are required in the sector.
Kate K Kiiza- Executive Director DFCU Bank said, DFCU is backing the AWE programme with tailored financing; subsidized interest rates, and relaxed collateral for participants to help women thrive in today’s competitive business world. To build capacity, we’ll provide training in financial management, ESG, and gender diversity. We have set up a Women in Business (WiB) advisory council and a centre accessible to all women.
Paulina Chiwangu UN Women Country Representative Uganda advised women to work together to eliminate all forms of violence against us.
“We’ve to make sure that peace and security prevail above all else for our businesses to thrive,” she said.
Dr. Aisha Kasolo Project Director (GROW) PSFU expressed gratitude saying the decision for MTN to look at women and consider them for these male dominated spheres makes Uganda proud.
Richard Zulu –Lead Founder, Outbox lauded mtn Uganda for the intiiative
He said seeing big corporates ring-fence part of their budget for women entrepreneurs is very impressive. This speaks volumes of where we are headed as a nation
Richard Yego- MTN MoMo CEO urged women to embrace mobile money business so that they become self reliant.
“We want to see more women in the Mobile Money business. We encourage all our suppliers to digitize their financial transactions through MTN MoMo,” Yego said.
MTN Uganda is a leading telecoms company in Uganda with a primary objective of carrying on the business of a national operator of a telecommunications network pursuant to the National Telecommunications Operator (NTO) licence granted by the Uganda Telecommunications Commission (UCC). Among our offerings are network services, digital and financial technology services, interconnect and roaming, sale of mobile devices, and MTN Mobile Money (conducted through subsidiary MTN Mobile Money Uganda Limited). MTN has a presence in all 134 districts of Uganda. Services are delivered through a network of over 170,000 MoMo agents, 292,0000 MoMo merchants, 200 service stores and 13 main distributors. For the year ended 31st December 2023, MTN Uganda had 19.5 million subscribers, 12.1 million MoMo users, and 8.2 million active data users.
