Nyombi Thembo assumes office as new UCC Executive Director

KAMPALA, UGANDA- The former Minister of State for ICT, Mr Nyombi Thembo Friday formally assumed office as the new Executive Director of the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) replacing Eng Irene Kaggwa Ssewankambo who held the position in acting capacity over the last three years.

Speaking shortly after his induction in office, Mr Thembo hailed his predecessor for steering the ship for the last three years and pledged to continue from where she left.

“Now that the licensing regime for telecom companies obligates them to cover 90% of the geographical coverage of Uganda will help solve the problem of connectivity. Previously, telecoms have been designing their networks on population coverage but now the new licensing regime changed this,” Thembo stated.

The new UCC boss said this will be top on his agenda to ensure digital inclusion in the country.

“We want to ensure meaningful connectivity and not just 2G but at least 3G network throughout the country. In regards to connectivity, I want to ensure that by 2025/26, we should be able to have 100% coverage of the country at 3G level.”

According to Mr Thembo, whereas connectivity is still currently low, usage is the biggest problem that the country faces. “The biggest problem is not connectivity. Even where there is connectivity, usage is still very low. What drives usage is relevant content. We should focus on content. We are looking at content very seriously as the regulator.”

“To our esteemed consumers and stakeholders, you are the driving force behind our relevance. We commit to even stronger collaboration to realize the socioeconomic transformational value of ICT.”

He pledged to continue working with the private sector to ensure the telecom sector continues to thrive. “I recognize and value the private sector’s crucial role in the ICT ecosystem. We pledge not to disrupt your business models and implore you to play by the rules to ensure the delivery of quality, safe and affordable communication services to the people of Uganda.”

Mr Nyombi Thembo was last month appointed as the substantial UCC Executive Director to replace Irene Kaggwa Ssewankambo who had held the position for three years in an acting capacity after the expiry of the contract of Godfrey Mutabazi in 2020.

He will preside over the country’s communications regulator for five years, counting effective December 1, 2023.