Commendable progress has been made in the advancement of digital technology to sustainably grow the Ugandan economy.

This observation was made during the 5th phase of the Presidential Investors’ Round Table (PIRT) at State House this week.

President Museveni launched the Phase in August 2015.

The phase focuses on four thematic areas of tourism: competitiveness and ease of doing business; Minerals Value Addition; and Energy, Oil and Gas.

As has been the practice, each of the four thematic areas is handled by a specific technical working group (TWG) comprised of the private sector and technical officers from the relevant sector ministries.

Museveni commended the National Information Authority Uganda (NITA-U), with the guidance of the Ministry of ICT & National Guidance, for the strategic decision in procuring bulk purchase of internet bandwidth.

He noted that with the reduction in the cost of internet connectivity, from $1200 per Mbps in 2011 to the current $70 per Mbps in 2017, connectivity across government agencies is now effortless and this translates into greater efficiency as they serve Ugandan citizens.

NITA-U continues to position and drive the use of ICT in Uganda. The roll-out of the National Back Infrastructure (NBI) has contributed to the commendable improvement across the four thematic areas specific to the PIRT.

Additionally, the continued deliberate lowering of cost of connectivity has spurred usage of internet and related services in government agencies and departments (MDAs) as price is no longer a barrier of entry.

Currently all MDAs can get connected to the internet at the competitive price of $70 per Mbps.

This is expected to go lower in July 2018 at a new price point of $50 per Mbps for all MDAs.

In addition, NITA-U has ensured that a number of online government services have been rolled out as part of e-government services roadmap.