Busitema University will on 15 September 2026 officially launch the MTN ICT Spark Hub at its Busitema campus in Busia District, becoming the second university in Uganda to host one of the regional innovation hubs being rolled out under the MTN ACE programme.

The launch will bring together the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance, MTN Uganda and Centenary Technology Services, also known as Cente-Tech, which are working together to expand access to digital infrastructure, innovation support and skills development beyond Kampala.

The Busitema hub is already equipped with networked computers, a refurbished workspace, CCTV and air conditioning, and is intended to support training, research and entrepreneurship. The equipment was delivered in February 2026, and students and staff have been using the facility ahead of its formal launch.

Steven Kirenga, General Manager for Product, Business Development and Customer Experience at Cente-Tech, said the investment is expected to go beyond providing equipment.

“What we are eager to see is what comes out of it: student innovations, startups, and graduates ready for the 150,000 business process outsourcing jobs Uganda is targeting by 2030. Busitema University can be a pipeline for those jobs,” Kirenga said.

The Busitema facility follows the opening of the first regional Spark Hub at Kabale University in April 2026. Similar hubs are also planned for Soroti University and Gulu University as part of efforts to widen access to digital opportunities across the country.

Nelson Muyanda, Manager at the MTN Uganda Foundation, said the expansion is intended to give students outside Kampala access to the same kinds of digital tools and opportunities available in the capital. He pointed to Busitema University’s role in training ICT teachers who go on to serve secondary schools across eastern Uganda, noting that improved access to connected digital infrastructure can strengthen the skills they take into the classroom.

The four university hubs are part of the regional expansion of MTN ACE, a corporate social investment programme funded by the MTN Uganda Foundation and implemented by Cente-Tech. The programme started in 2020 at the National ICT Innovation Hub in Nakawa and has since trained 32,125 people, supported startups and enterprises, and contributed to digital skills development.

The expansion also aligns with Uganda’s Digital Transformation Roadmap 2024–2028, which seeks to extend digital skills and services beyond Kampala, as well as national efforts to grow employment in business process outsourcing and other areas of the digital economy.

The hub has already been in use since February, and its formal launch now places greater attention on the work that can grow from it. Student projects, digital skills, research ideas and new ventures will ultimately show the value of the investment more clearly than the equipment itself.

Source: Adapted from PC Tech Magazine, published 8 September 2026.