ICT State Minister, Joyce Ssebugwawo Announces a BPO and Innovation Council to Tackle Unemployment

The State Minister for ICT, Hon. Joyce Ssebugwawo, today announced the appointment of a Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) and Innovation Council that will be chaired by Professor William Bazeyo assisted by Dr. Rebecca Isabella Kiconco, the Vice-Chairperson.

The council will be working with the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance to formulate strategies for creating jobs for the youth through ICT outsourcing and Innovation, and prescribe regulatory frameworks/reforms and projects relevant to the growth of the BPO and Innovation industry. In addition, the council will also identify, support, and scale-up breakthrough technologies and disruptive innovations.

While making the announcement, Hon. Joyce Ssebugwawo said, “Our economy significantly slowed down on account of Covid-19 Pandemic, now is the time to contribute to its rebuilding by creating opportunities for our youth. This will be a challenging task for the council, I nonetheless have confidence that they will deliver this national calling.”

Today,I was privileged to announce the Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) and Innovation Council which will be chaired by Prof. William Bazeyo. The Council will work with @MoICT_Ug to formulate strategies for creating jobs for the unemployed youth through ICT. pic.twitter.com/C7Fe0gX9Qu

— Honorable Joyce Nabbosa Ssebugwawo (@Hon_Ssebugwawo) November 10, 2021

The government embarked on an initiative to develop the BPO and Innovation sectors in Uganda as one of the key areas that they can exploit as a long-term solution to addressing issues of unemployment amongst educated youths. The ICT industry in the country has also grown in the last 10 years putting the country at an advantage in handling ICT jobs around the globe. It is a very good time to recharge Uganda’s efforts in the BPO and Innovation industry.

Through the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance, the government has adopted an ICT—led socio-economic policy for accelerated development with a focus on ICT entrepreneurship development, rejuvenation of the private sector, and wealth creation in the National Development Plan III (NDP III) and the NRM Manifesto 2021—2026. The NDP III under the Digital Transformation Program recognizes ICT as a fulcrum of development. The national plan recognizes ICT as an accelerator, amplifier, and augmenter of change across the economy.

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The Digital Transformation Programme will be pursuing the following strategies to contribute towards the NDP III:

• To promote ICT innovation.
• To enhance ICT skills and vocational development.
• To promote a development-oriented mindset and to increase government participation in strategic sectors.

Therefore, the appointment of the BPO and Innovation Council is a deliberate effort by the government to achieve its aspiration to create jobs through the promotion of BPO and Innovation and importantly; place Uganda at the forefront of the next wave of strategic technologies, support a new generation of leading BPO and Innovation companies and scale disruptive innovations to accelerate the transition to a digital economy.

The terms of reference for the BPO and Innovation Council are:

1. Represent the Government, Academia and IT Enabled Services /BPO industry experts in executing BPO/ITES and Innovation strategic interests.
2. Work with MoICTNG to supervise the implementation of the proposed BPO & Innovation strategy and ensure the involvement of all sectors.
3. Oversee collaborations between Government-Academia-Private Sector and Development Partners to implement projects and recommendations relevant to the growth of the ITES/BPO and Innovation industry.
4. The council will also identify, support, and scale-up breakthrough technologies and disruptive innovations.
5. Serve as a catalyst to increase the competitiveness and capability of Uganda as an ITES/BPO destination to create jobs for the youth and revenue for the Government.
6. Support all efforts to raise awareness and promote Uganda as a BPO/ITES destination and Innovation power-house.
7. Foster collaborations with International and Development Partners to invest alongside the Government to promote BPO in the country.

The Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) and Innovation Council includes distinguished ICT professionals from academia, public and private sectors.

Dr. Aminah Zawedde, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance congratulated the various BPO and Innovation Council members upon their appointment. “The appointment of this BPO and Innovation Council is a deliberate effort to contribute towards the collective effort to digitalize the economy as a vehicle to achieve social and economic development,” Zawedde said.

She added that “It’s a strong response to the growing need for strengthening the coordination, inclusiveness and, ultimately, the effectiveness of BPO and Innovation development.”

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The BPO and Innovation council is comprised of the following and appointment takes immediate effect;