It gives me great joy to address you this afternoon on yet another milestone in the Digitization journey of our country. Over the years, Government of Uganda has prioritized ICT as a catalyst for not only improving its efficiency in delivery of public services but for overall socio-economic development

Since liberalization of Uganda`s ICT sector, the sector has continued to grow, despite the global economic slowdown contributing to thereabout 6% to the country`s GDP, thanks to the increasing demand for both digital and internet-based services.

The ICT sector has over the years been vibrant and dynamic, it has now turned into an inevitable tool for socio-economic development. In 1998, the Government of Uganda took a conscious decision to fully liberalize the sector. Since then, we have been implementing a flexible, transparent and scalable policy framework geared to the demands of modern markets through technology and service-neutral approaches.

Ladies and Gentlemen, you may recall Cabinet in the FY 2012/13 approved the strategy for rationalization and harmonization of utilization of ICT services in Government MDAs and DLGs. The purpose of that Strategy was to eliminate wastage of Pubic resources arising from duplication of efforts and initiatives within Government. One of the priority interventions emphasized under that strategy was the “Use of the National Backbone and E-Government Infrastructure (NBI) as the primary vehicle for all Government data, Internet and voice services”.

In the FY 2012/13 National IT Authority (NITA-U) had expeditiously implemented the first Phases on the National Data Transmission Backbone Infrastructure project (NBI) to serve as the primary vehicle for all Government data, Internet and voice services but Internet prices were about 1,200 $ per MBPs then Government through NITA-U reduced prices to 600 $ in 2014 and further 300 $ in 2016 as more Government MDAs and public offices were connected to the National Backbone Infrastructure.

Consequently, the use of the NBI as a secure highspeed network for Government has led to lowering the cost of communication across Government and further more enabled the extension of the geographic reach of broadband networks across the country and altogether Improved Government’s efficiency and transparency through e-Government applications. The National Backbone now extends to all regions of the country spanning 4,300km extending connectivity to around 4,360 Government offices.

Ladies and Gentlemen, with all these key achievements undertaken by Government under the National IT Authority (NITA-U), I`m delighted to announce that effective today 1st of August 2023 the Price of Internet has reduced from 70$ to 35$ per Mbps per month.

I would like to note that this price reduction means Government Offices connected to the NBI will consume internet at the lowest price in the market.

This landmark achievement solidifies Government`s position as the undisputed market leader in setting Internet prices. With this bold move, NITA-U will drive substantial savings on the government's communication budget, catalyze the adoption of E-Government Services, and deepen Digitization.

Members I have a strong conviction that our actions today will inspire Private Internet Service Providers to follow suit, ultimately benefiting all Ugandans with more affordable and accessible Internet services for its unprecedented opportunities in innovation growth and development.

As we conclude we I therefore take this opportunity to that the NITA-U team for accelerating the country`s Digital transformation.

FOR GOD AND COUNTRY

HON. CHRIS BARYOMUNSI