By 2005, Uganda’s telecom sector had firmly matured.
With a compound annual growth rate of above 15%, it had set the stage rolling to overtake banking as one of the fastest-growing sectors.
The sector also presented vast opportunities to a country whose growth had slowed in the late 2000s.
Thus, it was a highly competitive sector that attracted some of the best brains, employing a mix of local and expatriate talent, who would later become the face of the telecom sector and set the stage for future growth and innovation.
As Uganda marks 30 years since the launch of the first mobile phone under the liberalised telecommunications sector, we look back on some of the personalities that made it their business to sell a sector that was alien to many Ugandans.
We look back at their contribution to the sector and track their whereabouts and what they are up to.
Charles Mbire
He has told his story before of how he had to convince former Uganda ambassador to South Africa Edward Rugumayo to be part of a meeting with MTN directors, who did not believe that Uganda was a viable investment for a telecom company.
Mbire, who was the MTN founding chairman and has continued to hold the position, had a vision, and it is this vision that helped to break up the Celtel monopoly that had confined mobile phone access to affluent Ugandans.
MTN had initially declined Mbire’s invitation to establish a telecom company in Uganda, but it was a dinner that was attended by Amb Rugumayo that changed the tide.
Indeed, he has previously admitted that he had taken a gamble to invite Amb Rugumayo, who was then in Pretoria.
But as luck would have it, the meeting changed the minds of the MTN directors, leading to the establishment of a subsidiary that later went on to dominate the telecommunications market.
MTN experienced exponential growth within days of its launch, surpassing the 5,000 subscribers that the director in South Africa had predicted would be achieved in two years.
“On the first day of operation, by 1 pm, the CEO called me. He said, we have a problem. We just connected 7,000 customers,” has said previously.
The growth of MTN was so fast, with Mbire guiding the company in a largely diversified sector that has seen a number of changes.
Today, MTN controls almost all segments of the telecom sector and is projecting further growth.
Wasswa Birigwa
If the mobile phone were a person, then Wasswa Birigwa would be the grandfather, retired and feeding a generation that has had an array of benefits from a changed landscape.
Birigwa had fled Uganda before he returned in 1986, and was surprised that he had been asked to wait for at least four months when he applied for a landline phone for his home.
With some background knowledge about telecommunication, he knew this was not right, but a conversation with one of his friends, Colin Sentongo, provided a rare opportunity through which he met an Indian, Shiraz Hudani, and later Azim Kassim, with whom they put together plans that led to the creation of Celtel Cellular.
With the idea now concretized, Birigwa and his friends chased the license, which they later secured in 1993, but after going through a lot of frustration. They then partnered with Vodafone and Mo Ibrahim, through his company, Mobile Systems International MSI.
In 1995, former vice president Sepcioza Wandera Kazibwe officially launched Celtel Uganda, of which Birigwa, after going through an interview that was conducted by Ernest and Young, was appointed the founding managing director.
The start of Celtel opened up a sector that would later experience a lot of growth, with Uganda becoming the launchpad from which other Celtel operations were opened up in Central and West Africa.
However, whereas Celtel opened Uganda to a new chapter, many critics say, it operated an expensive monopoly that limited mobile telephone access only to the rich.
Celtel initially invested $16m, almost 60% of it raised through loans from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Commonwealth Development Corporation, and equity from MSI of Mo Ibrahim, Vodafone, and Clovergem.
Birigwa has since retired into elective politics, first with NRM and later FDC, which he has also left to join a breakaway faction from FDC called PPF.
Phillip Besiimire – MTN
If you lived in the 2000s and have no recollection of Besiimire, then there are two possibilities – either you were too young, or you were just far away from the centre of things.
Besiimire joined MTN in 2008, before becoming a senior manager in charge of consumer marketing.
His name became synonymous with MTN, carrying the weight of a telecom that had experienced fast-paced growth throughout the late 90s and the 2000s.
He was such a big influence on the telecom industry and an innovator.
He has since left MTN, after working within the Group for several years in different countries.
He is currently the Vodacom Tanzania managing director.
Before this, he had worked as the MTN chief sales, distribution, and regional operations officer and chief executive regional operations in South Africa, chief executive officer in South Sudan, chief marketing officer in Zambia, and chief marketing officer and acting chief executive officer in Swaziland.
He has more than 15 years of experience in leadership and commercial execution and holds a Master’s in Business Administration from the Netherlands and a Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences from Makerere University.
Justina Ntabgabo-Kayemba – Airtel to MTN
She quietly left the telecom sector in 2019 to join Gemini Consult as the strategy lead.
She had last worked at MTN as senior manager of corporate affairs, which she had joined in 2011.
She had enjoyed an illustrious career and was one of the last crop of young corporates whose names had become synonymous with the telecom sector.
After leaving MTN, she later joined British American Tobacco Uganda in April 2021 as the corporate and regulatory affairs manager and government affairs, before leaving in May 2022 to join UNDP as a communication specialist, where she worked until March 2023.
She has since returned as a strategic communication lead at Gemini Consult, which provides strategic planning and consultancy services in corporate communications.
With more than 15 years of extensive experience in corporate communications, stakeholder management, and corporate social investment, Ntabgabo continues to shape Uganda’s corporate communication.
She holds a bachelor’s in Journalism and Communications from Howard University, US, and is currently pursuing a master’s in strategic communications.
Susan Nsibirwa – MTN
With an illustrious career spanning telecom, banking, media, and consultancy, Nsibirwa has gone on to do so well for herself.
The seasoned marketing and communications professional has more than 25 years of experience, 15 of which she has spent in senior executive roles.
She has an impressive CV that has propelled her into roles that were previously reserved for men.
For instance, her appointment – last year – as the Nation Media Group managing director makes her the first woman to lead the media organization where she oversees the operations of Monitor Publications Limited, the publishers of Daily Monitor, The East African, and Africa Broadcasting (U) Limited, which operates NTV Uganda and Spark TV.
She has previously led corporate, marketing, and communications teams at URGE-Uganda, Vision Group, MTN, and dfcu Bank and has also worked as the managing director of Ayiva Consulting Solutions.
Nsibirwa holds an MBA from the University of Nicosia, Cyprus, and a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication from Makerere University.
She also holds leadership certificates from FranklinCovey and executive education from Strathmore Business School.
She has also served on different boards, including the African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME) as chairperson, Monitor Publications Limited (member), Uganda Media Owners Association (chairperson), and Greenhill Academy, among others.
Sheila Kangwagye – MTN
What would be a media party or an MTN product launch without Kangwagye? Those were the days when the public relations job made sense and carried with it some props.
Just like Ntabgabo, Kangwagye quietly left the telecom sector to go into private business.
She had first worked at MTN as a personal assistant to Eric van Veen, the former chief marketing officer, before rising through the ranks to become a public relations officer and eventually a manager.
However, after nine years at MTN, Kangwagye left to join SK, a public relations agency specialising in PR, marketing, and event management.
She holds a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from Makerere University.
Aggrey Kagonyera – MTN
If you have any memory of the MTN Kampala Marathon, then you should know the man who, together with others, burnt some midnight oil to build one of the biggest corporate social events.
He joined MTN in January 2001, where he went on to work for more than 14 years as a senior manager, sponsorships and events
The seasoned professional with diverse experience in marketing, events, and sports management was a big influence on the MTN brand and is credited, together with others, for conceiving the idea of the MTN Kampala Marathon, Uganda’s oldest marathon event, which later evolved into a social event and team-building opportunity.
However, just like many others, he quietly left the telecom sector to become the chief executive officer of Legends Promotions and team leader of Legends Events & Hospitality.
Kagonyera holds a Master’s in Information Technology from RMIT University and a Bachelor’s in Business/Commerce, General from Barkatullah Vishwavidyalaya.
Aldrine Nsubuga Sr – Mango and UTL
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But it was the perfect timing that placed the burden of introducing a new brand to the public on his shoulders from a telecom that had long been considered slow for the fast-paced telecommunications sector.
The veteran writer and one of Uganda’s biggest publicly known Liverpool fans, became the face of Mango, which quickly identified as a brand for young people at a time when the telecom sector had become highly competitive and a little saturated.
Thus, it was a hard assignment for Nsubuga, but one that he managed to push, establishing Mango as a household name, especially among students in higher institutions of learning.
However, after four years, Nsubuga, who had also previously worked as DStv marketing manager, left his role, where he had been the marketing manager for Mango and the UTL public relations officer.
Erik van Veen – MTN
If you were old enough in the early 2000s and you have no memory of Erik van Veen, then you probably did not live.
Van Veen joined MTN as a PubliCom director in 2006 from Simba Group, where he had worked from October 2004 to January 2006 as Group Director.
After just a year at MTN, he was appointed the MTN chief operating officer to oversee marketing, sales, retail, channels & distribution, and customer operations, a job he held until 2010, before returning to Simba as group director until January 2018, where he was in charge of operations in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
He subsequently left Simba to join Kigeni Corporate Finance as a director, where he worked for 12 years, before founding Portugal Gateway Fund, a venture capital fund that qualifies retail businesses for funding.
Van Veen, a survey engineer from the University of Cape Town, who also holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree, has vast experience in market analysis, research, product development, branding, communications, PR, and marketing planning and strategy.
Hans Paulsen – UTL
He joined Uganda Telecom from Shell Uganda in April 2006, where he had worked as a retail manager.
He had joined UTL at the height of a build-up into what would later become one of the most competitive sectors of the economy.
Thus, his experience in sales quickly turned around UTL’s fortunes by building a Mango mobile phone network, before leaving in May 2008.
Paulsen has since gone on to hold key executive positions in different companies, including Vivo Energy, where he has been the executive vice president for East and Southern Africa since July 2019, Vivo managing director, and American Tower Corporation (ATC) chief executive officer, among others.
He holds a bachelor’s in Political Economy and International Relations from Makerere University and a Master’s of Business Administration in Marketing from Leicester University.
Cesaer Mloka – Airtel
The import from Tanzania was, for a large part of the early 2000s, a famous architect behind building the Celtel brand, whose dominance and market leadership had been shattered by MTN.
Thus, she invested a large part of her five years in building brand identity, part of which was done under Celtel and later Zain to Airtel.
She was so particular and was not afraid to push to the end what she felt was good for the brand.
She had joined Celtel International B.V (now Airtel) as the Uganda marketing, customer service, and communication director in February 2005, where she continued to work until November 2010.
She is credited with spearheading strategic initiatives that led to significant business growth and successful rebranding from Zain to Airtel, and developing innovative brand engagement platforms.
She has gone on to work with high-profile companies, holding key positions, among which include Solar Sister as country director, d.light country director, Equity Group marketing director, and Serengeti Breweries marketing director, among others.
She has also served on different boards, including Letshego and Fern Marketing, as well as conducting consultancies for various companies
She holds several executive certificates from HEC Paris, London Business School, University of Witwatersrand, and holds a Bachelor’s of Science in International Business Administration from the United States International University – Africa.
Isaac Nsereko – MTN
He is one of the top telecom executives who worked the longest in the sector.
He came in after what was a complete build-up of the telecom sector, but he is credited with consolidating the gains and strengthening the MTN brand, which has gone on to dominate the telecommunications sector at different levels.
He joined MTN from DFCU Bank in 2007 as the chief marketing officer, where he remained until 2018.
His role largely revolved around overseeing marketing strategies and campaigns.
However, he left MTN during a period marked by a staff exodus, during which several high-profile employees left between 2017 and 2018 over an alleged internal strife.
He has since gone on to found several businesses, among which include DDG Logistics, an oil and gas logistics firm, where he works as a director, DT Logistics, and RI Distributors.
He holds a Master’s of Business Administration from the University of Bradford School of Management and a Bachelor of Applied Science – Pharmacy.
Yesse Oenga – Celtel to Zain and then Airtel
The Kenyan import was the managing director of Celtel at a time when the telecom was navigating different rebranding episodes.
Before rebranding from Zain to Airtel, he had overseen another rebrand from Celtel to Zain, whose success largely leveraged on his extensive experience in marketing and telecommunications.
He is credited with solidifying the Airtel brand in Uganda, and fostering quality during which period the telecom invested $100 million in expanding its network and improving services.
He is currently the chief marketing officer and managing director of Africa at M-KOPA, a position he has held since 2016.
He has also previously worked as the Vodacom chief commercial officer.
He holds a Bachelor’s in Economics from Kenyatta University and a Master’s in International Business Administration from United States International University.
Aimable Mpore – UTL
He was the Uganda Telecom chief executive officer between 2000 and 2006, at a time when the telecom was going through heightened competition and transformation.
He had joined UTL after a stint with Telecel International as the group business development manager between 1998 and 2000, which helped him transform UTL from a largely landline operating business to a mobile phone network.
However, in 2006, he left UTL to start a consultancy in telecommunications, before joining MTN Côte d’Ivoire as the chief executive officer, where he worked for about two and a half years, and returned to Telecel Zimbabwe as the managing director.
He continued to work within the Telecel family as chief executive officer in the Central African Republic and South Africa, before leaving to become the NAHALEH DWC, LLC executive director.
He has since held several key positions in different companies, including Dexa Technologies as the executive chairman and chief executive officer of Tres Infrastructure.
He holds a Master’s in Business Administration, with a major in marketing from the Université de Sherbrooke
Noel Meier – MTN
By 2003, MTN had established itself as a market leader.
And what it required then was a business leader who could consolidate the gains it had made and initiate innovations.
Thus, the appointment of Meier was perfect timing.
However, he has since retired from telecom leadership to concentrate on private business.
Meier was the MTN Uganda chief executive officer from August 2003 to June 2009.
He had arrived in Uganda from Swaziland, where he had been MTN’s chief executive officer, before which he had served as the regional manager for MTN SAMTN and senior manager of Telkom South Africa.
His already existing experience in the telecom sector was key in consolidating gains that MTN had registered during a period when it experienced one of its fastest growth levels.
Rita Okuthe – MTN
The Kenyan import joined MTN as communications manager, before she was appointed the telecom’s head of marketing to replace Erik van Veen.
Rightly so, during an interview, she had admitted that Van Veen’s shoes were a little big for her to fill, but went on to consolidate MTN’s market leadership as well as innovate new product lines.
However, after almost 10 years, she left MTN to join Zanzibar Telecom as head of marketing and communications and later Safaricom, where she worked as the director of marketing until 2020.
She is credited for having demonstrated innovative thinking, strategic brand leadership, and a profound understanding of marketing strategy.
She has since moved into board leadership, serving as a member of British Chambers of Commerce board, a member of Mezzanine, a non-executive director at the Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation, a member of the board of DigiFarm, and a director of Jambojet.
She is currently a director at Kenya Pipeline Company Limited, a director at Digifarma BV, a Trustee at the Safaricom Foundation, a member at Women Corporate Directors Kenya, and a non-executive director at Nairobi Business Ventures.
