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Location: 22 Hannington Road, Kampala Uganda Postal Address: P.O Box 24624 Kampala Uganda  MTN slashes mobile money sending rates MTN Uganda has slashed mobile money sending charges for tiered amounts between Ushs500 and Ushs45,000.The promotion, which is part of the telecom’s festive season offers will go on at up to end of the year. The reduced charges will apply to MTN mobile money customers sending money to other mobile money registered customers.“We are excited to deliver the first festive season offer, making sending even more affordable for customers on MTN mobile money” the MTN general manager for Financial services Phrase Lubega told journalists.Lubega noted that the offer is in line with MTN’s commitment to driving financial inclusion in Uganda While delivering easier and more affordable services to their customers.“MTN mobile money has always been a simple and convenient service to use with transactions being completed in only a matter of seconds. We are happy to offer customers even more reason to use this product as we head into the festive season,” he noted. MTN’s Chief Executive Officer, Win Vanhelleputte said “to be able to accelerate the financial inclusion that mobile money is at the fore front of supporting, affordability is key. This is why we have taken a decision to reduce the mobile money rates for sending money. Read more ▪ MTN Group, MMI holdings announce strategic partnership MTN Group and MMI Holdings have Wednesday announced the launch of a micro insurance joint venture, branded aYo. The joint venture will benefit from the scale, combined expertise and market access of both companies, to provide a strong basis to compete in a changing mobile financial services industry.Insurance penetration is low in many countries across Africa, and utilising the resources and capabilities that each of MMI Holdings and MTN provide, aYo will be able to improve this to offer relevant, accessible and easy to use insurance solutions to consumers.Commenting on the partnership, Herman Singh, Group Chief Digital Officer of MTN said that “as MTN, we are excited about this partnership as it gives us an opportunity to further expand our bouquet of mobile financial services offerings across our footprint. Working with MMI, and harnessing the rapid growth of mobile on the continent, we will be able to leverage our core competencies, strong brands and scale to deliver much-needed insurance solutions to our customers.”Danie Botes, Group Chief Operating Officer of MMI Holdings remarked that “the partnership with MTN will create new revenue streams for MMI, help achieve significant scale, explore opportunities in new markets and segments, and capitalise on the growth of micro insurance on the continent. The partnership will also allow us to further extend our client-centric vision of financial wellness across the Africa continent.” Read more ▪ MTN launches mobile Money savings, loans MTN Uganda in partnership with the Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA) launched a mobile money savings and Loans feature in a bid to further financial and digital inclusion in the country.Dubbed ‘MoKash’, the feature allows MTN mobile money users to acquire micro loans at the comfort of their mobile phones and to save while earning an interestAccording to Charles Mbiire, the MTN board chairman, MoKash is meant enhance the quality of life for all Ugandans, regardless of which part of the country they’re in or their status in society.“MTN is passionate and committed to the economic advancement of Uganda as a country, and we are truly excited about the prospect of a technology-driven society that ushers Uganda into the Middle Income status in the next few years,” Mbiire said.“By launching Savings and Loans on the Mobile Money platform, MTN not only re-enforces its leadership position, but also sets the pace for an era in which financial services are a real possibility to everyone in the country.”The feature was officially launched by H.E Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi, the Vice President of Uganda who was representing President Museveni. Read more ▪ MTN gets Shs 385 billion to boost network MTN Uganda has received a loan of $114m (Shs 385bn) to invest in its network in the country. The loan was syndicated by four banks - Stanbic, Citi, Standard Chartered, and Barclays bank.Stanbic bank acted as the coordinator for the facility. A syndicated credit facility is where more than one lender come together to pull resources to offer the loan to the borrower.MTN Uganda boss Brian Gouldie told reporters at Serena hotel last week that this was the second substantial credit facility that MTN has secured in the past seven years and one of the largest private sector debts raised in Uganda.MTN Uganda's capital investment planned at Shs 238bn and Shs 299bn. Gouldie explained that due to extensive appetite from the commercial banks participating, the syndication was oversubscribed and had been secured within three months after launching. Read more ▪ MTN secures Shs386b loan from local banks With no long-term debt on its books, MTN Uganda has borrowed $114m (Shs385.8 billion) from four local banks in Uganda. This is the third largest corporate finance facility arranged by local banks in Uganda’s history.The money, according to MTN, is meant for further expansion of data network, construction of their head office on Jinja Road and upgrade of their IT systems.Two of Uganda’s largest banks, Stanbic Bank and Standard Chartered Bank, provided the syndicated loan, together with Barclays Bank and Citi Bank. A syndicated loan is one that involves a group of lenders (called the syndicate) who pool their lending resources to make a loan.Read more ▪ MTN: Ugandans in diaspora set to send cash via mobile money Ugandans living abroad could, be able to send money directly to MTN mobile money accounts of people in Uganda.Online money transfer business firm, Worldremit, is set to partner with MTN Uganda to actualise this.According to one account, the partnership will be launched at the end of this month in Kampala.When contacted, MTN Uganda was, however, noncommittal.“Nothing has been set in terms of dates. We will communicate,” an MTN official, who preferred anonymity because official communication was not yet ready, said.Should the partnership come to pass, Ugandans in the diaspora who want to send money home will have to install a Worldremit application on their phones. Read more ▪  Justice Henry Peter Adonyo: High Court penalises MTN for malicious business conduct Malicious, egregious, vindictive, oppressive and high-handedness. These are some of the words used by Justice Henry Peter Adonyo to describe the conduct of MTN Uganda towards EzeeMoney. MTN Uganda, the largest telecom company in Uganda, was found guilty of aggressively adopting anti-competitive measures towards EzeeMoney.EzeeMoney was awarded damages of Shs2.3b, but MTN has since appealed the ruling.EzeeMoney launched its services in Uganda to tap into the growing mobile money market. At the time, MTN Uganda was – and still is – the leading mobile money service provider in the country. EzeeMoney had made the entry to tap into a market where it could provide third party mobile money services to people without handsets. Read more ▪ LKAA: MTN appeals Shs2.3 billion court award to EzeeMoney MTN Uganda has appealed a court award of Shs2.3b to electronic money provider, EzeeMoney for sabotaging its business.“Take notice that the defendant being dissatisfied with the decision of the Commercial Court, intends to appeal to the Court of Appeal against the whole decision,” reads a notice filed before the court.The High Court presided over by Justice Henry Adonyo ordered MTN Uganda to pay Shs800m in general damages for loss of business and Shs1.5b to EzeeMoney as punitive damages, saying it would deter uncompetitive business tactics.Justice Adonyo said MTN breached the law that prohibits anti-competitive conduct against providers of communication services.Court also ruled that EzeeMoney’s cash transfer services were communications services although EzeeMoney is not registered.MTN, through its lawyers of Kampala Associated Advocates, insist that EzeeMoney is not a licensed communication services provider protected by the Uganda Communications Act, and that the services to EzeeMoney were not terminated but migrated to pre-paid service for failing to fulfill the vetting requirements. Read more ▪ MTN wins respite over huge Nigerian fine South African telecoms giant MTN has won a respite on the payment of a massive $5.2 billion fine imposed on the company in Nigeria to allow for negotiations, the mobile phone operator said.The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) slapped the penalty on Africa's largest telecoms firm for failing to deactivate 5.1 million unregistered SIM cards, sending its share price plummeting and leading to the resignation of chief executive Sifiso Dabengwa.The deadline for the fine to be paid was November 16, but the company announced that the NCC had agreed that it will not be payable until the end of negotiations entered into by acting executive chairman Phuthuma Nhleko, who has taken on Dabengwa's role."Shareholders are advised that the executive chairman of the company, Mr Phuthuma Nhleko, has personally met with the Nigerian authorities to continue the ongoing discussions with them regarding the fine," the statement said. Read more ▪ MTN fined $5.2bn over SIM disconnections in Nigeria Nigeria's telecommunications regulator has fined South African mobile giant MTN $5.2 billion for missing a deadline to disconnect unregistered SIM cards, the company announced.The penalty saw shares in Africa's largest telecommunications company crash more than 12 percent to 167 rand on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the biggest fall the firm has suffered."This fine relates to the timing of the disconnection of 5.1 million MTN Nigeria subscribers," MTN said in a statement.The Nigerian Communications Commission fined the company 200,000 naira (about $1,000) for each unregistered SIM.Early the commission issued a directive to mobile telecoms companies operating in Nigeria to deactivate all unregistered SIM cards. Read more ▪ MTN mobile money value increases by 24% Mobile Telephone Company MTN has announced that the value of mobile money transactions on its platform increased by 24% this year to shs 16.8 trillion.This is an upward adjustment of shs 1.428 trillion, compared to last year’s estimates of shs 15.372 trillion in mobile money transaction value.The company executive director, Brian Gouldie told the press that the growth was mainly driven by the integration of financial services into the mobile money portfolio.“We now partner with 12 financial institutions in the country and facilitate deposits and withdrawals of funds for more than 20,000 subscribers, translating into shs 40 million transactions each month. The total value of transactions is now aggregated at shs 1.8 trillion per month, translating into a 21% increase in mobile money transaction volumes,” he said. Read more ▪ Price wars: Telecoms are likely to bleed-MTN Daring, unprecedented, anti-competition and bold are some of the words being used to describe the move by MTN to cut rates on voice calls by nearly 46 per cent. MTN, which is the market leader and only profitable telecom in Uganda, has in the past hesitated to reduce call tariffs, insisting the move would eat into its bottom line. The last time the price wars on voice calls emerged, when Warid – now part of Airtel – tilted the market.MTN has rekindled those days and taken the bold step at a time when telecoms are paying the price for a weak Shilling, high-interest rates and slowed economic growth.“We have taken an unprecedented decision to reduce the calling rates, at a time when most prices are escalating upwards,” Mapula Bodibe the MTN Uganda chief marketing officer said in a statement.Read more ▪ MTN launches mobile money transfer between Uganda and Rwanda Mobile money service provider MTN Uganda has launched cross-border money transfer services between Uganda and neighbouring country Rwanda.This new Mobile Money service will allow customers in both countries to transact via Mobile Money without having to change currencies.The service enables an MTN customer in Rwanda to send money in Rwandese Francs to a recipient in Uganda who will receive it in Uganda Shillings. The recipient has to be a customer of MTN Uganda to receive the transfer.“Technology is helping us eliminate national borders, enabling a unified digital and mobile financial services world. We are delighted to offer a solution that further enhances this agenda," said Mr Phrase Lubega, MTN Uganda's General manager in charge of Financial Services."We also trust that our customers will find it easy, fast and a more convenient means of transferring funds internationally,” Mr Lubega added. Read more MTN: Mobile banking a turning point in financial services When mobile banking arrived, courtesy of MTN, no one imagined it would spread like wildfire, and lead to other innovations and enhancements to the usage of the mobile handset.With 11,000,000 mobile subscribers, and 4,500,000 bank accounts, commercial banks and other financial institutions have a great opportunity to deepen access to services to disadvantaged and low-income groups using the phone.The importance of financial deepening has soared with the emergence of several financial access options as a key thrust of public demand. There is a rising opportunity that players in the financial market have not focused on that much, in driving acquisition, origination and servicing costs. Most of the on-boarding initiatives and incentives are directed towards the conservative banking strategies. Read more ▪ MTN: Mobile phone subscribers start enjoying flat rates across EA Mobile phone subscribers within the East African region will now enjoy a flat rate and incur no cost for receiving calls as operators rush to meet the deadline to switch to One Network Area Arrangement (ONAA).To join the ONAA is MTN Uganda whose subscribers can now make calls at a flat fee to Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan. In a statement, MTN Uganda said: “Subscribers who make calls to networks within the visited country or make calls back to Uganda will be charged Shs360 per minute”. “Our new offer also enables our subscribers to receive calls from Uganda at zero rates while roaming with the under the ONAA arrangement,” read the statement.In the same line, all MTN subscribers intending to make calls to Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan will do it at significantly reduced rates of Shs330 per minute. Read more ▪ MTN: Regional one network area to reduce call rates MTN Uganda has joined the East African one network area. The network partners have executed multilateral agreements to put in place aligned and affordable tariffs across the participating countries within the one network area in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan.This One Network Area is a culmination of the regional telecommunications policy framework that was agreed upon by the member countries during the 5th Heads of State Summit for the Northern Corridor Integration projects. Members States agreed to amend fiscal policies by eliminating heavy additional taxes and levies on international calls within the region. The regional calls are now at parity with the tax base for local calls. Government’s elimination of the additional direct taxes on regional calls has in turn enabled MTN Uganda to package affordable calling rates for both roaming and international calling within this area, designed around a common regional tax exclusive base rate of sh10 per minute. Read more ▪ MTN dismisses tax evasion suit MTN Uganda has dismissed as incompetent, a legal suit filed against the company over alleged tax evasion.Anthony Katamba, MTN's general manager for corporate affairs, told The Observer that if MTN had done anything wrong, it would have been the subject of a police investigation, rather than being pursued by some individuals with their own agenda."It's not the first time they are bringing these accusations; the other time they were dismissed, now they are bringing them again without any merit," Katamba said.Two citizens sued MTN in the High court's civil division over alleged false declaration and tax evasion. Issa Ssegawa and Tevin Casper Okiru want the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) to revoke MTN's licence on grounds that the company has breached its constitutional duty to pay tax and committed the crime of concealing a felony.In their suit, the duo say that a similar case came up and was taken over by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who withdrew it to conduct more inquiries but has since done nothing. Read more ▪ Uganda rises up against MTN exploitation Describing the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) under Godfrey Mutabazi as a “toothless dog,” hundreds of Ugandans will take to the streets in Kampala to peaceful protest against what they have termed as “perpetual exploitation and thieving” perpetrated by telecom giant MTN, Chimp Corps report. "we are going to officially hand in our dissatisfaction note and complaint to the Minister of ICT Hon George William Nyombi Thembo at his office on Parliament Avenue,” announced Justus Amanya who is leading efforts to pressure government to crack down on MTN’s “undemocratic and 24/7 robbery.” Read more ▪ TCA: Court orders UTL to pay MTN Shs6b interconnection fees Court has ordered Uganda Telecom Limited (UTL) to pay its competitor, MTN Uganda Limited, more than Shs6 billion to settle an interconnection bill for the period.The Court of Appeal justices, Remmy Kasule, Rubby Aweri Opio and Richard Buteera, made the order while dismissing an appeal by UTL to uphold a High Court order in which UTL will pay interest on the said money, charges for delayed payments at 19 per cent and damages worth Shs100 million with interest at 8 per cent. “Having found that the grounds of appeal have all failed, we hereby dismiss the appeal with costs and also those of the court below to the respondent,” the judges unanimously held.Court documents indicate that, MTN invoiced UTL for Shs6 billion as interconnection fees but they later paid Shs3 billion contending that the balance was not due to them, leading to the court case. Read more ▪ MTN Uganda Launches ‘MTN Please Call Me’ MTN Uganda has launched MTN Please Call Me, a free service that allows an MTN customer to send an SMS message to any other MTN customer requesting them to call back.Customers can access the service by dialing *160*1*5# and use either the default message which reads “Please call me” or a personalized message where they type their preferred message of up to 20 characters.A customer will receive a maximum of three (3) free MTN Please Call Me messages daily.“When we commenced operations in Uganda, we had a mission to deliver the best quality and relevant services in the industry to our customers and over the years we have steadily achieved this with the numerous services we offer.” said Kenneth Kiddu MTN’s Acting Chief Marketing officer. Read more ▪ MTN: Telecom firm to start cross-border mobile money services MTN Rwanda will integrate its mobile money system with that of MTN Uganda, allowing subscribers to send and receive money between the two countries.Mr Norman Munyampundu, MTN Rwanda general manager, said the two sister telecoms would sign a partnership deal by the end of this month. This should be good news for traders, parents, students and travellers as it will ease money transfer between the two countries.Mr Munyampundu is optimistic the service will reduce the cost of transactions and enhance cross-border trade between Rwanda and Uganda.“After establishing our presence in Uganda, we shall rollout the interconnection platform across the East African Community bloc,” he noted. Read more ▪ MTN Rebuilds Lives in Western Uganda MTN Uganda Foundation commissions classroom block in Mbarara and water project in Kisoro district as part of its support of community initiativesAs part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) drive MTN Uganda Foundation has commissioned two community projects in the western region; a classroom block in Kashuro in Mbarara district and a clean and safe water project in Gisorora, Kisoro district.The classroom block constructed at Kashuro Primary school is complete with two water tanks of 10,000 liters each, furniture, plastic gutters and drainage pipes worth Ushs 250 million. MTN’s General Manager Corporate Services Anthony Katamba who represented the MTN Uganda CEO- Brian Gouldie, recently handed over the block to the school administration and local authorities before heading South West to Kisoro to commission the water project in Kisoro. Read more ▪  MTN Uganda the leading Mobile Money network has partnered with Centenary Bank Uganda to advance their ATM Cash out footprint by allowing customers to cash out at all Centenary bank ATMs across the country.“At MTN we listen to our customers’ needs and wants and with this background we continuously strive to exploit opportunities that make the life of our customers smooth and simplified, and our partnership with Centenary back is absolutely another opportunity to reach out to customers all over the country with this new proposition,” said MTN’s acting Chief Marketing Officer Kenneth Kiddu.Centenary bank’s 147 ATMs that are strategically located at all the 62 branches in the country will be utilized by millions of customers from centenary bank and MTN Mobile Money.“We are constantly looking for opportunities to simplify banking; and continuously employing the latest and best technology available to make banking more convenient. In MTN Mobile Money, we have found a strong, reputable and reliable partner we can work with to deliver our promise to our customers and improve their experience,’’ commented Fabian Kasi the managing director Centenary Bank. Read more ▪ As part of its celebration of the landmark achievement of 10 million subscribers, MTN Uganda has accorded the success to the loyalty and commitment of its customers and hence announced a give-back of 10 million minutes of free MTN airtime and 100million MB of data . This means that each customer automatically gets one MTN to MTN minutes and 10 MB of data.“I cannot emphasize the importance of this milestone to us, it is clear from our research that network quality and investment remains one of the key reasons for customers trust and loyalty to MTN and we are grateful to our customers who have been loyal and very supportive to this achievement. I affirm that our key focus remains the expansion of the infrastructure to enhance network quality for both voice and data across the region”. MTN Uganda’s Acting Chief Marketing Officer Kenneth Kiddu said. Read more ▪ MTN Subscribers to Shop Online Using Mobile Money MTN Uganda announced the launch of an online payment system using the Mobile Money service, adding to a wide range of innovative products attached to the service including payment of utility bills, School Fees, Life Insurance, among others.In a statement, MTN Acting Chief Marketing Officer, Kenneth Kiddu explained the steps which he described as quite easy, quick and simple, “ A customer simply needs to log on to any online selling site then select MTN Mobile Money as the payment option.”“A customer will then be required to enter their Mobile Money number, and will receive a notification on their phone prompting them to confirm payment by punching in their Mobile Money PIN, added Kenneth”“On successful completion of the transaction, an SMS notification with a transaction ID will be sent to the customer’s phone. The customer will then get a call from the merchant on how and where to deliver the items purchased,” he explained. Read more ▪ Telecommunication companies are calling for tough laws to prevent the theft and vandalism of network infrastructure, which affects the quality of service.The call comes after numerous complaints from the public over poor services, namely dropped calls, erratic internet access, constant network failures, which has seen revenues for the players drop.The MTN Chief technical officer, Mr Rami Farah, in a statement issued early this month, said persistent fiber damages put both the business and customer quality at risk.He added “we have seen some areas for instance, experiencing a total blackout for both voice calls and data services if both the protection and working routes are damaged and as a result, the network has also suffered high congestion levels due to a lack of coverage resulting in very poor call experience and dropped calls.” Read more ▪ Telecom operator MTN has announced an increment in mobile money withdrawal charges. “Due to a 10% Excise tax raised by government on Mobile Money withdrawal fees, we are adjusting our rates,” MTN said in a statement to its customers. Finance minister, Maria Kiwanuka announced a 10% increase in mobile money while presenting the budget. She said the increase on withdrawals was to help government to meet the revenue target that was not met after a similar increment on mobile money deposits. The finance ministry expects to generate about sh16 billion from the increase in mobile money fees.14 million people made transactions using mobile money platform, with transaction value of sh18.6 trillion. The emergence of new mobile telephone technology and agency banking has been a key driver of the services sector over the last four years. Read more ▪ Telecom Company MTN has again dragged Threeways Shipping Service to court with fresh charges of defrauding it of $4m in fictitious claims. The fresh charges follow MTN’s loss in court of an earlier suit against Threeways regarding the alleged fraud. The loss in court was due to a technicality which court said it could not endorse by hearing the case. The MTN is also suing two of its former employees it accuses of conniving with Threeways in the said shady deal. The employees are John Paul Basabose and Naphtali Were. Threeways allegedly made fictitious claims to MTN over 130 invoices with collusion of the two MTN employees and were paid the colossal sums.The Commercial Court has since issued notice to Threeways Shipping Services to file its defence within the days of the filing of the MTN case. If it fails, the court could decide the case it its absence.The telecommunications company is seeking to recover the money with compounded interest until payment in full plus damages. Read more▪ As part of efforts to showcase the latest innovations to customers, MTN has launched their expo in Kampala at a function held at Ham Towers in Makerere.Speaking at the function, the head of innovations department at the ICT faculty at Makerere University, Dr. Julianne Sanga Otim, who was the guest of honour, applauded the telecommunication giants for their contribution and investment towards the ICT industry in the country which she said has led to rapid development of the sector. “For decades the ICT sector has been revolving around telecommunication services industry with a phenomenon growth rate and it has become an important part of the economy while it plays a big role in employment, job creation and delivery of quality and efficient services to other sectors,” Dr. Sanga stressed. She further noted that a dynamic ICT sector contributes to the overall development of the nation.Read more ▪ MTN honors High Value Customers in Mbarara MTN Uganda has attributed their astronomical success especially on the Mobile Money platform to the loyalty and dedication of its customers and Agents spread across the country. MTN General Manager-Mobile Money Services Mr. Phrase Lubega made the remarks recently in Mbarara where MTN hosted hundreds of its high value customers in Western Region to dinner which also served as a platform for interaction between the company and the customers.Lubeega underlined MTN’s commitment to continue utilizing such forums to interact with its customers with the sole aim of identifying huddles that hinder smooth business operation and collectively finding means of minimizing them.Another MTN Manager, Mr Stephen Mutana said since its launch, MTN Mobile Money remains the fastest growing product in Uganda with more than 5.2 million registered users each transacting on average five times a month.The popularity and growth of MTN Mobile Money supported by a large agent network exceeded 27,000 agents and significantly increased financial inclusion of the unbanked public. Read more ▪  MTN Awards Women In Business▪ For us as the leading Telecom operator in Uganda, Our success was underpinned by major improvements in the customer experience and Infrastructure. In terms of customer experience, we successfully introduced higher Internet access speed services, extended coverage to new areas, registered 96% of our subscribers, launched MTN business, which has led to the consolidation of our integrated ICT business solutions and successfully added a number of new products.In terms of new products and services, recorded a large number of new launches introduced such as “4G LTE”, “3G 42Mbps” ,” MTN WiFi HotSpots”, “MTN Xtra Time” and many other exciting services which we launched first in the Uganda market. In terms of infrastructure, we added 115 new Network coverage sites, bringing the total number of sites supporting our network to 1,220 and upgraded the capacity of another 406 Network sites. In addition, MTN Uganda upgraded almost all its network sites in Kampala from 2G to 3G. MTN Uganda is also keen to positively impact the lives of the people in the communities where it operates through its social transformation platform. Read more ▪ In a move geared towards improving energy and telecommunications access for millions of Ugandans who lack reliable electricity, MTN Uganda has teamed up with the US-based Fenix International and developed an ultra-affordable Pay As You Go energy solution designed to bring safe lighting, phone charging to its customers living off-grid across Uganda.The ReadyPay kit is a multifunctional Solar Power System which includes a solar panel, battery pack featuring two USB ports and two car lighter adapter ports plus a range of lights and phone charging accessories.Read more ▪  The short code has changed from 190 to *160*12# effective immediately. MTN Who Called service will thus be notifying customers via SMS about the different people that tried to call them while they were unreachable or when their phones were switched off.The service notifies a client the number of times each caller tried to reach him/her and at what time of the day. Read more ▪  MTN Uganda, the leading Mobile Money network, has partnered with Interswitch Uganda to further increase their ATM Cash out footprint by allowing customers to cash out at all Interswitch’s ATMs across the country. Interswitch Uganda, is one of East Africa’s leading integrated payments companies.MTN Mobile Money customers can now generate a four digit TIN by dialling *165# from their mobile phone which can then be used at any Interswitch ATM across Uganda on a 24/7 basis to access their money.Speaking at the launch at Serena Hotel, MTN Uganda’s Chief Marketing Officer, Ernst Fonternel, underscored MTN’s mission of making the lives of its customers a whole lot brighter through convenient and cost effective solutions such as access to MTN Mobile Money through ATM platforms. Read more ▪ Over eighty participants from Northern Uganda participated in the MTN Business training for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and were awarded certificates. The program aims at empowering the SME segment with the knowledge and skills required to run successful businesses. For the last two years, the program which is run in partnership with KPMG Uganda delivers the technical expertise covering the following topics: Internal Controls, Working Capital Management, Business Planning,Interpretation of Bank Statements and Basic Knowledge of Taxation. Read more ▪  MTN invests Shs 90m in Kampala golf club MTN Uganda has extended a support package of Shs 90 million to Kampala Golf Club to aid the running of the club’s various activities.While attending the MTN Business Golf Day held at Kampala Golf Club, the MTN CEO Mazen Mroué, handed over golf equipment to the Uganda Golf Club Captain, Charles Katarikawe as part of a total package worth Shs 90 million that will facilitate the club’s activities. In addition to this, MTN Uganda has sponsored one of Uganda’s leading golf talents and upcoming pro-golfers, Deo Akope, over the tune of Shs 101 million. Read more ▪  In what could turn out to be a great innovation, MTN Uganda has partnered with insurance firms AON and Jubilee to launch MTN LifeCare, a low-cost life insurance policy. It is probably the lowest- priced life insurance policy on the market and for as low as Shs 7,500, MTN customers and non-customers shall get at least Shs 1 million as pay-out in the event of death. Subscription to the policy shall be through the MTN mobile money service. Read more ▪  ▪   MTN Invests $70k In Uganda Entrepreneurial Development Show MTN Uganda has invested Ugx 182 million ($70,000) in the partnership with a human capital development organisation, Inspire Africa, and Bank of Africa to produce a business competition TV show that supports young entrepreneurs. The show called “Sawa Ya Cash”, meaning “Cash Hour”, selects the top 15 business ideas from a pool of over 30,000 locally trained entrepreneurs and rewards the winners with a start-up capital of Ugx 5 million ($1,900) after a competition, which lasts 15 weeks. The CEO of Inspire Africa Mr. Nelson Tugume, in explaining the vision of the show said, “Sawa Ya cash is part of a larger vision of Inspire Africa to stimulate entrepreneurship amongst the youth not only in Uganda but across Africa.” Read more ▪ The power of Mobile Money as an enabler of financial transactions is beginning to gain ground in Africa.Uganda is a case in point, where more than half of MTN’s customers are Mobile Money enabled and generate over 25 million transactions each month. These were some of the insights shared by Shaibu Haruna, MTN Uganda General Manager for Sales and Distribution, as he addressed delegates at the 16th annual AfricaCom conference in Cape Town. Read more ▪ | |