Kampala, (UG): President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has challenged Ugandan innovators and creatives to prioritise the most important human needs over any other secondary conversations.
“You don’t eat computers, you eat food,” President Museveni said.
The President who was attending the National ICT Job Fair 2023 in Kololo, Kampala, themed ‘Navigating the Digital Horizon’ on October 17, explained that Ugandans ought to prioritise conversations that promote the enhancement and availability of basic human needs.
In his address, he noted that while ICT and the ‘electronics’ conversations are important, it is better to first take care of the basic needs of every Ugandan for survival.
On the president’s priority list are; food, shelter, clothing, health, security, mobility, infrastructure, knowledge, communication (where we have ICTs and others), and entertainment.
He said whereas he supports ICTs and the digital work being done by various companies, Ugandans should first concentrate on addressing challenges related to meeting basic needs.
“I support ICT. I am the one who agreed with the Huwaweii in China, with the chairman to come and do the digital backbone. But what I don’t want you to make a mistake is again you to get lost, because Africans like to get lost, ICT, ICT, ICT, have you eaten one computer? If you have eaten one, you tell me,” President Museveni said, while recognising the contribution of ICT in digitizing government processes for efficiency.
The president further challenged Ugandans to use ICT wisely, to benefit themselves economically, especially through promoting Ugandan products and services in a bid to achieve socio-economic transformation.
He added that innovators and creatives should focus on Uganda’s ability to depend on herself in order to achieve their needs as opposed to trying to get support from outside.
“The digital effort we are doing, is it supporting the independence of Uganda, or the dependence of Uganda in these basic human needs? And these basic human needs are really what transforms economies,” President Museveni said.
He said if well utilised, the digital space can improve the quality of life and further urged Africans to use it in the right context.
The National ICT Job Fair 2023 is a two-day engagement that ends on October 18. The event, happening at Kololo Independence grounds, is supported by the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance in partnership with Huawei Technologies Uganda and others.
The organisers aimed to offer a valuable platform for young individuals to connect with employers and explore job opportunities, internships, apprenticeships, and training programs in the dynamic ICT sector.
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