By Fidel Boy Fidel
Since reclaiming Umeme’s assets on April 1, 2025, the Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) has made significant strides in modernising the country’s electricity sector.
Under the leadership of Managing Director Mwesigwa Paul, the utility is aggressively improving its workforce capacity, financial discipline, customer service, and network infrastructure to power Uganda’s development agenda.
UEDCL has filled 96% of its 2,712 staff positions, absorbing 2,601 employees from both Umeme and its internal team. The remaining 4% of specialised roles were publicly advertised in June 2025.
To meet Electricity Regulatory Authority and World Bank targets for new electricity connections, the company has already deployed 550 staff nationwide, with 400 additional technicians expected by the end of July.
“We’ve aligned our workforce to deliver exceptional service and drive Uganda’s energy goals,” said MD Paul.
UEDCL has also demonstrated strong financial performance, achieving a 104% year-to-date cash collection rate. This has allowed the company to settle UETCL bills totalling Shs 220.5 billion for March and April. The May bill of Shs 164 billion is also on track for timely clearance.
In addition, the Solicitor General and the Ministry of Finance are reviewing a $50 million loan from ABSA for infrastructure upgrades. UEDCL has also secured PPDA accreditation, enhancing its ability to procure more efficiently and transparently.
“Our financial discipline allows us to meet obligations and invest in critical growth,” Paul noted.
UEDCL in trying to modernise the electricity network has made customer service a cornerstone of its transformation. A 24/7 call centre and trained field teams are actively managing customer relations and ensuring service continuity during the transition from Umeme.
“We’re keeping customers at the heart of this transition,” Paul emphasised.
Uganda’s electricity distribution network is steadily improving, with reliability rising to 97.8% in June, up from 97.1% in March, despite persistent challenges such as vandalism, ageing infrastructure, and overloaded transformers.
In response to these challenges, the Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) has taken critical steps:
116 faulty transformers were replaced in April,
Vegetation clearance initiatives were launched to protect power lines,
Work began to address a backlog of 47,000 rotten poles.
June’s national power demand of 1,044.18 MW was comfortably met with a generation capacity of 1,099 MW, avoiding any load shedding.
Notable substation upgrades include the expansion of Mbarara North from 20MVA to 40MVA and the Kabale–Kisoro substation from 2.5MVA to 5MVA. However, substations like Namanve North and Mutundwe remain a hindrance and are in urgent need of investment.
Despite these gains, energy losses remain a concern. UEDCL reported a loss rate of 17.15%, above the 14.59% target driven by technical inefficiencies, power theft, and the limitations of outdated infrastructure.
Still, ongoing revenue recovery efforts and recent upgrades, including the new Magyigye substation and the Masaka West–Masaka Central interconnector, point to a focused strategy to reduce losses and stabilise the network.
With its focus on sustainability, network resilience, and service delivery, UEDCL is modernising Uganda’s power distribution landscape to support long-term economic transformation.
Continued investment in human capital, infrastructure, and customer service puts the company on a path to becoming a fully trusted and efficient national distributor.