By KT Reporter
Standard Chartered Bank group has extended its funded “Women in Tech Accelerator” programme to Uganda to bridge the gaps that hinder women-led and small and medium enterprise growth.
The programme is aimed at accelerating the participation of women-led businesses in technology and technology-enabled sectors. Studies on enterprises in Uganda show that women own at least 50.3 percent of the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country, with 58 percent of these women under the age of 30.
Helen Asamo, the State Minister for Persons with Disabilities, appealed for inclusiveness when implementing the program so that sections of the community, especially Persons with Disabilities, who suffer even more bottlenecks than other women, are not left out.
Speaking at the launch of the initiative in Kampala, Asamo said that among the many issues that affect women’s progress in entrepreneurship are the cultural attitude, misconceptions and stigma, which must be fought.
She, however, hailed corporations that have put in place special policies geared toward supporting PWDs in the workplace.
This three-year initiative is designed to equip women-led, tech-enabled businesses with the tools, networks, and financing necessary to scale sustainably, positioning women at the heart of the country’s entrepreneurial and digital economy transformation.
Despite their strong presence, women remain underrepresented in key areas such as formal business registration, access to finance, and digital inclusion, with only 47 percent of women-led MSMEs having access to smartphones or computers.
This significantly limits their engagement in high-growth sectors like ICT, and this new accelerator seeks to address these disparities and unlock the potential of women “techpreneurs” as key contributors to Uganda’s future economy.
According to Professor Dorothy Okello, Board Member at Standard Chartered, over the past three years, the Women in Tech program has disbursed at least 500,000 dollars in seed funding in the region, empowering emerging start-ups and supporting the growth of women-led ventures, embedding technology at the core of our efforts.
Prof Okello, also Dean of the Makerere University School of Engineering, said this aligns closely with their broader agenda to champion diversity and inclusion by actively supporting women’s participation in the digital economy.
Uganda now joins a network of 12 countries, including Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia, South Africa, and others, where the programme has existed to harness the power of technology and inclusive innovation to address some of Africa’s most pressing development challenges, particularly the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship.
In Uganda, the inaugural cohort will support up to sixty women-led businesses, twenty annually over three years, through a six-month intensive incubation program focusing on market validation, digital integration, and growth strategy, among others.
These women entrepreneurs and their enterprises will be strengthened towards being strategic partners to industry, collaborating to take transformational technology-enabled innovations to last-mile communities that need them the most.
Top-performing ventures will receive catalytic grants of up to 10,000 Dollars.
Japheth Kawanguzi (commonly known as CK Japheth), Team Lead at Innovation Village, emphasised that the program seeks to drive inclusive economic growth by harnessing the untapped potential of women within Uganda’s tech-preneurship and innovation landscape.
“The strength of this program lies in its strategic partnerships, access to essential business growth tools, and the power of networks that foster impact through a vibrant Community of Practice, he said, adding that through Future Lab, the Innovation Village ensures localized implementation by leveraging their national footprint to recruit diverse talent and deliver context-specific support.
Margaret Kigozi, Head of Corporate Affairs, Brand and Marketing She reiterated the importance of bridging the structural gaps faced by women entrepreneurs in the tech sector.
“Our commitment as a bank is to tackle these challenges head-on, enabling more women to lead, innovate, and thrive in the digital world.”
The Women in Tech Uganda Accelerator Programme is an initiative of Standard Chartered Foundation in partnership with Standard Chartered Bank, Village Capital and Innovation Village, implemented by Future Lab-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
