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Johannesburg, South Africa | THE INDEPENDENT | The Kayoola E-Coach, Uganda’s flagship electric bus developed by Kiira Motors Corporation, has arrived in South Africa, marking a significant milestone for Uganda’s growing innovation and e-mobility agenda on the continent.
The arrival of the bus in Johannesburg on Friday, December 5, 2025, was followed by a strategic engagement between a Ugandan delegation and executives from MTN South Africa aimed at strengthening collaboration in technology, innovation and public–private partnerships.
The Ugandan team was led by the High Commissioner to South Africa, Paul Amoru, and included officials from the Science, Technology and Innovation Secretariat in the President’s Office, Kiira Motors Corporation and MTN Uganda.
They met with a team from MTN South Africa led by the General Manager for Enterprise Solutions, Sudipto Moitra, to explore opportunities for scaling Uganda’s homegrown technologies across the continent.
The discussions focused on building partnerships to support the design, development and distribution of innovative solutions being advanced under the different bureaus of the STI Secretariat.
Catherine Muwumuza, Superintendent of Support Services at STI-OP, said the successful journey of the Kayoola E-Coach demonstrated that Uganda’s innovation pipeline is mature and ready for expansion.
“The Kayoola electric bus is proof that what we created truly works. Moving people requires connectivity and that is where MTN comes in. We need further conversations to foster collaboration with MTN’s continental reach to drive e- mobility,” she said.
The electric bus departed Kampala on November 20 and is undertaking a 13,000- kilometre expedition to Cape Town and back. By the time it reached Johannesburg, it had covered 4,916 kilometres, which represents 38.7 percent of the total journey, while preventing an estimated 2,270 kilograms of carbon emissions.
The engagement in Johannesburg was also informed by the existing partnership between MTN Uganda and Kiira Motors, which resulted in the production of Africa’s first fully connected digital electric bus.
Moitra noted that MTN has evolved from being solely a telecommunications company to becoming a broad-based technology and digital solutions provider, positioning it to support innovation ecosystems such as Uganda’s.
“We have seen a lot of innovations from Uganda and are well poised to co-create with the country. MTN leadership is willing to support and scale Uganda’s innovation agenda,” he said.
Ambassador Amoru welcomed MTN’s interest, linking the engagement to Uganda’s broader investment and industrial development goals.
“The president urged private companies such as MTN to support public–private partnerships such as these. I am happy to see that we are having these engagements,” he said.
The meeting reaffirmed a shared commitment to advancing scalable innovation, strengthening regional ecosystems and developing African solutions that respond to the continent’s transport, technology and climate needs.
