MTN Uganda Hospitality Digitisation Effort to Boost Tourism with Tech and Finance Tools
A nationwide agreement aims to bring mobile payments, reliable internet, and modern management tools to hundreds of hotels across Uganda.
MTN Uganda has signed a new partnership deal with the Uganda Hotel Owners’ Association (UHOA), a move set to bring digital services and mobile finance tools to more than 780 hotels across the country.
The agreement, formalized through a memorandum of understanding, pulls in MTN’s enterprise tech unit and its mobile money business, MTN MoMo. Together, they plan to equip hotels with digital payment systems, stable internet connections, cloud-based management tools, and Wi-Fi services aimed at guests and staff.
It’s part of MTN’s wider pivot from traditional telecom services toward a more tech-focused model. Under its Ambition 2025 plan, the company is looking to build stronger links with key industries — and tourism is high on that list.
In Uganda, hotels account for the bulk of employment within the tourism sector. But many still rely on cash transactions and struggle with spotty connectivity. For UHOA members, the promise of mobile payments, integrated bookings, and reliable enterprise tools could mean more streamlined operations — and better service for both domestic and international visitors.
MTN MoMo’s role in the partnership is focused on digitising payments — allowing hotels to accept bookings, bills, and other transactions through mobile money. The enterprise unit, meanwhile, is offering business-grade internet packages, cloud software, and voice and data solutions tailored to hotels’ day-to-day needs.
Both sides say the partnership is just the start. A sector-wide consultation is planned to identify specific tech pain points in hotel operations, with MTN pledging to adapt its services based on that input.
There’s also an effort to loop in tourism agencies and tour operators, with the goal of extending digital infrastructure across the broader visitor economy.
For Uganda’s hospitality industry, the deal may help bridge the digital divide that has slowed growth in some areas. And for MTN, it marks another step toward embedding its technology deeper into sectors that sit outside its traditional telecom stronghold.
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