In the aftermath of Uganda’s fiercely contested general election, a government-ordered nationwide internet shutdown has left many businesses and individuals struggling to make ends meet. The blackout, which lasted for two days around the election period, has had a devastating impact on various sectors of the East African nation.
Mobile money agents, such as Mirembe Tracy, found their livelihoods paralysed as all withdrawals were disconnected. Tracy, who earns nearly all of her income from withdrawal commissions, says she lost up to 450,000 Ugandan shillings (£96; $130) in just one week, money she relies on to pay her rent. “Losing it was a total loss,” she laments.
The shutdown also crippled online businesses that rely on mobile money transactions, with some coming to a standstill while others resorted to cash-based operations. Kampala’s ubiquitous boda boda (motorcycle) taxi operators, who earn their income through ride-hailing apps, were forced off the road as the platforms’ servers went down.
Namukwaya Olivia, who sells traditional cultural clothing and depends heavily on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok and WhatsApp to reach customers, says she could not make any deliveries during the blackout. “We could not send pictures, we could not receive orders, and we could not make deliveries,” she explains, adding that the effect was immediate and made it difficult to cover basic costs.
The impact was felt across various sectors, including journalism. Ngabo Amon, a journalist, found his smartphone, a crucial work tool, largely useless. “You have a phone, but there is nothing to do with it,” he tells the BBC. The blackout made it impossible for journalists to effectively cover the election, as they could not get a real-time picture of the unfolding events on the ground.
The shutdown also disrupted education, with online learning coming to a halt. Aaron Benitez, a final-year school pupil, was unable to contact his family during a period of uncertainty and found that teachers could not send notes or assignments, and group discussions normally held online were cancelled.
While the government has partially restored the internet since Yoweri Museveni was declared the winner of the election, some platforms, especially social media, remain slow or restricted, pushing many young people to reconnect using a VPN (virtual private network). For many Ugandans, the shutdown was not just a temporary inconvenience but a stark reminder of how deeply digital access shapes their everyday lives.
