They Dream

The UNDP Uganda Accelerator Lab recently conducted an innovation assessment in public universities and found ourselves in the lush hills of Western Uganda, where we met a 21-year-old student pursuing a degree in agricultural sciences. Each morning, she walks to her lectures with a quiet determination. She is the only girl in her family, raised by her grandmother after losing both parents at a young age. At home, she cares for her two younger siblings. For her, education is not just a journey toward a degree, but a seed of hope she nurtures each day, driven by a vision of becoming a successful agripreneur. Her grandmother has, for generations, relied on traditional farming methods that yield little. She believes that with the knowledge she is gaining she will transform her family’s story and bring lasting change to their way of life.

In another part of the country, a 23-year-old IT student spends late nights debugging code and watching YouTube videos about global tech start-ups. His ambition isn’t just to create another app to join the thousands already on the Google Play Store or Apple Store. He dreams of developing a tech solution that addresses real, local challenges. Yet he remains uncertain about how to bring that vision to life in a system that provides limited guidance, mentorship, and infrastructure for young innovators like him.

Innovation without a Hub

The public university has a strong emphasis on fields like agriculture, technology, and environmental sciences — areas directly linked to the needs of the community. But despite this focus, there is no centralized innovation hub, no structured mentorship programs, and no lab with equipment access for students to test ideas or build prototypes. 

“We have the ideas,' the agriculture student says, "but we don’t know where to take them. The curriculum focuses mostly on the theoretical part, and so it doesn’t train me to be a job creator but a job seeker.”

Draft policies on innovation and intellectual property are in place, and a few specialized labs have been established. However, these resources remain underutilized due to a lack of coordination and supporting infrastructure. While faculty members are eager to support innovation, many are still anchored in traditional teaching methods. 

“We ourselves need to be retooled. Emerging technologies like AI are evolving faster than our teaching approaches. If we don't catch up, we risk preparing students for a world that no longer exists.”

Meanwhile, students are in need of structured guidance and dynamic spaces where they can explore, experiment, and grow their ideas into impactful solutions.

A Tech Dream in an Unclear Ecosystem

The public university has initiated some innovation infrastructure, including training centers and collaborative projects. But the system is fragmented. 

“I didn’t know we could access the labs,' says the IT student. "And most of the programs run during hours we have lectures.”

Although the university is making efforts to support innovation, limited student awareness, lack of commercialization support, and rigid schedules make it hard for students to engage actively. Nevertheless, the IT student continues to push forward. He’s working on an app idea to help farmers in rural areas track planting seasons and market prices.

The Bigger Picture: A Systemic Crisis

These two students’ struggles are not isolated. Uganda has one of the youngest populations in the world, with 78% of its population under 30 years of age. According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), youth unemployment stands at over 13.3%, with higher rates in urban areas. Many young people graduate with degrees that lack market relevance or the practical skills needed in a fast-changing economy.

This is compounded by an education system that still largely prioritizes theory over applied learning, without the lens of innovation and entrepreneurship. Students are not only fighting to graduate they’re fighting to be seen, to be mentored, and to be equipped to solve real-world problems.

Curriculum Reform and the Role of Stakeholders

Embedding innovation and entrepreneurship into the university curriculum is no longer optional - it is essential. When students are exposed to real-world problem-solving, design thinking, and business development frameworks as part of their coursework, their mindset begins to shift from being job seekers to job creators.

Courses should be designed to be interdisciplinary, combining technical knowledge from science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields with business, leadership, and community engagement. For example, an agriculture student learning about climate-resilient crops should also be taught how to package and market these innovations, write business plans, and navigate intellectual property rights.

Further, in the age of digital transformation, both lecturers and students must be retooled to use emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT), and blockchain. Lecturers need continuous professional development to integrate these tools into teaching and research. Meanwhile, students can be encouraged to explore smart applications of AI, such as predictive analytics in agriculture, health diagnostics, or educational content creation, to solve real-world challenges.

The government has a key role in institutionalizing this transformation through policy reforms, curriculum development support, and investment in university infrastructure. The private sector, on the other hand, can bridge the gap between academia and industry by providing internships, mentorships, equipment donations, and funding collaborative research. By doing so, they not only build a skilled workforce but also tap into a pipeline of innovative solutions.

Public investment in research and development (R&D) can significantly spur industrialization. When universities are funded to innovate, prototype, and test solutions for local industries, whether in agriculture, health, energy, or manufacturing, they become engines of economic transformation. R&D investment helps develop home-grown technologies, reduces import dependence, and generates employment through value-added production.

The Role of Development Partners

Development partners such as UNDP, the Mastercard Foundation and other like-minded stakeholders have a critical role to play in ensuring that Uganda’s public universities become fertile grounds for innovation and transformation. They can support curriculum reform efforts by facilitating learning exchanges with institutions that have successfully embedded innovation and entrepreneurship in higher education. They can fund start-up grants and student innovation competitions, catalyzing early-stage ventures.

Moreover, development organizations can assist in the creation and operationalization of innovation hubs and incubation centers across public universities. By supporting mentorship and skills-building programs, they help ensure that students are not only dreamers but doers.

These partners are also well-positioned to work with the government and the private sector to develop national innovation strategies, invest in digital infrastructure, and promote inclusive access to resources for marginalized groups such as young women and rural students. Through coordinated action, they can help build a resilient innovation ecosystem that prepares Uganda’s youth to lead in shaping their country’s future.

From Potential to Power

Young people across Uganda are full of ideas, determination, and hope. But they need systems that work for them. Public universities must be equipped not only with infrastructure but with inclusive innovation ecosystems that encourage practical problem-solving, entrepreneurship, and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Development organizations, by partnering with government and higher education institutions, can make quality education in public universities a powerful tool for transformation. Let’s build an education system where dreams of such students don’t just survive, they thrive, lighting the path for generations to come.

By Hadijah Nabbale, Head of Solutions Mapping; Nathan Tumuhamye, Head of Exploration; and Berna Mugema, Team Leader Inclusive Growth and Innovation