Mobile Money Subscribers Rise to 31.3 Million, UCC Report

Uganda counted 31.3 million mobile money subscribers at the end of June, up from 30.5 million at the end of March 2021, reads a report released by the Uganda Communications Commission on Sept. 15.

According to the report, the rise reflects a net addition of almost 800,000 newly registered mobile money accounts in the three months leading up to June 2021.

However, some of the above subscribers are not active.

"... active mobile money subscriptions grew by 4%, from 20.2 million to 21.1 million during the quarter under review, while the number of mobile money access points grew by 30,000 new accounts during the same period," the report says.

The number of mobile money agents also grew by 12%, from 254,930 to 284,976, partly fueled by increased onboarding of mobile money services by previously stand-alone bank agents.

According to the report, by the end of June 2021, the total number of connected smartphones or internet-enabled gadgets stood at 9.7 million, while feature phones and basic phones were 22.4 million.

During the same period, fixed and mobile telephone subscriptions grew by 600,000, from 28.3 million to 28.9 million, a growth rate of 2%, while internet subscriptions grew by 352,000 from 21.5 million to 21.9 million, also equivalent to 2% growth.