One-on-One: Fred Ssenoga on building a complete economic ecosystem through Union Transport Alliance

What the report says

Watchdog Uganda reports that Fred Ssenoga Bagenda, chief executive of Union Transport Alliance (UTA), is pitching the organisation as an integrated ecosystem for Uganda’s transport sector rather than a simple mobility platform. In the interview, he says the aim is to connect transport operators with a range of related services, including finance, fuel supply, insurance, healthcare and digital commerce, so that workers can access support for both business and personal needs through one system.

Ssenoga says digitalisation is central to the model. UTA’s app and payment tools, including RukaPay, are meant to let members access services on their phones, make transactions more easily and reach financing options when cash is tight. The article also says UTA is developing products such as school-fees financing and plans to launch Twetase insurance, while also exploring healthcare and sanitary-product services for members and their families.

Another part of the vision is Union Online Duuka, an online marketplace intended to give transport workers a role in e-commerce and deliveries. According to the report, this could help motorcycle riders and other operators earn beyond their traditional transport jobs by linking them to digital commerce and distribution networks.

The article frames the initiative as part of a broader push to modernise Uganda’s transport economy. Its significance, as presented by Watchdog Uganda, is that transport workers could gain wider access to financial and social services if the platform develops as planned.