Uganda’s electricity distribution network is facing a defining test on whether the transition from Umeme Limited to the Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) can deliver the reliable power households and businesses need.
When UEDCL took over distribution on April 1, 2025, the government presented the transition as an opportunity to improve infrastructure, expand access and strengthen service delivery. More than a year later, persistent outages, delayed connections and procurement challenges continue to test that promise.
On October 7, 2025, Energy and Mineral Development Minister Ruth Nankabirwa asked Ugandans to give UEDCL up to two years to stabilise the network through infrastructure upgrades and refurbishment. That places the expected turnaround around April 2027.
The deadline offers a clear benchmark. But with the recovery already underway, the country needs to establish whether the interventions are delivering measurable improvements and whether public investment is translating into better service.
The government has attributed recurring outages to ageing infrastructure, rising electricity demand and years of inadequate investment. Some transformers and substations date back to 1994, when the population and economic activity they served were considerably smaller. Annual electricity demand has also been growing by approximately 10 per cent.
UEDCL inherited these challenges, but it now has operational responsibility for addressing them.
The scale of the problem became clearer in August 2026, when the utility’s acting managing director, Joselynne Rwakakooko, told Parliament that outages had nearly doubled during the transition, while average fault-response time had increased from approximately 12 hours to almost 20 hours.
Between May 2025 and March 2026, the utility recorded close to 4,487 hours of outages, equivalent to 20.75 gigawatt-hours of lost electricity valued at approximately Shs12.3 billion.
These figures show why changing the company responsible for distribution cannot immediately resolve the underlying infrastructure problems. Transformers, substations and distribution lines require investment, procurement, installation and maintenance before reliability improves.
However, the condition of the inherited network cannot remain the only explanation for poor service. The question is how quickly UEDCL can address the weaknesses it inherited and demonstrate measurable progress.
The financial commitment is substantial. In August 2026, Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee questioned UEDCL and the Energy Ministry over funding, procurement delays and persistent service problems.
The ministry’s permanent secretary, Irene Batebe, told legislators that government had availed US$79 million, equivalent to approximately Shs477 billion, for UEDCL. She explained that funds had become tied up in procurement processes for transformers and substations.
“One of the key risks that we foresaw UEDCL would face was the procurement delay risk arising from the PPDA law,” Batebe told the committee.
UEDCL has outlined a five-year investment master plan for 2026–2030, with projected investment exceeding US$994 million. Yet a planned investment is not the same as completed infrastructure.
The implementation figures are particularly important. Reports indicated that progress on UEDCL’s 2026 capital investment programme stood at just 1.15 per cent by August, with most projects still in planning and procurement.
This raises a more immediate question than how much money has been committed: how much infrastructure has actually been delivered?
UEDCL should regularly publish the number of transformers delivered and installed, substations upgraded, distribution lines rehabilitated and projects completed. The public should also know how much has been spent and whether the interventions have reduced outages in the affected areas.
Without this information, investment announcements risk becoming disconnected from the experience of electricity consumers.
There are indications that some interventions are beginning to produce results.
In an October 2026, UEDCL said it had replaced 1,110 distribution transformers in the year to July, exceeding its target. The utility also reported increasing the availability of transformer materials in its stores from 44 per cent to 50 per cent.
In Mubende, network changes reportedly reduced recorded outages from 12 in one month to three the following month. UEDCL also said it had upgraded overloaded electricity lines in Entebbe and introduced an alternative supply route in Mukono to improve voltage stability.
These developments provide useful evidence of progress. However, isolated improvements do not establish that the national network has stabilised.
The next step is to compare performance across regions and over time. The Electricity Regulatory Authority’s performance reports can provide an independent basis for assessing whether outages are becoming less frequent, restoration is faster and electricity losses are declining.
The transition should ultimately be judged by service delivery, not ownership alone.
Reliability is only one part of the challenge. Consumers who have paid for electricity connections but remain without supply also need to see progress.
During the August parliamentary proceedings, UEDCL cited meter shortages among the obstacles affecting connections. The company said more than 100,000 meters had arrived by July to support efforts to clear the backlog.
In October, the Electricity Regulatory Authority also indicated that UEDCL was working to clear outstanding connection applications by the end of December 2026.
That provides another measurable milestone. The public needs to know how many outstanding applications have been completed, how long customers wait for connections and whether new connections are supported by sufficient network capacity.
Expanding access without strengthening the infrastructure can create additional pressure on an already overloaded network.
For businesses, unreliable electricity is more than an inconvenience. Manufacturers lose production hours, food businesses face refrigeration challenges, and small enterprises spend additional money on generators, fuel and equipment repairs.
These costs matter as Uganda seeks to expand manufacturing, agro-processing and value addition. Electricity generated at a power station only becomes an economic advantage when it reaches businesses reliably and at a predictable cost.
UEDCL’s recovery should therefore be assessed through the experience of electricity users. Evidence from businesses on lost production, backup-power expenditure and the frequency of interruptions would help establish whether improvements are reducing operating costs.
The government has a legitimate case for allowing time to rehabilitate an ageing network. But patience must be accompanied by transparent reporting and evidence of progress.
By April 2027, Uganda should be able to assess the recovery against published data: fewer and shorter outages, faster fault resolution, completed infrastructure upgrades and fewer unresolved connection applications.
The two-year commitment is an opportunity to establish a clear standard for public service delivery. The decisive measure of UEDCL’s recovery will be whether the money invested and the time granted have produced a more reliable electricity network for Ugandans.
