Uganda’s tourism industry offers significant opportunities for young professionals, entrepreneurs and marketers to build businesses beyond traditional tour guiding and hospitality, industry leaders have said.
The message emerged during the Uganda Marketers Society (UMS) Ignite Session held at Zimbali Bistro on Friday, October 16, 2026, under the theme “Brand Uganda! Is the Product as Good as the Promise?”
The discussion brought together Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) Chief Executive Officer Juliana Kagwa, Uganda Media Centre Executive Director Alan Kasujja, and tourism and conservation expert Herbert Byaruhanga to examine how Uganda can strengthen its tourism offering and translate its destination appeal into economic value.
A key message from the session was that building Brand Uganda requires more than promoting the country internationally. It also demands greater awareness among Ugandans, stronger tourism products and increased participation by local businesses across the tourism value chain.
Kagwa challenged the perception that Uganda’s tourism marketing efforts had already reached their full potential, arguing that the country was still building the foundations needed to establish a stronger destination brand.
“To say there is a leak in our marketing funnel implies we were already filling it. We are only starting this journey,” Kagwa said.
She emphasised the need to build awareness, improve accessibility and develop tourism experiences that meet visitors’ expectations and deliver on the promises made through destination marketing.
For young entrepreneurs and marketers, she said, this presents opportunities to develop products and services that make Uganda’s tourism offering more accessible, distinctive and competitive.
The discussion highlighted the importance of aligning destination promotion with the actual quality of experiences available to visitors, from transport and accommodation to hospitality, cultural activities and customer service.
Byaruhanga, who has spent decades developing ecotourism and birdwatching in Uganda, highlighted the commercial potential of specialised tourism experiences and the businesses that support them.
Uganda’s rich birdlife, with more than 1,100 recorded bird species, provides a strong foundation for birdwatching tourism. However, the economic opportunities extend beyond guiding visitors in the field.
The wider value chain includes specialised transport, accommodation, hospitality training, content creation, destination marketing and community-based tourism experiences.
“A single international birdwatcher can spend upward of $7,000 across a two-week itinerary,” Byaruhanga said, highlighting the potential economic value of specialised tourism.
He challenged marketers to help package and promote these experiences to international audiences while ensuring that local communities and businesses benefit from tourism expenditure.
The discussion also underscored the importance of developing specialised skills and widening participation in the sector, including opportunities for women working as birding guides and other tourism professionals.
For entrepreneurs, these opportunities could include developing niche travel packages, providing equipment and transport services, creating tourism-focused digital content and supporting accommodation providers serving specialised visitor markets.
Kasujja challenged Ugandans to take a more active role in promoting their country, arguing that domestic appreciation of Uganda’s attractions, culture and hospitality is an important foundation for international destination marketing.
“Our biggest challenge is that Ugandans don't know Uganda,” Kasujja said, calling for greater interest in domestic travel and a stronger sense of ownership of the country’s tourism story.
He argued that when Ugandans explore their own country and share their experiences, they help raise awareness of destinations that international visitors may also want to discover.
The discussion highlighted domestic tourism as an important source of demand for local businesses, while encouraging Ugandans to become advocates for the country’s natural attractions, cultural heritage and hospitality experiences.
Greater domestic travel could also help tourism businesses diversify their customer base and reduce their reliance on international visitors alone.
The Ignite Session explored a central question facing the sector: how can Uganda ensure that the experiences visitors encounter match the promises made through destination marketing?
The panellists pointed to the need for closer alignment between promotion, tourism product development, professional skills and the quality of visitor experiences.
For marketers and content creators, this means moving beyond awareness campaigns to help develop, package and commercialise tourism experiences. For entrepreneurs, it means identifying gaps in the value chain and building businesses around Uganda’s natural, cultural and hospitality assets.
The discussion also reinforced the importance of ensuring that tourism growth creates opportunities for local communities, small businesses and emerging professionals.
The Uganda Marketers Society convenes Ignite Sessions to encourage professional exchange, strengthen marketing practice and connect creative thinking with opportunities across Uganda’s growth sectors.
UMS acknowledged the support of Pepsi, Uganda Breweries, CHiNT Uganda and Red Square in making the session possible, with Corporate Image Ltd serving as the event’s public relations partner.