With great anticipation, Uganda, a country in the center of Africa, is setting out to host the African Water and Sanitation Association International Congress and Exhibition (Afwasa ICE2025). Stakeholders nationwide are already extremely excited about the event, which is set to take place in the dynamic capital city of Kampala from February 16–20, 2025, and are meticulously organizing for it. This project comes after Uganda successfully organized two significant international conferences, the G-77 + China and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summits, which took place in January of this year at the esteemed Speke Resort Munyonyo.
Building upon the momentum created by these historic occasions, the African Water Association (AfWA) granted Uganda’s prestigious National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) the honor of serving as the host of Afwasa ICE2025, highlighting the country’s increasing stature as a leader in the international conference circuit. At a stunning opening event on March 26 at the NWSC Resource Center in Kampala’s busy Bugolobi area, the road to Afwasa ICE2025 officially got underway. Honorable dignitaries and important stakeholders graced the occasion, which was a symbolic statement of Uganda’s steadfast commitment to leading substantive discourse on the urgent issues facing the water and sanitation sector both domestically and across the African continent.
During the launch ceremony, Minister of Water and Environment Sam Cheptoris gave a moving speech emphasizing how crucial the upcoming congress is to bringing about concrete progress toward the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Six, an ambitious global mandate that aims to guarantee universal access to clean water and sanitation by 2030. During his passionate speech, Minister Cheptoris reaffirmed Uganda’s unwavering commitment to using the platform offered by Afwasa ICE2025 to stimulate group efforts and develop creative approaches to tackle the many challenges impeding the achievement of this admirable goal.
Like Minister Cheptoris, Dr. Silver Mugisha, the Managing Director of NWSC, expressed his deep confidence about the upcoming congress and its potential to act as a catalyst for revolutionary transformation in Uganda’s water sector. Afwasa ICE2025 is prepared to enable invaluable possibilities for knowledge exchange, capacity-building, and cross-sectoral collaboration, as Dr. Mugisha noted. Over 2,000 eminent delegates from around the world are expected to attend.
AfWA is about to launch the African Water Academy, an innovative project envisioned as a trailblazing center of excellence in water-related research, teaching, and capacity-building, in addition to the congress’s main sessions. Tucked away in the scenic surroundings of Kampala, this forward-thinking establishment is well-positioned to act as a ray of hope and motivation for prospective water professionals throughout the African continent, sparking a new wave of advancement and creativity in the field of sanitation and water resource management. The latest MICE Leader 😏 Uganda is firmly establishing itself as a premier center for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) tourism—a developing industry with enormous potential for economic growth and development—beyond its crucial role in furthering the cause of water sustainability.
Uganda presently holds a significant 5% share of the East African MICE industry, according to data provided by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA). This represents Uganda’s outstanding contribution to the region’s rapidly developing tourism scene. The country has significantly improved its MICE infrastructure and promotional efforts thanks to strategic initiatives led by the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB). This has resulted in the successful hosting of numerous high-profile events, including the Africa Airlines Summit, the NAM and G-77 + China summits, and the Commonwealth Speakers Summit.
The creation of the Uganda Convention Bureau, a specialized organization charged with promoting Uganda’s MICE offers internationally and drawing highly sought-after international events to the nation’s borders, has further supported these efforts. With plans to submit bids for a wide range of upcoming conferences, including the African Hospitality Investment Forum (AHIF), the World Gymnastics Championship, the International Association of Dental Research Conference, and the World Birders Association Expo, among others, Uganda is well-positioned to take advantage of its growing reputation as a leading location for international conferences and events.
Uganda is creating a robust and dynamic MICE ecosystem that is marked by creativity, inclusion, and sustainable growth through joint efforts between the public and commercial sectors. Uganda is demonstrating its natural beauty and cultural diversity to the world, but it is also asserting its position as a progressive and dynamic global participant in business tourism and economic growth by using the transformative power of conferences and exhibitions.
