Uganda’s digital rebirth begins with a laptop per child

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OPINION

By Dr Lawrence Muganga

When we talk about digitising Uganda, creating jobs, and competing globally, we often overlook the most basic and transformative idea of all: ensuring that every child has personal access to technology. Artificial Intelligence, automation, and digital transformation may sound like complex national goals, but their foundation begins in a simple place a young learner sitting confidently with a laptop, exploring, creating, and solving problems independently.

That child, given the right tools early enough, will not just consume technology; they will create it. They will become inventors, designers, entrepreneurs, and nation-builders. This is what the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) policy is truly about, not merely distributing devices, but unlocking destinies and ensuring Uganda doesn’t lag behind in a fast-moving world where digital literacy determines competitiveness.

If we are honest, our education system still prepares children for the past, not the future. We teach them with chalk and textbooks while the world is programming robots, designing with AI, and working in cloud-based environments. Without access to computers from a young age, our children cannot build the digital fluency they need to thrive.

A laptop, therefore, is not a luxury it is the modern-day pencil. It is a bridge between learning and opportunity. When every child can code, research, and collaborate online, we are not just educating them; we are creating a nation of innovators who can drive Uganda’s digital economy forward.

Critics argue that laptops are expensive, but that argument collapses once you examine the economics of education. Introducing the OLPC policy will unlock unimaginable savings for the country. Think about it: with digital books, we will no longer need to build and maintain physical libraries for every school. We only need one digital copy of each book, accessible and shareable nationwide.

Imagine saving billions previously spent on printing and transporting textbooks every year. Imagine eliminating the construction costs of thousands of libraries and ICT labs that require infrastructure, furniture, electricity, and maintenance. With OLPC, we need none of that. A single investment in laptops and digital content permanently removes these repetitive costs.

And here lies the greatest opportunity of all, with those savings, we can finally pay our teachers well. We can give them the dignity they deserve because they are the true backbone of our education system. If Uganda is not buying physical books, not building libraries for every school, and not setting up expensive ICT labs everywhere, that money can be redirected into improving teacher salaries and welfare without straining the national budget.

This is the kind of thinking Uganda needs not just thinking outside the box, but thinking without a box at all.

As Uganda enters a new era under President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s renewed mandate from May 2026, there is no more strategic or patriotic declaration he could make than to launch the One Laptop per Child Policy. Just implementing that single policy would set off a cascade of national benefits, freeing vast resources, transforming schools, and changing the face of our economy.

With OLPC in motion, the government will have more financial breathing room than ever before. Instead of borrowing to build outdated infrastructure or importing endless textbooks, Uganda will finally have a system that multiplies knowledge at minimal cost. The best investment of those released resources will be in teachers because a well-paid teacher produces well-taught, inspired children. A happy teacher workforce means an efficient education system, higher learning outcomes, and a stronger, more united country.

The introduction of OLPC automatically jumpstarts digitisation. Once every learner has a laptop, Uganda will not be talking about digital transformation as a distant dream—it will already have begun. These young learners will become the first generation of citizens who live, learn, and innovate digitally. This creates a natural ecosystem for Artificial Intelligence, local software development, and technology-driven careers.

With such a foundation, unemployment will start to decline because Uganda will position itself as a regional hub for tech-based opportunities. Data analysts, coders, designers, and digital entrepreneurs will emerge from our classrooms. More importantly, we will achieve this transformation without borrowing a cent simply by redeploying our educational budget more intelligently.

Other countries have attempted versions of OLPC, and we can learn from their victories and mistakes. Rwanda’s phased approach, which included training teachers, customising content, and maintaining devices, shows the importance of preparing the education ecosystem before scaling up. We can adapt these lessons to our own realities by linking laptops directly with curriculum content, strong teacher training programs, and proper accountability frameworks.

We already have the foundation, the Digital Agenda, the Data Protection and Privacy Act, UNICEF–Airtel connectivity models, and local assembly capacity. All we need now is political will and coordinated implementation.

The One Laptop per Child policy is more than an education initiative it is a national economic reset. It is how we stop chasing the future and start building it. It is how we align our children’s learning with the realities of today’s world a world where technology determines progress and innovation decides relevance.

When Uganda declares OLPC a national policy, we will not only raise a generation of skilled, creative, and employable youth, but we will also transform public spending, reduce debt, and empower our teachers. That single move will make our education system both digital and dignified.

Uganda’s path to prosperity and global competitiveness begins with one bold step: One Laptop per Child.

The writer is Victoria University vice-chancellor and an expert on AI learning