Ugandan university students have earned international recognition after delivering an outstanding performance at the global finals of the 2025–2026 Huawei ICT Competition held in Shenzhen, China, reinforcing the country’s growing reputation as a hub for digital innovation and technology talent.
Students from Uganda Martyrs University, Nkozi, and Mountains of the Moon University, Fort Portal, secured top awards at the prestigious competition, which attracted some of the world’s brightest young technology minds under the theme “Connection, Glory, Future.”
The competition, held from June 1 to 5 at Huawei’s headquarters, marked the 10th edition of the annual event and was the largest since its inception. More than 220,000 students and educators from over 2,000 universities across 100 countries participated.
Uganda’s representatives emerged from a highly competitive national selection process that attracted over 1,600 applicants from institutions of higher learning across the country. The two universities advanced through preliminary, national and regional stages to earn places among the 131 elite teams that qualified for the global finals.
At the international stage, the Uganda Martyrs University team competed in the Computing Track and secured a third-place finish, while the Mountains of the Moon University team excelled in the Innovation Track, winning second prize.
The finalists were subjected to an intensive eight-hour live laboratory examination that tested their expertise across a range of Huawei technologies and advanced computing systems.
The Computing Track team impressed judges with its expertise in cloud infrastructure configuration, open-source operating systems such as openEuler, and next-generation computing architectures, earning third place in a highly competitive field.
Meanwhile, the Innovation Track team, known as AgriChain, showcased an artificial intelligence-powered agricultural solution aimed at addressing long-standing challenges facing Uganda’s farming sector.
The project seeks to modernize agriculture by tackling market inefficiencies that have historically disadvantaged farmers. According to the team, despite Uganda possessing approximately 80 percent arable land, many farmers continue to struggle with limited access to market information, unreliable pricing mechanisms and restricted access to affordable financing.
The AgriChain platform integrates several digital tools powered by Huawei technologies, including a transparent agricultural marketplace designed to improve price visibility and facilitate secure transactions.
It also incorporates an AI-powered field analysis system capable of detecting crop diseases and forecasting yields, as well as a feature that converts verified production forecasts into tradable contracts that can be used as collateral to access formal credit.
Developers say the innovation could help reduce post-harvest losses, improve farmers’ incomes and strengthen financial inclusion in rural communities by transforming agriculture into a more data-driven and commercially viable sector.
The strong performance by Ugandan students reflects the growing impact of the Huawei ICT Academy programme, which works with universities to equip learners with practical digital skills and industry-focused training.
Huawei Uganda credited the achievements to collaboration between academia, government and industry stakeholders, including the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance, the Ministry of Education and Sports, and the Embassy of China in Uganda.
The company said it remains committed to supporting digital talent development and helping Uganda advance its digital transformation agenda through continued investment in technology education and innovation.
Launched in 2015, the Huawei ICT Competition is a global talent development programme designed to promote ICT skills and strengthen links between industry and education. The initiative has gained international recognition and is listed among flagship programmes supported by UNESCO’s Global Skills Academy.
Registration for the next edition of the competition is expected to open in August, with students able to participate through Huawei ICT Academies at partner universities across Uganda or through Huawei’s global talent platform.
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