Рост мобильного интернета и соцсетей: Uganda Communications Commission представила отчет за второй квартал 2026 года

The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) has released its Q2 2026 Market Performance Report, covering developments in the communications sector between April and June 2026. The report shows continued gradual growth in Uganda’s digital landscape, with active mobile subscriptions, mobile internet subscriptions and smartphone numbers all recording modest increases compared to the first quarter, alongside growing engagement with social media and other digital platforms. Active mobile subscriptions stood at 49 million by the end of June, up from 47.5 million in the first quarter of 2026. This reflects an increase of about 1.5 million subscriptions, or roughly 3.2 percent, over three months. Active mobile internet subscriptions, on the other hand, grew to 19.7 million from 17.9 million. That represents an increase of approximately 1.8 million subscriptions, or 10 percent, in a single quarter. The increase in mobile subscriptions is notable because it points to continued demand for mobile connectivity in a market where mobile phones remain the primary gateway to communications and digital services. However, the subscription figure should not be interpreted as the number of individual Ugandans using mobile phones, since a person can hold multiple subscriptions. The gap between the growth in overall active mobile subscriptions and mobile internet subscriptions is significant. While the mobile subscriber base grew by about 3.2 percent, active mobile internet subscriptions grew at more than three times that rate. This suggests that the expansion of Uganda’s mobile market is increasingly being driven not simply by access to voice services, but by demand for internet-based services. Thus, the growth in mobile internet (by 10%) indicates that data connectivity is becoming an increasingly important component of Uganda’s communications market. At the same time, the figures underline the distinction between access and usage. Uganda can have tens of millions of registered or active mobile subscriptions without those figures translating directly into an equivalent number of people connected to the internet. The Q2 data suggests that the market is gradually moving in that direction, with more active subscriptions being accompanied by increased internet access and greater engagement with digital platforms. The trend could have wider implications for Uganda’s digital economy. More mobile internet subscriptions create a larger potential market for digital financial services, e-commerce, online media, streaming, digital advertising, cloud-based services and other internet-enabled businesses. Meanwhile, smartphone numbers also edged upwards during the second quarter. The report puts the number of smartphones at 20.5 million in Q2, compared with 20.3 million in Q1. That is an increase of about 200,000 devices, or roughly one percent. The relatively modest growth in smartphone numbers compared with mobile internet subscriptions presents an interesting picture of Uganda’s digital market. Social media also continues to command a large share of digital activity. The growing importance of internet access is also reflected in the number of subscriptions recorded across social media and digital platforms. As of June 2026, TikTok led the platforms with 11.4 million subscriptions, narrowly ahead of WhatsApp at 11 million. YouTube followed with 6.9 million, while Snapchat recorded 2.8 million subscriptions. Instagram had 1.5 million, X (formerly Twitter) recorded 900,000, and Netflix had 100,000. TikTok’s position at the top is particularly notable. The platform had about 400,000 more subscriptions than WhatsApp, despite WhatsApp’s long-established position as one of Uganda’s most widely used messaging services. For businesses, creators and advertisers, this distribution indicates where Uganda’s digital audiences are concentrated. The prominence of TikTok and YouTube, in particular, points to the growing importance of video-driven platforms in the country’s digital ecosystem. The Q2 2026 figures show a gradual shift in how Ugandans connect, communicate and consume digital content, with mobile internet and social media becoming increasingly central to the country’s digital landscape.