Uganda to host new branch of Heriot-Watt University’s graduate association

Uganda is to host a new branch of The Watt Club, the 170-year-old graduate association of Scotland’s Heriot-Watt University.

The East African country is home to more than 1,000 graduates of the Scottish university, which has been offering degrees in partnership with the MAT ABACUS Business School in Uganda since 2004.

Now one of those graduates, Allen Sanyu, is opening a new branch of The Watt Club. Founded in 1854, the club is thought to be the oldest alumni association in the United Kingdom and hosts a community of more than 166,000 graduates in 190 countries.

The new Uganda Watt Club will be Heriot-Watt’s fourth Watt Club in Africa alongside Zambia, Nigeria and South Africa. It will be launched in Uganda’s capital city, Kampala, at an inaugural event on Friday 25 October 2024.

A high profile Ugandan minister who is himself a graduate of Heriot-Watt University is to make a recorded address to the event.

The Honourable Henry Musasizi is Minister of State for Finance, Planning and Economic Development and graduated from Heriot-Watt’s Edinburgh Business School in 2013 with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) postgraduate degree.

Mr Musasizi said: “I am honoured to address the first meeting of the Uganda Watt Club and hope it will build on our great legacy in Uganda of empowerment through education.”

Allen Sanyu, who will chair the Uganda Watt Club, graduated from Edinburgh Business School with an MBA in 2023 and is now chief executive of Tesla Technical Services, a Ugandan-based company that implements projects for and behalf of the Ugandan government in sectors including energy, construction and telecoms.

She said: “The MBA has enriched my CV – the company I currently work for headhunted me and really wanted me to be part of their team as a CEO. When studying the MBA, it feels like someone is with you at the office, literally taking me through all aspects of the workplace. After the course, your level of knowledge and way of looking at things is totally different.”

Ms Sanyu said the flexibility of Heriot-Watt’s online degrees – which students can study in their own time over any timescale that suits them – was vital and meant she could continue working while also raising four children.

“I am deeply grateful to Heriot-Watt for the opportunity to change my life through learning,” she said. “Our new Watt Club will help other graduates and students in Uganda to inspire each other and realise the powerful impact that education can have in our lives.”

Heriot-Watt’s degrees are delivered in Uganda through the MAT Abacus Business School. It was established in 1999 to provide higher education to students in Uganda and the rest of Africa. The school has developed highly successful professional accountancy training programmes and many of its students have won top prizes in Uganda.

Professor Sejjaaka Samuel, Principal and Country Team Leader at MAT ABACUS Business School, said: “The degrees we offer from Heriot-Watt’s Edinburgh Business School are highly prized and empower our students to open new pathways in their professional lives and careers. We are delighted to help launch the Uganda Watt Club and will be excited to see what collaborations, networks and friendships develop.”

MAT ABACUS Business School will host the inaugural Uganda Watt Club meeting.

Heriot-Watt’s graduates in Uganda include influential business and government leaders who have studied degrees including accountancy and finance, business management and petroleum engineering, alongside the popular MBA from Edinburgh Business School.

Professor Angus Laing, Executive Dean of Edinburgh Business School and the School of Social Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, said: “We look forward to creating a flourishing alumni community in Uganda that celebrates the strength and ambition of our graduates. Many of our former students are already making an impact in their organisations, industries and economies – and bringing them together through the Uganda Watt Club could create a powerful force for good.”

Heriot-Watt graduates automatically become members of the Watt Club and have a free lifetime membership.

Watt Club members are eligible to an alumni discount on selected postgraduate courses and future study. They can access Heriot-Watt’s GradFutures careers platform to find careers information, career planning and application advice, job and work experience opportunities and information about careers events. Watt Club members can also give back through mentorship opportunities or Advisory Board roles.

The Watt Club also works with alumni who are employers and run businesses, connecting them to the University. This includes helping with recruiting new graduates, partnering on research and development projects and offering support for startup companies.

Find out more on The Watt Club web pages.

Heriot-Watt’s Edinburgh Business School is one of the world's largest providers of postgraduate business education, with 49,000 alumni across 158 countries.