COMMENTARY: 10 ways Uganda Media Centre can fix its brand before it fixes ‘brand Uganda.’

Dear Uganda Media Centre, here is some free (but expensive-sounding) advice on fixing your brand before you fix ‘brand Uganda’. Let’s be honest. Right now, the centre feels less like a media centre and more like a notice board. In a world where governments are building media ecosystems, the centre still issues statements and communicates as if it’s 2003. Here are 10 expert suggestions for how you can fix it.

1. The Uganda Media Centre has no identity, does it? 
If it does, it’s a borrowed identity. The national emblem is not your logo in its entirety. It’s everyone’s logo. If you want to be taken seriously as a modern communications institution, build a distinct visual identity, including colours, fonts, templates, and brand elements (that can easily be associated with Uganda). You need to start thinking less of the “coat of arms” and be cleaner, sharper, and more recognisable. Even the central banks and revenue authorities have distinctive identities.

2. What exactly are you as a media centre? 
Are you an NRM government mouthpiece? A national information hub? A media liaison? President Museveni’s personal media dissemination centre? Right now, you’re trying to be everything and, honestly, landing nowhere. Clear positioning builds trust. Without it, you are just another voice in an already noisy government choir.

3. The media centre needs to communicate like humans. 
Like Ugandans! Not like circulars. Ugandans don’t read statements. A majority of today’s news consumers scroll on their phones.  If your communication sounds like it was drafted by three government committees and approved by ten people, it’s already lost. Simplify. Be direct. Be understood. Also, your press releases are a little too frequent. Your press conferences are too long. You might need to review that.

4. Your digital presence needs an urgent revamp. 
Let’s not sugarcoat it. Your digital platforms feel scattered, inconsistent, and underwhelming. Your website is not befitting. It’s ugly. You have a paltry 7K followers on Instagram, and your Instagram page looks like a content-dumping ground. You have no strong LinkedIn presence (you’re missing out on engaging policymakers, professionals, and global stakeholders). There is an unbranded YouTube channel for a certain Uganda Media Centre with a paltry 700 subscribers (they should at least be double that). Visibly, there is no real YouTube content strategy beyond numerous clips of press briefings. No Flickr presence, your visual assets and depository. No Tik Tok. Visual identity? Inconsistent at best. Meanwhile, globally, over 60% of people now consume news via social media. That means your first impression is digital, and right now, it’s your weakest entry. 

Here is what you (could) need: 

• A cohesive visual system across platforms. 
• A content strategy, not just uploads. Invest in a studio setup and podcast format (owned and managed by Uganda Media Centre). 
• Create some engaging formats featuring Ugandan voices from business, tourism, sports, and culture. Uganda is not short of interesting personalities for this. You have Amos Wekesa for tourism, and Joshua Baraka (currently a major export of Ugandan music). You have Robert Kabushenga et al. 
• You can also partner with leading clean podcasters in the diaspora. 
• The idea is for you to create a community. Please note that news narratives are no longer sourced; they are now scripted and produced.

5. Not everything warrants a press briefing. The weekly podium-style media engagement format (with shabby banners in the background) needs to evolve. It’s tired and boring. Shouldn’t the media centre be a centre of excellence? Shouldn’t it be a brand custodian for the whole country? To break away from, or at least mix in with, these many press briefings, start by turning lesser-known policies into short videos, infographics, and explainers. That recent AI-generated video from filmmaker Loukman Ali was a weak attempt at content creation. For example, the recent copyright law that provoked debate among different stakeholders could have been fodder for the kind of content the media centre can break down for the public. What can you tell a 22-year-old Ugandan about it? If a Gen-Z doesn’t find your press briefings impressive in 30 seconds, you’ve lost an entire generation.

6. Once again, media relations are not necessarily about hosting press conferences. 
Journalists don’t need an open-tent gathering every now and then; they need a partner. Build relationships. Visit newsrooms. Engage and cultivate media influencers. Recognise them monthly. Rethink the idea of media awards. Blogger awards. The most influential TikToker or YouTuber. Work with credible digital voices. Better yet, train and empower emerging media creators. If you don’t shape the narrative ecosystem, the naysayers will, and they already are.

7. How ready are you for crisis communication? 
Uganda’s PR challenge is not breaking news, and we all know what is missing. ‘Bad news from Uganda’ is beginning to seem normal. The centre needs structured responses, including up-to-date fact sheets, rapid-response messaging, and consistent alignment among spokespersons. Recently, we were in a crisis over news that Uganda would send troops to Iran to defend Israel. This was triggered by X tweets from top officials. A Ugandan UN ambassador responded differently. A foreign affairs official responded differently. A friend of the top official involved in the debacle responded as well, differently. Uganda Media Centre didn’t pronounce itself on the matter. The centre was silent. The silence on such issues creates confusion and erodes reputation.

8. Too many voices, no single message! 
With Uganda’s PR and communications today, the Uganda Police say one thing, the parliament’s spokesperson says another, the judiciary adds spice, and the Minister of Youth voices yet another opinion. The result? Confusion and, most times, global embarrassment. The Uganda Media Centre should coordinate messaging rather than compete with it.

9. Not All Audiences Are the Same (And that’s the point). 
Gen Z, foreign investors, foreign diplomats, and foreign media are all different. And yet the Media Centre should be designed to speak to all of them using different tones. How does one respond to an article in The Economist, a professor at Harvard, a would-be Chinese investor, or a disgruntled youth in the Middle East? Segment your communication. Tailor your tone.

10. Lastly, the big question is: Who trusts you? 
Have you ever measured your credibility? The Uganda Media Centre needs to carry out surveys and perception audits, gather feedback loops (from the Ugandans it serves), and, from this, build thought leadership by publishing insights, issuing newsletters, hosting experts, inviting scholars, and creating a network of credible voices tied to its platform.