For universities, digital progress is often shaped as much by practical realities as by technological ambition. Infrastructure, budgets, internal expertise, and long-term maintainability all influence which solutions can actually work in practice. At Uganda Christian University, these considerations also shape how the ICT team approaches its technology stack. We spoke with Rebecca Kangabe, Director of ICT Services at UCU, about the digital priorities of higher education in Uganda, the value of open-source software, and the reasoning behind the university’s decision to use Zammad for its Service Desk.
Ms. Kangabe, thank you for taking the time to speak with us today about the evolving digital landscape in higher education and how open-source technology can fit into it. Let's dive right in.
How would you describe the current digital landscape in higher education across Uganda, and how has it evolved in recent years?
Uganda’s higher education sector has seen significant digital progress, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Universities were prompted to fast-track and expand online and distance learning, while also accelerating investments in digital infrastructure and platforms to support teaching, learning, research, and administration. This shift has continued in recent years, with institutions increasingly integrating digital technologies into their core academic and operational processes.
Based on your experience leading ICT at Uganda Christian University, what are the main challenges that universities face when introducing and integrating new digital tools and technologies?
The major challenge we have experienced when introducing new technologies is securing stakeholder buy-in. Users need to understand not only what the technology can do, but more importantly, how it can improve their existing processes, make their work more efficient, or enhance the learning experience. Solutions also need to be people-centred, designed around the actual needs, experiences, and challenges of the users rather than simply introducing technology for its own sake. Demonstrating clear, practical value and involving stakeholders early in the adoption process is therefore critical to successful integration.
From a broader perspective, what advantages does open-source software offer educational institutions?
As a private university in Uganda aspiring to excellence, our motto, “A Centre of Excellence in the Heart of Africa,” reflects our commitment to being at the cutting edge of technology and bringing new and useful digital tools to our stakeholders. However, one of the challenges we face is that many technologies developed in the global west can be prohibitively expensive, particularly for our students and the wider African context.
Open-source software has therefore been a significant enabler for us. With relatively modest investment in infrastructure, we have been able to prioritise our stakeholders’ needs and deploy solutions such as Moodle LMS for blended learning, Zammad for IT service management and customer support, open-source PABX solutions, monitoring and network management tools, software development frameworks, and many others.
Beyond cost savings, open source gives us greater flexibility to customise solutions to our context and respond to emerging needs. It has allowed us to innovate while working within our resource constraints. We are therefore extremely grateful to the global open-source community for creating technologies that make digital transformation more accessible to institutions like ours.
Turning to UCU, what led your team to choose Zammad for your Service Desk, and could you walk us through a concrete example of a workflow that changed?
We needed a comprehensive service desk and ticketing solution that could provide more than basic incident logging. In particular, we were looking for a platform with a strong knowledge base, reporting and analytics capabilities, and the ability to integrate with services we already use, including email, and monitoring systems.
We had previously used another open-source tool and, after evaluating Zammad, found that it offered a more comprehensive and versatile user experience. It was also relatively easy to deploy and adapt to our environment, which was important for us as a university operating within a resource-conscious context.
Zammad has helped us improve the entire service management workflow. Users can easily create and track tickets, while administrators can assign requests to the appropriate teams, categorise and prioritise issues, monitor progress, and track service performance. We can also generate statistics and reports to identify trends, measure workload, and support decision-making.
Another important benefit has been the knowledge base, which allows us to document solutions and provide students and staff with information that can help them resolve common issues without always needing to contact the Service Desk. The platform also provides better visibility of requests, clearer accountability for support teams, automated notifications and workflows, and a centralised record of interactions with users.
Overall, the shift to Zammad has moved us from a largely reactive approach to a more structured, measurable, and user-centred service experience. It has given us better visibility of what our users need and, importantly, the data to continuously improve the services we provide.
What advice would you give to IT leaders at other universities considering open-source solutions for their IT stacks?
My advice to other universities is that digitisation of services is paramount to providing reliable and accessible services, but the starting point should always be people and their needs. Universities should first understand these needs and then select technology that effectively facilitates them.
We have found open-source software to be an excellent starting point for digital transformation because it allows us to customise solutions to our specific use cases while also building the capacity of our ICT staff in areas such as infrastructure, security, integration, and support. When well managed, open source can be a powerful and sustainable enabler of digital transformation.
About
Rebecca Kangabe is Director of University ICT Services at Uganda Christian University, with more than 14 years of experience in ICT across Uganda and Sub-Saharan Africa. Her background spans systems administration, IT project management, operations, and team leadership. Today, she combines technical expertise with a strong focus on people, collaboration, and building digital services that make a meaningful difference to the university community.
Interested in following Rebecca’s work? Connect with her on LinkedIn.
