When a company grows its profits by nearly a quarter in a single year, shareholders have every reason to sit up and take notice.
That is precisely what MTN Uganda delivered in its 2025 full-year results. Profit after tax rose 5.8% to UGX 678.8 billion, a figure that looks modest at first glance.
But dig one layer deeper and the picture becomes far more compelling. A UGX111 billion tax settlement with the Uganda Revenue Authority weighed heavily on the reported number. Exclude that non-recurring charge and underlying profit surged 23.1% to UGX 789.7 billion — a performance that reflects the genuine earning power of the business.
Service revenue climbed 13.4% to UGX 3.6 trillion, a figure that speaks to the broadening relevance of MTN Uganda’s offerings across everyday Ugandan life.
Two engines powered this growth. Data revenue, the business’s fastest-growing segment, jumped 28.8% to UGX 1 trillion, driven by 12 million active users as businesses, schools and households embraced digital connectivity.
Mobile money was equally impressive: Fintech revenue rose 17.3% to UGX 1.1 trillion, supported by 14.7 million active users who collectively carried out 5 billion transactions worth a remarkable UGX 195.5 trillion during the year.
For shareholders, these are not vanity numbers. They represent a deep, expanding channel in Uganda’s digital economy — the kind that is difficult for any competitor to quickly replicate.
But revenue growth is only half the story. What matters to shareholders is how much of that revenue falls through to profit.
Here, MTN Uganda again impresses. EBITDA rose 17% to UGX 1.9 trillion, outpacing revenue growth and signalling that the company is becoming more efficient as it scales.
The company has guided for EBITDA margins above 50% in the medium term, a benchmark that places it among the more profitable telecoms operators on the continent.
In an environment where many businesses are struggling to contain costs, MTN Uganda’s ability to grow revenue and expand margins simultaneously is indeed a mark of strong operational discipline.
On the investment front, the company invested UGX 549.4 billion in network infrastructure in 2025, expanding 4G population coverage to 88.6% and pressing ahead with a 5G rollout in key urban centres, according to CEO Sylvia Mulinge.
As a result, the subscriber base grew 10% to 24.2 million, and the mobile money ecosystem now supports more than 241,000 agents and 114,800 merchants.
These investments are not merely operational; they are competitive barriers. Every tower erected and every merchant onboarded makes the MTN network harder to displace.
For the prudent long-term investor, a company that ploughs capital back into structural advantage while still growing earnings is exactly the profile to value.
Perhaps the most tangible signal of management’s confidence in the business is the dividend.
The Board has proposed a final dividend of UGX 8.25 per share, bringing the full-year total to UGX 28.75 per share — equivalent to UGX 643.7 billion returned to shareholders.
For those who hold MTN Uganda shares on the Uganda Securities Exchange, where the company remains the largest listed entity, this is a meaningful cash return. It reflects both the strength of current earnings and management’s belief that sustainable growth lies ahead.
For the ordinary investor, MTN Uganda’s 2025 results tell a coherent and compelling story. MTN is actively shaping the infrastructure upon which Uganda’s digital economy will be built for the next decade.
Data and mobile money – the two pillars of future growth, are both scaling rapidly. Margins are expanding. The dividend is generous.
With the one-off tax settlement now behind the company, what remains is a business with 24.2 million subscribers, UGX 3.6 trillion in revenue, and the deepest digital payments network in the country.
So, for shareholders, the most important question is not whether 2025 was a good year — clearly, it was, according to the numbers.
The more important question is whether the next five years will be even better. On the evidence presented in these results, the answer is a confident ‘yes.’
