At EDiC, we are building an ecosystem where design research, engineering solutions, and business development connect to create industries and jobs. Every machine, every prototype, every company supported is part of a larger story of creating an innovation pipeline where research turns into products, products turn into businesses, and businesses turn into jobs building Uganda’s future, today.
The Deep Tech Centre at Namanve (Mukono District) and the Smart Manufacturing Centre at Rwebiteete (Kiruhura District) are not separate silos. They are connected engines in a single pipeline. Research ideas begin in Namanve, where designs are refined into prototypes, and scale in Rwebiteete, where products meet the demands of industry and agriculture. Together, they foster Uganda’s first self-sustaining ecosystem for rapid engineering, design R&D, and business growth.
Through precision engineering and reverse engineering, we have manufactured homegrown products like chaff cutters to banana fiber extraction machines, to replace imported technologies. This move aims to strengthen supply chains, keep money within Uganda, help farmers to access affordable tools, and prove that our industries can stand on their own.
Through design research and development, EDiC has helped innovators turn ideas into prototypes. One example is the world’s first locally designed drip irrigation machine, which is intended to boost yields for local farmers and withstand drought.
By pairing technical support with business incubation, EDiC has ensured that innovations not only exist on paper but also survive in the market. Startups supported here e.g Innovex, Lwera, ICT and Multimedia Hub, Signature woodworks, and Xunda Tech are scaling faster, attracting investment, and opening new spaces for Ugandan-made solutions.
Our engineering machinery has contributed to the growth of 10 nascent companies, thus creating over 600 high-value jobs. These businesses now fuel communities with income, skills, and opportunities that ripple far beyond the factory floor.
At EDiC’s Smart Manufacturing Centre in Rwebiteete, our 3D printing unit is transforming how ideas come to life by turning theoretical concepts into tangible models and sparking creativity among young innovators. It has accelerated prototyping by allowing rapid iterations and design flexibility, while also making low-volume manufacturing highly cost-effective. Our Incubation hub, Xunda Tech, has already leveraged this capability to design complex products that would be prohibitively expensive using traditional methods, proving 3D printing’s role as a true driver of innovation
Launched on 1st August 2025, the TIER (Technology, Innovation, Enterprise Accelerator) Programme is Uganda’s arena for rapid conversion of engineering professionals. The first cohort brought together over 75 young professionals for an intensive 8-week immersion at the Smart Manufacturing Centre, with plans to grow participation in future cycles. The programme is supported through collaborative partnerships and alliances with both academic and industry sector players, including Makerere University, Kyambogo University, and Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), to mention a few. Working in a multidisciplinary environment through the Factory Machine Learning Model, participants dismantle and reassemble machines, build prototypes, test designs, and push their creativity to the limit across mechanical, electrical, civil, and agricultural engineering. TIER is where ideas become action, producing tangible solutions with real-world impact and shaping a generation of new engineers and innovators already designing, building, and driving Uganda’s technological future.
