Officials pose for a photo with copies of the agreement after the event on Monday.Centenary Group, through its technology company, Centenary Technology Services (Cente-Tech), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with MicroPay Uganda, marking the beginning of a strategic partnership aimed at developing and scaling digital solutions across education, healthcare and insurance.The partnership brings together MicroPay Uganda’s digital services platform and Centenary Group’s extensive reach, technology capabilities and established presence in communities across Uganda. The collaboration is expected to address some of the everyday barriers that prevent individuals and families from conveniently accessing and paying for essential services.Speaking at the signing ceremony at Mapeera House in Kampala, Prof. John Ddumba Ssentamu, Group Board Chairman of Centenary Group, said the partnership builds on the Group’s longstanding commitment to extending meaningful financial inclusion to underserved communities. “Centenary’s story has always been about the people other institutions overlooked. We took banking to the market vendor, to the smallholder farmer and to the family saving a little at a time in a trading centre far from any branch. That is the legacy entrusted to us: meaningful inclusion, carried all the way to the last mile.”Under the partnership, Centenary Technology Services and MicroPay Uganda will collaborate on solutions designed to make education payments and financing more flexible, bring healthcare services closer to communities, and improve how insurance products, premiums and claims are managed digitally.In the education sector, the partnership will explore digital tools that enable parents and guardians to save towards school fees, make payments in instalments and potentially access financing based on their payment history. The solutions will also seek to provide school administrators with greater visibility over cash flows and payment collections.While in healthcare, the partners intend to leverage agent networks and digital technology to bring services closer to patients within their communities, reducing barriers associated with distance, access and payments.In insurance, the partnership will focus on digitising access to policies, enabling more flexible premium collection and improving claims payment processes, with the objective of making insurance more accessible and dependable for ordinary families.Peter Kahiigi, Chief Technology Officer at Centenary Technology Services, said technology has the potential to remove barriers created by geography and income and extend essential services to communities that have traditionally been underserved. “ICT is an equaliser. A farmer with a phone can reach the same financial services as an executive in Kampala. Technology does not care where you were born or how much you earn, and when it is built well, it erases distances that money and geography have kept in place for generations.”Cente-Tech will bring to the partnership its technology capabilities and Centenary Group’s extensive ecosystem and reach. The company recently launched GonzaPay, supported by more than 9,000 Cente Agents across Uganda, demonstrating its ability to take digital services beyond conventional banking channels and into communities across the country. Kahiigi added that the partnership is ultimately focused on measurable outcomes for customers. “Our measure of success is not this ceremony. It is the first school term where fees flow without queues, and the first claim paid in days instead of weeks. Let us get to work.”The partnership also has potential for regional expansion. Centenary Group already has a presence in Malawi, and solutions developed through the partnership that demonstrate strong results in Uganda could, where viable, be introduced in other markets as the Group expands its footprint. “MicroPay brings a proven digital services platform. We bring the Group’s reach and the credibility of its name. Neither of us could do this alone at the scale Uganda needs,” Kahiigi said.Speaking on behalf of MicroPay Uganda, Dr. Ndyareeba Grace Stuart, Chief Executive Officer, further emphasized that meaningful financial inclusion can only be achieved through purposeful strategic partnerships.“The tangible benefits of financial inclusion can only be fully realized through purposeful and visionary partnerships such as this collaboration between MicroPay Uganda and the Centenary Group. MicroPay brings over 12 years of experience in digital payments, supported by our licensing as both a Payment Service Provider and Payment System Operator under the regulation of the Bank of Uganda. By combining our expertise with Centenary Group’s strong community presence and innovation capabilities, we are confident that together we can transform access to essential services and create lasting impact for our communities.”Dr Ndyareeba said the partnership demonstrates a shared commitment to extending meaningful financial inclusion to the last mile.“This partnership is a strong testament to MicroPay’s commitment to extending meaningful financial inclusion to the last person at the lowest level of the economic pyramid within our communities. MicroPay’s vision aligns with the Bank of Uganda’s and the Government’s commitment to providing accessible financial services to the majority of the unbanked population across the country.”Under the partnership, Centenary Technology Services and MicroPay Uganda will jointly develop solutions designed to make education financing more accessible, bring healthcare services closer to communities, and transform the way insurance products are distributed and managed digitally, he said.Prof. Ddumba emphasised that the true impact of the partnership would be measured by the experience of the people it is intended to serve. “Partnerships are not proven at ceremonies like this one. They are proven months later, in bursars’ offices and trading centres, by people who will never read the document we sign today. That is the standard I am asking both teams to hold.”Centenary Group and MicroPay Uganda reaffirmed their shared commitment to using technology, collaboration and innovation to advance financial inclusion and create sustainable impact for individuals, families, institutions and communities. The post Centenary Group Partners with MicroPay Uganda to Scale Digital Services in Education, Healthcare and Insurance appeared first on Business Focus.