Brian Kwesiga: “Technology Can Transform Journalism”

The expert platform will bring together representatives from different countries to compare approaches to digital transformation and technological sovereignty. Discussions will also focus on infrastructure development and on how to turn international IT cooperation into practical projects through joint initiatives, exports of digital solutions and long-term partnerships.

Ahead of the forum, Brian Kwesiga, CEO of Mirror Digital Limited (Uganda) and a 2025 graduate of RT Academy, told IT Russia how quickly Uganda’s digital media environment is changing, what he hopes to learn from his Russian counterparts, and why he sees taking part in the forum as a continuation of his professional journey.

– With ever rapid changing technology, it is imperative that any digital media entrepreneur adapts quickly to the new trends of reporting, storytelling and production techniques in the digital journalism arena.

My upcoming visit to Moscow for the Global Digital Forum serves an opportunity to enhance and gain skills in data driven digital journalism, multimedia and technology.

For the case of Uganda, the digital media ecosystem has been expanding rapidly and this is the core reason to why we must have new digital media innovations. When we look at the Uganda Communications Commission report as of December 2025, active mobile internet users are at around 19 million. These figures are positively correlated to how people access information, communicate and engage.

For Digital Media and Digital Journalism, the smartphone has become their newsroom, newspaper, their radio since they can access everything on the phone that is always in their hands. This growing connectivity has a vast opportunity for Africa’s Digital Journalism.  In that same way, it requires new Digital media innovations capable of linking professional journalism with technology and data.

My digital journalism journey of over 10 years has evolved around online news publishing, multi media production, website development, Live streaming, Photography, videography and documentary production. Through Mirror Digital Limited, a company I founded in 2018, we have built a robust news website UgMirror to serve audiences where print journalism is losing its footprint.

We believe that a Morden newsroom must do much more than writing and publishing articles. It must understand their audience demographics, use data, create multimedia content, ensure secure infrastructure, protect the platform from cyber threats and ultimately secure revenue generation models.

My participation in the first Global Digital Forum in NizhnyNovgorodinJune2025 gave me an opportunity to engage with technology professionals and digital innovators to gain a broader understanding of emerging technologies. Coming to Moscow for the second Global Digital Forum is there fore the continuation of the journey. I hope to explore how Russian technology can be used to shape the future of African Digital Journalism particularly in areas of Artificial Intelligence, cloud hosting, Data Analytics, cybersecurity, Livestreaming and building robust news platforms.

I believe for Digital entrepreneurs and journalists, exposure to new technologies increases the speed and quality of journalism.

My expectation from Global Digital Forum, Moscow is both professional and strategic. I want to exchange Ideas, learn from Russia’s digital technology, strengthen relationships and identify areas where Russian technological expertise and African digital media experience can complement each other. I also expect to seek opportunities for knowledge exchange, professional training, technology partnerships, digital media innovations and development of solutions that can serve both African and international markets.

I immensely wish to return to Uganda with knowledge and partnerships that can be translated into practical improvements in Digital media and journalism.

With over a decade of experience in Digital Media space, I have no doubts that technology transforms journalism. I believe the next transformation will be more robust and driven by Artificial intelligence, data and advanced digital platforms.

The Global Digital forum provides an important platform for ensuring that Africa, particularly Uganda is not merely a consumer of these technologies but an active partner in shaping the future of global Digital Journalism.