The Uganda Institute of Banking and Financial Services (UIBFS) and the Uganda Bankers Association (UBA) have launched the 2026 Annual Bankers’ Sports Gala, positioning the event as more than a recreational exercise, but as a strategic investment in industry collaboration and workforce productivity within Uganda’s financial services sector.
Held at UBA’s offices in Muyenga, the launch brought together leaders from across the banking industry under the theme “Together Towards Greatness,” kicking off a series of sporting activities culminating in a grand finale on 20 September 2026.
For an industry often defined by competition, the organisers framed the Gala as a rare space for cross-institutional cooperation, one that ultimately strengthens the sector’s collective business interests.
UIBFS Board Chairperson Godfrey Ssebaana said the event reinforces workplace values with direct business relevance. “Sports teach us values that are equally important in the workplace: teamwork, discipline, leadership, resilience, respect and fair play. The Bankers’ Sports Gala gives us an opportunity to celebrate these values while strengthening the bonds that unite our industry,” he said.
UIBFS Chief Executive Officer Goretti Masadde was more explicit about the commercial logic behind the initiative, describing it as a mechanism for building the industry’s human capital and professional networks. “The banking industry is highly competitive, but there are areas where we are stronger when we come together. The Bankers’ Sports Gala is one such platform. We compete against each other on the field, but we also build friendships, networks and stronger professional relationships,” she said.
Masadde linked the Gala’s underlying goals, employee wellbeing and inter-institutional cooperation, to a broader economic mandate now facing Uganda’s banks: supporting the country’s 10-fold growth agenda. The implication is that a financial sector workforce that is engaged, healthy and well-networked is better positioned to deliver on ambitious national economic targets.
Oscar Kiiza, Executive Director of People, Culture and Administration at Bank of Uganda, who represented Governor Michael Atingi-Ego as guest of honour, echoed this framing from a regulatory standpoint. He commended UIBFS for sustaining the tradition of the annual Gala and stressed that professionals across the sector need to collaborate to drive institutional growth. He noted that sports instil discipline, fair play, wellness, networking and respect for rules, qualities he described as essential both on the field and in professional life.
This year’s edition has drawn participation from 28 institutions, reflecting broad buy-in across the financial services ecosystem. Participants include regulators such as the Financial Intelligence Authority and Bank of Uganda, alongside Wazalendo SACCO, the Forex Bureau and Money Remittances Association, and Sky Reinsurance Brokers Limited, indicating that the initiative extends beyond commercial banks to encompass the wider financial sector.
Organisers are calling on banks and financial institutions to register teams and mobilise staff participation, positioning the Gala not simply as a calendar event but as an annual touchpoint for relationship building, staff engagement and industry cohesion.
As the sector positions itself around the theme “Together Towards Greatness,” the 2026 Bankers’ Sports Gala underscores a broader business proposition: that collaboration among competitors and investment in employee wellbeing are not peripheral activities, but foundational to building a resilient and growth-ready financial services industry in Uganda.
