Bolloré Transport & Logistics announced on Friday, October 22, the appointment of Ugandan entrepreneur Patrick Bitature as Chairman of the Board of its Ugandan subsidiary.
Patrick Bitature, explains Bolloré, is a highly respected businessman and philanthropist in Uganda. He is, among other things, the founder and chairman of the Simba Group of Companies, a conglomerate of companies specializing in telecommunications, hotels, real estate, education, power generation, mining, agriculture, oil and gas, and health products. The group has subsidiaries in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania. Among the group’s businesses are Proteal Hotels by Marriott, four-star hotels in the heart of Kampala; Simba Travel Care, which specializes in tourism; White Nile Consults (Gas and Oil); Electro-Maxx, described as Africa’s first and only independent power producer with a capacity of over 20 MW, founded and financed by Africans; Simba Farms (Agriculture); Simba Farms (Agriculture), which currently operates two large farms and is engaged in farming, food processing, a nascent outsourcing program (contract farming for smallholders), and a farm waste-to-energy plant (development phase); Elizabeth Royal Apartments, offering apartments in the heart of Kampala, with secure furnished 2 and 3 bedroom units in a quiet and picturesque area, within walking or driving distance to shopping, work, schools and entertainment; Ibanda University, which aims to provide quality university education accessible to the people of Ibanda town in western Uganda; Rwenzori FM Radio; and Simba Telecom, the group’s first business.
Patrick Bitature started his business in 1998 when he founded Simba Telecom with his wife, Carol. The company became a franchisee of MTN Uganda, which had just opened in the country. Since then, Simba Telecom has become the largest seller of MTN airtime in Uganda, with gross revenues of more than $80 million in 2010. Over the years, Patrick Bitature has established other companies, forming the Simba Group of Companies.
Patrick Bitature is also the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Umeme Limited, the leading electricity distribution company in Uganda, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Uganda Tourism Board. In addition, he is Co-Chairman of CURE Pediatric Teaching Hospital, which specializes in treating the neurosurgical needs of children.
Philanthropist
In 2010, Patrick Bitature founded the Patrick & Carol Bitature Foundation, which aims to provide adequate health care and economic development opportunities to youth from disadvantaged backgrounds in Uganda. He is also the founder of the 500k Project, a community-based educational initiative that aims to equip 500,000 Ugandan youth with the knowledge and skills of financial literacy and the attitudes and behaviors associated with successful entrepreneurship.
Entrepreneur from a young age
Patrick Bitature was born on May 10, 1960 in Fort Portal, Kabarole District, Western Uganda. He is the first born of a middle class family, where his father worked in the East African Community. When Patrick Bitature was 13 years old, his father was assassinated under the Idi Amin regime. He then became the family breadwinner, first trading in sugar, importing it from Kenya to areas of Uganda where sugar was unavailable.
Patrick Bitature graduated from the London School of Accountancy in the United Kingdom before joining the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators in the United Kingdom, where he is a member.
