Barbara Kasekende: Architect of Enterprise Growth, Youth Empowerment & Inclusive Economic Transformation

Barbara Kasekende is a distinguished development strategist and business advisory leader whose career has significantly shaped enterprise growth, youth empowerment, and inclusive economic transformation in Uganda and beyond. With deep experience spanning development finance, financial services, mentorship, and national scale social impact, she stands among the women redefining how institutions enable sustainable and inclusive growth.

She currently leads the Business Advisory unit at Uganda Development Bank, positioning her at the centre of Uganda’s socio economic transformation agenda. In this role, Barbara ensures that enterprises are not only able to access finance but are fully prepared to grow, scale, and endure.

Driving Enterprise Readiness at Uganda Development Bank

Since February 2022, Barbara has led UDB’s Business Advisory Unit, operationalising one of the most critical pillars of development finance: enterprise preparedness.

Her leadership delivers strategic support across:

• Governance and regulatory compliance
• Strategic partnerships
• Market access and business formalisation
• Business development and financial management

Her work directly strengthens SMEs, women-led businesses, and youth enterprises, ensuring they are resilient, scalable, bankable, and sustainable before financing.

Barbara works closely with Government Ministries and agencies, development partners, and private sector stakeholders to align enterprise support with Uganda’s broader Social and Economic Transformation Agenda.

A Lifelong Champion for Mentorship and Empowerment

Beyond institutional leadership, Barbara has been a professional speaker and mentor for over 18 years, passionately advancing women and youth empowerment in business and community development.

As a facilitator, keynote speaker, moderator, and panelist, her work focuses on leadership development; access to finance; purpose, identity, and values-driven leadership; philanthropy and community impact; and building sustainable enterprises.

With over 15 years in financial services and more than a decade in advocacy and empowerment, she brings credibility, depth, and lived experience to every platform she serves.

Transformational Impact at Stanbic Bank Uganda

Barbara’s legacy in Uganda’s development ecosystem is strongly reflected in her tenure as Corporate Social Investments Manager at Stanbic Bank Uganda, where she led some of the Bank’s most impactful youth, education, and sustainability initiatives.

The National Schools Championship: A Flagship Legacy

Under her leadership, the National Schools Championship evolved into one of Uganda’s largest and most influential youth empowerment platforms.

Key outcomes include:

• Over 500,000 students were directly impacted
• Participation from 300 schools and 2,000 teachers nationwide
• 2,500 business ideas generated, with over 500 implemented

Expansion into a four-tier ecosystem:

• Biz Grow Challenge
• Alum Grow Challenge
• Teach Grow Challenge

The initiative achieved over 40 million global digital views and engagements, placing Ugandan youth innovation on the global stage.

Education, Sustainability, and Environmental Stewardship

Barbara also led integrated education and sustainability programmes, including: a primary school solar initiative benefiting 25,000 students across 80 districts, scholarship partnerships with two universities, collaboration with Leo Africa Institute nurturing 80 young leaders across 7 African countries, a school-based tree planting programme delivering over 100,000 fruit trees.

These initiatives uniquely blended education, leadership, sustainability, and environmental responsibility into a single ecosystem of impact.

Financial Services Foundation and Client Excellence

Earlier in her career, Barbara served as a Private Banker at Stanbic Bank Uganda, managing high-net-worth portfolios exceeding USD 10 million. Her work centred on:

• Bespoke wealth management solutions
• Asset protection and portfolio growth
• Exceptional client experience known as the Butler Service Experience
  Strategic relationship management

This strong grounding in financial discipline, governance, and client-centred service continues to inform her development finance leadership today.

Why She Moves Nations

Barbara Kasekende moves nations by building systems that work for people. She strengthens enterprises before financing, equips youth before opportunity, and aligns institutions with purpose before profit. From boardrooms to classrooms, from national banking halls to community platforms, her leadership has consistently expanded access, built confidence, and unlocked potential at scale. Barbara Kasekende embodies Postdator’s Women Who Move Nations ethos, leading with strategy, building with compassion, and delivering transformative, measurable impact.