A Jack of Sports, Academics and Business

A Jack of Sports, Academics and Business

Q1:    Who is Dr. Sebbaale Kato?

I was born in 1965 in a polygamous family of 20 children at Gayaza village in Masaka District. I attended Matale Boarding Primary School for his primary education and King’s College Budo from Senior One to Senior Six. I was among the top three students in the country at both Ordinary and Advanced level. I joined Makerere University in 1983 for a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB).

Q2:    What professional qualifications and fellowships have you attained since you left Makerere University Medical School?

I am a consultant physician, laparoscopic surgeon and gastroenterologist and a member of the Council of the College of Surgeons of East, Central,          and southern Africa. I am a Fellow of the International College of Surgeons and World Association of Laparoscopic Surgeons. I am also a fellow of the African Leadership Initiative and Aspen Global Network of Leadership.” I also hold a Postgraduate Diploma in Management of Uganda Management Institute. I was a senior lecturer at Makerere University Medical School for 20 years.

Q3:    As an academic, comment on Uganda’s education system

I blame the current education system for producing students who cannot analyze world problems but instead simply teach students how to pass    examinations. We also passed – yes – but it is not the way it is done today. When you compare students of our time with those of today, those of our times seemed to be brighter yet they did not perform the way today’s students perform. Students need to be taught how to deal with the real world problems and not simply passing examinations through cramming.

Q4:    You were very good at sports and very good at academics during your school days. How did you do that?

The illusion that it is impossible to excel in sports and academics at the same time is wrong. I cannot say that I was too much in sports but for one to balance the two, you simply need to be responsible the way I was. I was a captain of the cricket team from S.4 to S.6 but that did not deter me from passing well my examinations. I also played cricket for Uganda as an International Player in 1983.

Q5:    Dr. Sebbaale Kato name is much associated with sports. Share with us your sports story.

I started my sports career quite early from primary school running and javelin. When I joined King’s College Budo, I started playing cricket right from Senior One. Cricket was the thing. It was the main sport in the school during our time. Cricket exposes you to all sorts of sports.

I am proud to say that I was the captain of my House right from Senior Three, Four, Five and Six. I was the youngest captain on the school cricket team and we won the school so many tournaments under my captainship. I also captained Makerere University Cricket Team and the East African Games in Uganda. I played for Wonders Cricket Club, Africa Cricket Club and Uganda Corporate Team.

I was chairman of Uganda Cricket Association for five years. I was also the Cricket Development Director for the entire African region for a good four years.

Now I am a golfer, I swim and I jog. I think I have a rich background.

Q6:    Why did you leave the comfort of cricket leadership and went into the new field of golf?

I believe in structures. Cricket has formal administrative ; the CEO, Secretariat and highly paid and motivated staff that has enabled it to attract funding. When I was satisfied that cricket could stand without me, I moved on to golf; not a bad sport to retire into. Unfortunately people think that golf is for the old people. No. Today, the champions of golf are the young.

Q7:    What are you doing, as one of the golf leaders in the country, to ensure that golf in Uganda keeps in tandem with our Kenya neighbours?

Golf in Uganda is moving pretty well. Ofcourse Kenya has many golf courses – we cannot compare. But a lot is happening with Uganda golf. Previously we had only two golf courses around Kampala – Uganda Golf Club and Entebbe Golf Club. But now we have added on Palm Valley Golf & Country Club at Akright Kakungulu Estates and Lake Victoria Serena Golf Resort and Spa at Kigo, the best golf course I have ever seen on the African continent.

We are opening up golf courses literally in every major town, the latest being Masaka. All these courses were there but as you know land issues in the country … but slowly, we are starting to respect sports and sports facilities are being returned back to the rightful stakeholders.

Q8:    We do not hear your name in the circles of golf leadership. Are you about to offer yourself for the top post President of Uganda Golf Union?

I am not about to go for President post. I am comfortable remaining with the development committee. I was the Development Director at Uganda Golf Club Development Committee that was set to oversee the strategic plan of the club. I was chairman of committee for two years. I have now moved down to Vice Captain because I am too busy with Case Hospital.

Q9:    Golf in Uganda has a major sponsorship challenge. What do you say about it?

We are still struggling but things are getting better than before. What is lagging us behind is that we do not have key sponsors for our professionals. They are lagging behind Kenya because they do not have their own tournaments to play and build their golfing talents.

Unfortunately, government is not helping us much. The contribution they make to National Council of Sports for all sports is very small. I do not really know how much golf gets but whatever it is, it is very little.

Kenya government is giving a lot golf and this is plough back in form of golf tourism. Imagine Kenya Open Championship purse alone is USD.1000,000!

Businesses also need to incorporate golf in their sponsorship plans. They should know that golfers are decision makers and that by sponsoring golf, they will be putting their brands in the limelight at a broader level. In business, there is what they call Pareto Principle  – putting your effort in 20% to get 80% of your income instead of putting a lot of effort in 80% to get 20%. I believe 20% is around golfers.

Q10:  Related to the above, what should professionals do to attract their own sponsorship?

Professionals should believe in themselves because they have got talent, understand the potential they have and harness that potential to attract sponsorship.

Professionals should organize themselves into a professional outfit that recognizes and highlights them as such. They have to respect their profession, be disciplined, organize themselves and make themselves visible to the business community. They should not accept to decimate into nonentities. They need to sit down and structure themselves, structure Uganda Professional Association (UPGA) well, cut out all bottlenecks and highlight themselves as a unit.

Q11:  What was your reason for rebranding Case Medcare to Case MedInsurance in the recent past?

Case MedCare as formed as a Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) to advise and encourage people to prepay for their health services to help them in future when they need them and probably at the time when they have no money to pay.

When it was Case MedCare, it was difficult for people’s minds to understand it as a health insurance organization. Rebranding to Case MedInsurance is meant to make the message clearer.

Q12:  How accessible are Case MedInsurance offerings?

Our services are available in all major districts of Uganda. If you have a Case Card, you can approach any health unit and they treat you. Even in Kampala, you can go to Nsambya Hospital, Mengo Hospital, Nakasero Hospital, IHK, AAR or IMC and get treatment.

Q13:  Uganda is having many providers of health insurance. Aren’t you getting swallowed up by more established competitors?

We are not in a competition. Uganda’s population is approaching 50 million people and the Doctor : Population ratio is about 10:20. It gets even worse when you consider specialized doctors like physicians, surgeons, gynecologists and pediatricians. Every doctor in this country has enough work to do.

Spreading out with a Case Card is to make it convenient to the customer. I cannot build units everywhere; I do not have that capacity. But there are facilities that can accept to treat my patients on agreed terms.

We are building Case Buganda Road as a highly specialized unit. All basic cases can be treated anywhere with referrals for special emergencies at Buganda Road.

Q14:  What is Case Advantage?

There are a number of health insurance organizations in the country. The advantage with Case MedInsurance is that it is health based. That is our background and that is what we know best. We do not insure anything else outside health.

Q15:  In your view, why do businesses fail?

Lack of clear vision.  For you to succeed in business, formulate your vision, make it visible in your head and practice it day to day. For instance, our vision is to provide health services to make a difference in the health sector. This is our drive. You do not go into business just because you have seen your neighbor making money. If your drive is to make money, the moment you do not make it, like it was during Covid-19 times, you just surrender. This explains why original investors stay in business while new ones come and go.

Q16:  Where do we see you in the next decade?

At individual level, I have been a lecturer at Makerere University Medical School for 20 years. I started Case health services. I started Case health insurance services. I have ventured in 100 acres of Hass Avocado. I am a Ugandan, I am going to stay in Uganda and will get into whatever business that is viable and that I can afford.

For Case, we want to develop that unit into a top end centre of excellence. The vision today is to be the apex of medical services in the region. We want to morph into a medical university but we want it to come out organically.

Q17:  Please, advise golfers.

Keep your heads down, focus on the ball, you are doing well. Numbers are growing. We want to push golf to schools. By the way, I built the first golf range at King’s College Budo and in just a year, we management to beat schools, including international schools.

As golfers, let us keep fighting to regain our facilities like we have done at Masaka. Let us look after them and let us keep up with the good structures and improve them everyday to proper well organized professional units.