Ugandan executive Milton Mukula lands top role at West Africa’s MMD Steel Group

Ugandan commercial and marketing executive Milton George Mukula has been appointed Commercial and Product Development Lead at MMD Steel Group, handing him responsibility across 10 African markets.

Mukula will be based in Ghana and will support commercial teams in Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin, Angola, Mali, Niger, Togo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi.

The appointment marks a major career step for the senior executive, moving him from East African commercial leadership into a wider Pan-African role.

His new mandate covers commercial performance, product development, market expansion, exports and route-to-market strategy.

He will also support MMD Steel Group’s push to strengthen its commercial presence across Africa.

Mukula brings more than 18 years of experience in sales, marketing and commercial leadership.

His career has included roles at Bidco Oils Uganda Ltd, Uganda Breweries Ltd under Diageo, Airtel Uganda Ltd and Uganda Baati Ltd, among other organisations.

His four years at Uganda Baati, part of the Safal Group, also gave him direct experience in the steel and building solutions industry.

That background means Mukula is not entering the steel sector for the first time. Instead, he is taking experience built in East and Southern Africa into a wider continental assignment.

His earlier work across fast-moving consumer goods, telecommunications and steel has also exposed him to different distribution models, customer segments and market structures.

Mukula’s French-language background could also prove useful in his new portfolio.

Before moving into sales and marketing, he studied French for six years and later taught the language for two years.

Several of the markets under his new mandate, including Burkina Faso, Mali, Benin, Togo, Niger and the Democratic Republic of Congo, are Francophone.

The role places him in a position where commercial strategy must also account for language, culture and differences in local business practices.

At MMD Steel Group, Mukula’s assignment will go beyond conventional marketing.

As Commercial and Product Development Lead, he will help connect market demand with product development and commercial execution.

He will also work on market growth, distribution, exports and expansion into new opportunities.

Mukula holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing.

He also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Marketing and a Level 7 Postgraduate Diploma in Sustainable Transformation in Global Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing in the United Kingdom.

His other qualifications include a Diploma in Business Studies from Makerere University and a Certificate in Project Planning from ICDL Africa.

He is also a CIM professional tutor.

The appointment comes at a time when steel demand across Africa continues to be shaped by urbanisation, housing, infrastructure development and industrial growth.

For steel manufacturers, however, growth depends on more than production capacity. It also requires stronger distribution networks, market knowledge, product development and effective commercial systems.

Mukula’s new role brings those areas together.