For most employees, being caught dozing on the job would be a fireable offense, a clear sign of a lack of seriousness. But for a young Moses Laliza, then a teenage gatekeeper, it was the moment his life began to change, thanks to a supervisor who saw potential instead of a problem.
Laliza’s journey began with a setback. After an unfortunate incident took the life of his education sponsor while he was still in high school, he took a “survival job” as a gatekeeper at CWG Uganda, a multinational IT solutions company that had recently opened its doors in Kololo. The job, however, was painfully slow. With few staff or visitors, the young man found it difficult to stay awake.
One day, his supervisor, Peter Tumusiime, found him dozing. Instead of a reprimand, Tumusiime offered a piece of advice that would alter Laliza’s trajectory: find more things to do, like running errands for the staff inside the office.
Taking the advice to heart, Laliza began spending more time inside the building than at the gate. He watched the employees work and grew fascinated by the “magic behind the completion of tasks” on their computers. Though he had no authority to touch company equipment, a friendly colleague allowed him to use a personal computer. Laliza seized the chance, not for entertainment, but for education. He dove into online tutorials, learning everything he could about computer mechanics and hardware.
He quickly noticed a critical gap: everyone at the company handled software, but when a computer broke down, the repairs were outsourced. He saw an opportunity.
His first test came when a friend’s office laptop malfunctioned. His friend was initially hesitant, fearing the repercussions of letting an unauthorized person—especially a gateman—handle company property. But Laliza’s persistence paid off. To everyone’s surprise, he successfully repaired not one, but two computers, all without using any official company tools. His raw talent was undeniable.
This display of skill opened the door to his next big step. CWG Uganda runs an academy to skill young professionals, many of whom are later employed by the company. Despite having no academic papers, Laliza’s “unstoppable” quest for knowledge convinced his bosses to give him a chance. He proposed a bold arrangement: he asked for a bursary to join the academy and offered to compensate the company by repairing its broken computers. Tumusiime, now the Country Manager, accepted the deal.
One and a half years later, Laliza graduated at the top of his class. While management had already decided to keep him, he proactively asked for a job. Still, he worried that his lack of formal qualifications would hold him back in a competitive field. Driven by this concern, he enrolled in an ICT training institute, where he once again excelled.
With proven skills and new qualifications, he confidently asked for an engineer’s role. “I had proved my worth,” he stated.
Today, Laliza is an End-User Support Engineer at CWG Uganda. The transformation is complete. He now leads a team, sits in meetings with managers, and handles clients—a world away from the sleepy gate he once manned.
Tumusiime says the company discovered a “gem” in Laliza, whom he describes as “amazing with a future ahead of him”. He holds up Laliza’s story as a prime example of why the government should support private sector training programs that empower young people to drive the country’s vision forward.
Laliza is not the only one CWG has helped grow; Tumusiime notes that others have even gone on into academia, proving that with the right opportunity, hidden talent can flourish anywhere.
