General
Nuffic Midterm Evaluation Team visits Makerere
Makerere University Faculty of Computing and Information Technology, is coordinating a project on “Strengthening ICT Training and Research Capacity in the four Public Universities in Uganda” with Kyambogo University, Gulu University, Mbarara University of Science and Technology as her Southern Partners.
Makerere University Faculty of Computing and Information Technology, is coordinating a project on “Strengthening ICT Training and Research Capacity in the four Public Universities in Uganda” with Kyambogo University, Gulu University, Mbarara University of Science and Technology as her Southern Partners.
The project started on 1st June 2007 and will end on 31st May 2011. This project is funded by The Netherlands Government through The Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation (Nuffic).
A three member team; Mr. Henk J. van Linde & Mrs. Franciska de Jong (from The Netherlands) and Dr. Khalid Mughal (from Norway) are in Uganda from 3rd – 12th August 2009 to carry out midterm evaluation of the above mentioned project.
During the meeting with the Acting Vice Chancellor, Prof. David J. Bakibinga held this morning, a number of ideas were raised on how Makerere could expand and strengthen her ICT capacity.The Head of the Team Mr. Henk J. van Linde (left) in his remarks appreciated the efforts made by Makerere University in promoting ICT and noted the progress made thus far as indicated by change in strategy from “building” to “strengthening”.
Mrs. Franciska de Jong (pictured) has been a full professor of language technology at the University of Twentesince 1992. She is also affiliated to the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, where she is managing director of the Erasmus Studio. She has a background in theoretical linguistics and started to work on language technology in 1985 at Philips Research where she worked on machine translation. Currently, her main research interest is in the field of multimedia indexing, text mining, semantic access, cross-language retrieval and the disclosure of cultural heritage collections (in particular spoken audio archives), and she coordinates the Human Media Interaction research group.
Khalid Mughal (pictured) an Associate Professor at the Department of Informatics at the University of Bergen, Norway, was a member of the team that carried out the initial pre-project evaluation and his findings were key in promoting facilitation for the project. At the University of Bergen, Professor Mughal is responsible for designing and implementing various courses, which use Java, at the Department of Informatics. Over the years, he has taught Programming Languages (Java, C/C++, Pascal), Software Engineering (Object-Oriented System Development), Data bases (Data Modeling and Database Management Systems), and Compiler Techniques. He has also given numerous courses and seminars at various levels in object-oriented programming and system development, using Java and Java-related technology, both at the University and for the IT industry.
Accompanying the Team, Prof. Venansius Baryamureeba , Dean Faculty of Computer Science appreciated the contribution of Nuffic and other donor agencies in the promotion of ICT services in Makerere University. He also paid special tribute to Prof. Khalid Mughal for the role played during the formative stages of setting up the Institute of Computer Science and the numerous lectures and talks given. He then invited Prof Khalid to stay behind after the evaluation and give a series of lectures, which he gladly obliged to.
In conclusion the Ag. Vice Chancellor thanked the team for their courtesy call and wished them good luck as they traversed the country carrying out their evaluations. Furthermore, he encouraged Professor Khalid and Mrs. Franciska de Jong to share with the University’s e-learning department and Institute of Languages respectively, on ways to improve their teaching methods.
Organised by the Makerere Debating Union – a student-led initiative, the Inter-college Debate Tournament was held on 11th and 12th April 2025 with a vision to leave no student behind by nurturing a community of confident, articulate, and visionary leaders who will drive positive change in society. The tournament was held in three preliminary rounds, followed by semi-finals and a grand finale.
The first round covered democracy and youth participation in politics, while the second round covered inequality and wealth distribution, and the third, the ban on export of raw materials. The semi-final round debated apprenticeship for blue-collar jobs, while the grand finale debated national budget allocations for healthcare and education. In the spirit of inclusivity, all colleges, including the Jinja Campus participated in the tournament.
Commenting on the choice of topics, the organisers noted Makerere University as a bastion of academic excellence has a profound responsibility to cultivate the next generation of leaders who will shape the future of our nation. These leaders, they added, ought to be equipped with 21st century skills of self-expression, critical thinking, and problem-solving so as to navigate the complexities of an ever-evolving world.
On the whole, Makerere Inter-college Debates were conceived as a strategic initiative to foster a culture of intellectual curiosity, creativity, and innovation. The Debating Union aims to empower the future leaders by providing a platform for students to engage in respectful discourse, articulate their thoughts, as well as develop their critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
Furthermore, the Debates serve as a platform for not only honing the intellectual prowess of students but also cultivating leadership skills, teamwork, and communication abilities that are essential for success in an increasingly complex and interconnected world. It is envisaged that this initiative will have a lasting impact on the lives of students, by exposing them to debates on topical issues that can shape the mindsets of transformative leaders our nation needs.
After a thrilling two days of debate, Daphine Kemigisha and Jibril Ssekandi from the School of Law (SoL) emerged as winners of the Makerere University Inter-college Debate Tournament 2025, while Olara Emmanuel George from the College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity (CoVAB) was the Public Speech Champion, and Namujuzi Martha Mociita from the College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS) was the Poetry Champion.
The 2025 Tournament was organized by Mayanja Owen and Nkalubo Oprah – 91st Guild Representative Councils (GRCs) of the Debate Union, Akatwijuka Arthur – Chairperson Debate Union, and Debate Union Representatives from colleges. The Uganda National NGO Forum (UNNGOF) partnered with the Debate Union to deliver the 2025 edition.
Addressing students at the award ceremony, UNNGOF’s Mr. Derrick Baluuku encouraged the youth to step out of their comfort zones and think of solutions to inspire change in their communities.
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