General
A winning team: Bernard Onyango (R.I.P) and Gershom Eyoku (R.I.P)
The two were part of the formidable team that oversaw the successful implementation of the affirmative action for more girls to attain University education in Uganda
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The Department of the Academic Registrar (AR) lost two former Academic Registrars, credited with laying a firm foundation for the Department. The late Bernard Onyango served in the Department from 1963 to 1992, first as a Deputy Registrar and later as Academic Registrar. He was laid to rest on Thursday 17th October 2013. The late Gershom Eyoku served in different capacities from August 1978 to Jan 1992, then as an Acting Academic Registrar until his retirement in June 1996. He was laid to rest on Friday 4th October 2013 in Asamuk, Amuria District.
Below is a tribute to them as told by a former workmate, Mr. James G. Okello, Deputy Registrar, Head of Senate Division. Mr. Okello had the privilege of working in the Academic Registrar’s Department under both men, who were a strong force; driving the Academic Registrar’s Department forward even throughout the turbulent political times of the 1970s.
One of the most outstanding contributions of the late Bernard Onyango was the initiation of the 1.5 scheme to enable more female students’ access University education. Mr. James Okello recalls how a speech was drafted for the President to read out at the Graduation ceremony in…. Part of this speech emphasized that Makerere University should initiate a mechanism to ensure that more girls are admitted without compromising the merit system. Bernard Onyango was the brain behind this speech.
“He came to me and asked me to initiate a draft which he improved. Everything happened so fast because the late Onyango knew how to lobby. The speech was sent to the President a week before graduation. He approved the idea and read it out during the Friday graduation; which was the only day reserved for this ceremony then. On Saturday morning, Onyango came to my house. He was happy that the President had read the speech with the female scheme idea in it. He suggested that we head to office and start drafting a proposal for Senate to consider in the coming week,” recalls a jovial Mr. Okello who was then serving as Personal Assistant to Onyango. After drafting the document for Senate, the two went for a drink to celebrate this partial achievement. “There were no posh bars by then. We just went to a pub in the vicinity of the University and had a beer each,” adds the nostalgic Okello.
By combining his excellent lobbying skills and powers as Secretary to Senate, Onyango managed to get Senate to accept the proposal for the 1.5 additional points to female students applying for the Government scholarship. Then University Senate then tasked the Academic Registrar’s Department to detail how the scheme would work. The late Prof. William Ssenteza Kajubi who was then Vice Chancellor and Chair of Senate complemented the efforts of this great team by ensuring that this scheme was successfully implemented after all parties had been brought on board regarding its dynamics.
In the Academic Department was another brilliant and highly committed person, the late Mr. Gershom Eyoku, who was tasked with coming up with the mathematical formula on how exactly the scheme would work. “Eyoku was initially hesitant because he feared that the scheme would compromise the merit system, but after Onyango explained the intention and merits, he (Eyoku) got started on the math. He came up with the 1.5 points which were discussed at other fora and thereafter adopted,” explains Okello.
The Scheme took effect in 1990 and continues to significantly contribute to the increased enrolment of female students. The graduation records show that only about 25% of the graduands were female compared to 75% of their male counterparts prior to the scheme’s introduction. The pattern has changed drastically courtesy of this policy and the private admission scheme; for example, during the last graduation held in January 2013, the figures were 46.7% of female students compared to 53.3% of male students. The successful implementation at Makerere attracted other countries to come to Uganda to benchmark with Makerere. These countries; Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe, have lowered admission cut-off points for female candidates.
As Academic Registrar, Bernard Onyango did not tolerate any examination malpractice. Culprits of the same (both students and staff) were dismissed if found guilty and also publicized in the press. Okello recalls that before exams started, Onyango would issue a strongly worded letter to all faculties cautioning against examination malpractice and stating that names of culprits would be publicized in the press.
“Onyango had a policy that University affairs should not be managed in the press and any negative stories about Makerere University in the press were treated as a tip for internal investigations to start. But when it came to examination malpractice, Mr. Onyango besides getting them dismissed from the university would publicize the names of the culprits in the national newspapers. This served as a big deterrent for those who would have otherwise been involved. We sometimes referred to him as IGG because he did not tolerate any form of malpractice,” asserts Okello.
Onyango in an effort to ensure that persons in leadership in the Academic Units are accountable to staff Members in their units, initiated a policy of election of Deans and Heads of Department. This practice is now enshrined in the universities and other tertiary institutions act and resulted in many young academician taking up leadership positions in the university. Initially such positions fell vacant after the departure by retirement or death of the Office bearers.
Onyango also worked hard to attract scholarships and would go to embassies and make a case for scholarships at Makerere. He was a leader who mentored some of the Vice Chancellors too and would encourage colleagues with leadership qualities to take up positions. He particularly encouraged all employees in the AR’s Department to read each and every document of the University, irrespective of its content or discipline. He emphasized that the team in AR’s Department had to be informed in order to ably contribute and give guidance to whatever was discussed in meetings.
“The pass mark was initially at 40%. He would encourage us to read what the situation was like in other universities and compare with Makerere. Eventually he initiated a policy that the pass mark be raised to 50% as was the practice in other first-class universities. He trained the late Eyoku to take up after him,” adds Okello.
With this continuity ball set rolling, the shift from Onyango to Eyoku was seamless. Onyango informed colleagues in the AR’s Department that he was going on leave but would not come back. That signaled his end of service, as he had clocked 60 and was due for retirement. It also paved way for the fruits he had sown in the Department to be tried and tested in the able leadership of Eyoku. “As a trained mathematician, Eyoku’s style of leadership was either a ‘Yes’ or a ‘No.’ He was highly principled,” explains Okello. “Mr Eyoku was actually approached by the Minister of Education by then to take up the mantle from Mr. Onyango but he declined explaining although he had amassed enough experience, he couldn’t fit in the big shoes Mr. Onyango left behind,” adds Okello.
The two men are remembered for having shown interest in all affairs of the University and were involved in almost all processes of the University right from admission of students, registration, graduation and teaching.
Mr. Alfred Namoah is the current Academic Registrar, having joined the Department in 2000 as a Senior Assistant Registrar. He confirms that the late Onyango and the late Eyoku’s records are impeccable.
“They worked at a time when record management was a purely manual process with no aid of ICTs and yet they had a highly organized system of tracking all records. What they did is admirable,” asserts Namoah. The AR’s Department now handles bigger numbers of students compared to the times then.
“Onyango highly stood out in terms of all University processes, where he emphasized integrity at all levels. Eyoku on the other hand had all the policies of the University on his finger tips. He knew the time a particular policy had come into effect and at what meeting of the Senate,” adds Namoah. This insight is also shared by Dr. Jessica Aguti, a senior lecturer in the College of Education and External Studies, who also doubles as a relative to the late Eyoku. ‘Eyoku is remembered for his sharp knowledge and memory of Senate minutes and was fondly referred to as the Senate encyclopedia,” she says. Eyoku is said to have guided senate by researching on various options and laying them before senate to make a decision. Most of the decisions were hardly challenged in the courts of law because they were well thought out and based on evidence.
The AR’s Department still upholds integrity as a core value. “You need people of high integrity to work here because we deal with very sensitive documents. There are students who will want to change their documents if they see a loophole in the system. I am glad that we have maintained our integrity. The team in the AR’s Department is highly professional, although there is need for improvement in customer care in some of our sections,” concludes Namoah.
Onyango and Eyoku certainly laid firm ground and set high standards.
Their legacies live on. May their souls rest in eternal peace.
By Marion Alina
Public Relations Office
By Moses Lutaaya
Kampala, September 4, 2026 — Makerere University and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have explored new opportunities for strengthening academic, research and innovation collaboration between Uganda, Japan and other African countries, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence (AI), aerospace engineering, materials and remote sensing, food value chains, energy, water and climate change.
The discussions took place on Friday, September 4, 2026, at the Makerere University Main Building in the Vice Chancellor’s Board Room, during a visit by a JICA delegation led by Dr. Okano Takasei, Senior Advisor, Human Development Department of JICA.
Makerere keen to deepen collaboration with JICA
Welcoming the delegation, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs), Prof. Sarah Ssali, highlighted Makerere University’s long-standing tradition of research, international collaboration and contribution to knowledge generation in Uganda and beyond.
Prof. Ssali noted that Makerere has built a strong global research footprint through partnerships with institutions around the world, observing that the University is well positioned to deepen international collaboration as emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, continue to transform research and higher education.
“Uganda has a very long history of doing research, and particularly it has informed research findings in the areas global health research,” Prof. Ssali said, pointing to Uganda’s historical contribution to global scientific knowledge.
She cited the country’s contribution to medical and biological research, including early research on sleeping sickness, noting that Uganda’s unique research environment continues to offer opportunities for scientific discovery.
Prof. Ssali said Makerere’s history of collaboration with Japan is particularly significant, noting that Japanese cooperation has contributed not only to academic and research activities but also to infrastructure development and other sectors in Uganda.
She cited the establishment of the JICA building at Makerere, describing it as one of the visible symbols of Japan’s long-standing partnership with Makerere University.
According to Prof. Ssali, the building, which houses College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS) disciplines of geology, petroleum studies and administrative offices, was constructed during her undergraduate years and completed within a remarkably short period.
Prof. Ssali said the long-standing relationship between Uganda, Makerere University and Japan provides a strong foundation upon which new areas of collaboration can be built. She encouraged the visiting JICA delegation to explore the University and identify areas where existing partnerships could be strengthened or new areas of cooperation developed.
“Please take time and explore and see where either you already have a footprint, where you’ve ever had a footprint, or where you could explore new areas,” she said.
Prof. Ssali added that Makerere was privileged to host the JICA delegation and expressed optimism that the visit would lead to meaningful and sustainable partnerships.
Strengthening Joint Collaboration through AJ-ASPIRE
Dr. Okano, in his remarks as leader of the delegation said the visit formed part of a broader JICA initiative aimed at promoting academic and research collaboration between Japanese and African universities.
He explained that the initiative was launched on the occasion of the ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), held in Yokohama in September 2025, with the objective of strengthening academic and research partnerships between Japan and Africa.
According to Dr. Okano, the initiative is intended to benefit both African and Japanese universities by providing platforms for internationalisation, collaborative research and the exchange of knowledge, researchers and students. “We would like to play a role of facilitator between universities in Japan and Africa and Uganda as well,” he said.
He explained that JICA is currently promoting the initiative through three African hub universities where JICA already has ongoing projects and experts on the ground.
The three institutions are Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (E-JUST) in Egypt, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) in Kenya, and Stellenbosch University in South Africa.
Dr. Okano said the selection of the three institutions was informed by the presence of ongoing JICA-supported projects and experts who can facilitate collaboration between the hub universities and institutions across Africa and Japan.
The hub universities are currently coordinating research with Japanese universities in strategic areas, with E-JUST focusing on energy, JKUAT leading work on food value chains, and Stellenbosch University focusing on water and climate change.
Dr. Okano said JICA was particularly pleased to explore collaboration with Makerere University under the African-Japan Initiative for Research and Education Partnerships, known as AJ-ASPIRE.
He outlined three major avenues through which Makerere could participate in the initiative.
The first is participation in existing research programmes hosted by the three hub universities. He added that Makerere researchers could join ongoing research on energy, food value chains, water and climate change, thereby creating opportunities to work with Japanese and other African researchers.
“We would like to explore opportunity for researchers from Makerere University to participate in these ongoing research activities and expand collaboration with Japanese and African partner institutions,” Dr. Okano said.
The second area is the development of new research networks in artificial intelligence and aerospace engineering. Dr. Okano said JICA was planning to establish new research groups focusing on the two areas and would be interested in having Makerere researchers participate in the emerging networks. “We would like to also invite researchers from Makerere University to join these networks and implementation of future collaboration in these two research topics, aerospace engineering and AI,” he said.
The third proposed avenue is increased collaboration between Makerere University and E-JUST, which Dr. Okano said offers fully funded scholarship opportunities for African students through a programme jointly supported by the governments of Egypt and Japan.
He noted that a number of Makerere graduates have already benefited from the programme, including researchers who have pursued doctoral studies and research opportunities in Egypt and Japan.
Dr. Okano cited the example of Mr. Abdonoor Kalibala, a Makerere alumnus whom he recently met in Hiroshima, Japan, following completion of PhD in Mechatronics and Robotics engineering at E-JUST. Mr. Kalibala conducted research in Japan for up to six months under the supervision of a Japanese professor as part of his doctoral programme.
Dr. Okano said such programmes could help strengthen the movement of researchers between Uganda, Egypt and Japan and create lasting institutional partnerships.
He added that JICA is also providing small research grants to alumni of the programmes to help them maintain and expand research collaboration involving Japan, E-JUST and African institutions.
He said Makerere could leverage such opportunities to increase the participation of its students and researchers in international research networks.
AI, Materials and Remote Sensing and International Relations Set the Pace
Prof. Robert Wamala, Director of Research, Innovations and Partnerships at Makerere University, said the visit followed an online engagement held a few weeks earlier between Makerere University and JICA, during which several areas and units within the University were identified as potential points of collaboration.
Prof. Wamala said these included the Makerere University AI Lab, the University’s International Office and researchers working in space engineering, particularly in materials and remote sensing.
He welcomed the transition from online discussions to physical engagement, saying the visit would allow JICA representatives to interact directly with researchers, academic units and University authorities. “This interest is being followed up through an in-person visit, which provides us an opportunity for JICA to engage directly with the relevant units and researchers at Makerere University,” Prof. Wamala said.
For Makerere, he added, the initiative provides an opportunity to connect the University’s research strengths with Japanese universities, research institutions and development partners to address shared development challenges.
Prof. Wamala said the University was particularly interested in identifying practical areas of collaboration that could move beyond general discussions to concrete research partnerships, joint projects and opportunities for students and researchers.
He noted that the JICA delegation’s on-campus interactions scheduled to take place throughout the day would enable the two sides to identify specific areas of mutual interest. “We hope these engagements will help us identify specific areas of future interest and provide a basis for developing concrete areas of collaboration under the AJ-ASPIRE,” Prof. Wamala said.
He reiterated Makerere’s commitment to strengthening international research partnerships and thanked JICA for its continued interest in the University.
Dr. Okano, was accompanied by Mr. Ito Idomu, Research and Advisor at the Embassy of Japan, Mr. Osaki Mistuhiro from JICA headquarters, Ms. Eric Maeda from JICA Headquarters, and Ms. Ruth Mbabazi from JICA Uganda.
JICA follow-up meetings with Makerere research units
Following the high-level meeting in the Vice Chancellor’s Board Room, the JICA team, together with the Directorate of Research, Innovations and Partnerships, proceeded to engage with key research and administrative units at Makerere University identified as strategic to the proposed areas of collaboration.
The delegation held meetings with the Makerere University AI Lab, led by Dr. Joyce Nabende of the College of Computing and Information Sciences (COCIS), to explore opportunities for cooperation in artificial intelligence and related emerging technologies.
The team also met officials from the Makerere University International Office, led by Mr. Mathias Ssemanda, where discussions focused on opportunities for strengthening international academic linkages, mobility and institutional partnerships.
A further engagement was held with the Department of Geomatics and Land Management, focusing on materials and remote sensing, led by Prof. Lydia Kayondo from the College of Engineering, Design, Art and Technology (CEDAT).
The engagements provided an opportunity for the JICA team and Makerere researchers to move from broad discussions on collaboration to more specific conversations around research interests, expertise, existing projects and potential areas for joint work.
The visit marks an important step towards strengthening Makerere University’s engagement with Japanese and African research institutions under AJ-ASPIRE, while opening opportunities for researchers and students to participate in emerging international networks in artificial intelligence, aerospace engineering, remote sensing and other strategic areas of science, technology and innovation.
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