General
Makerere Co-operative elects new office bearers
Members of the Makerere University Multi-Purpose Co-operative Society Limited (MUMCS) held their first Annual General Meeting on 17th October 2014, during which they elected new office bearers. They agreed that all those who were serving on the interim committee retain their positions and the unoccupied positions be filled. The following are the new office bearers: Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe: Chairperson; Dr. Muhammad Musoke Kiggundu: Vice Chairperson; Dr. Winston Tumps Ireeta: Secretary; Dr. John Mulindwa Kitayimbwa: Treasurer; Olive Mbabazi: Publicity Secretary; Prof. Jacob G. Agea: Chairperson Investments Committee; Betty N. Kirenga: Chairperson Audit Committee; Scovia Prossy Namuyaba: Chairperson Finance and Administration Committee; Assoc. Prof. Lawrence Mugisha: Chairperson, Credit Committee.
The Chairperson, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe was optimistic that the cooperative will grow and become a big society in the very near future. 22 of the 51 fully registered members were in attendance. The Secretary, Dr. Winston Tumps Ireeta, reported that the Cooperative had a balance of 9m on its active DFCU bank account. He observed that there is need for more members to join and reap from this highly promising venture. “The process of getting the deduction code for the monthly subscriptions is almost complete. I encourage members to continue paying their monthly subscriptions directly to the bank until the deduction code is fully operational,” he added. Monthly deductions of at least 50,000/= are made by all subscribed members.
In the reactions, members recommended that MUMCS invites resource persons to share key lessons on investments and savings. They also recommended that MUMCS initiates its own rules and regulations and owns an independent office for smooth operations. The Vice Chairperson, Dr. Kiggundu Musoke, informed the meeting that he was closely following up a request made to His Excellency President Yoweri Museveni to give MUMCS a boost in capital funds. To generate more income for MUMCS, ten thousand (10,000) shares are to be floated each at 50,000/=. These will be available to registered members to buy. MUMCS was started at the beginning of this year, 2014 with the aim of helping Makerere University staff save as well as invest as a community to better their welfare.
To join MUMCS, one is required to first of all be a member of Staff of Makerere University. Secondly, he/she then fills in the application and designation of beneficiary forms. Membership is 50,000/= and one has to buy at least one share at 50,000/=. The forms can be requested from Dr. Ireeta on ireeta@cns.mak.ac.ug or can be picked from Ms. Olive Mbabazi in the DVC(F&A)’s office.
Article by Seretariat, MUMCS.
General
Makerere University and Xiangtan University Advance Strategic Partnership in Chemical Engineering
Makerere University and Xiangtan University are set to update their close to 20-year academic partnership, with a new focus on launching a joint Master’s degree program in Chemical Engineering and expanding student and staff exchange initiatives.
The commitment was reaffirmed during a recent visit by a delegation from Xiangtan University to Makerere University headed by Professor Dingyu Ou, in the company of Mr. Tang Fei and Professor Gilbert Gumshabe, the Chinese and Ugandan Directors of the Confucius Institute at Makerere University respectively.
While addressing the delegation, Professor Nawangwe highlighted that this initiative is part of a broader strategy to diversify academic offerings and contribute to national development through training in Chemical Engineering. Through this new initiative, the University will better prepare graduates for the petrochemical industry and support the country’s industrial growth.
The Vice Chancellor appreciated that the proposed collaboration aims to address Uganda’s growing need for industrial expertise, particularly as the country develops its petroleum sector. The two universities here are working toward a 1+2 training model, which will enable Makerere students to gain practical experience and access advanced laboratory facilities at Xiangtan University.
Professor Nawangwe further reiterated that “our relationship with the people of China, not just for Makerere but also for a big part of Uganda, has been opened wider by the establishment of the Confucius Institute, considering that many other collaborations like one being discussed now have come through this collaboration.”
The head of the Xiangtan delegation, Professor Dingyu Ou, expressed appreciation for the meeting, and acknowledged the history between the institutions. “As mentioned, we have a very long relationship and a very stable friendship between our two universities.”
Professor Ou extended appreciation for the support provided to the Confucius Institute at Makerere, the care shown to his colleagues, and looked forward to the successful start of the Chemical Engineering collaboration.
Assuring the delegation of Makerere’s readiness for the collaboration, Ms. Hawa Ndagire Kajumba the Lead, Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagement, Makerere University Advancement Office, aligned with the Vice Chancellor’s emphasis of University goal to have both theory and practice imparted to the students.
She said “the curriculum of the university and Uganda as a whole is moving towards competence-based education training to ensure students are equipped to demonstrate those skills in the actual field, particularly regarding petroleum exploration.”
Ms. Ndagire Kajumba also emphasised a shift in strategy for the partnership office, saying, “we are moving away from just signing MOUs that collect dust, and moving towards those that are more collaborative to benefit our faculty and students, just like this one.”
Professor Gilbert Kumushabe aligned his remarks with those of the Vice Chancellor and Ms. Ndagire Kajumba, and described the method used at Xiangtan University as “actually competence-based teaching.”
Based on his recent visit, Prof. Gumoshabe shared that students in China are divided into groups with dedicated teachers to perform practical, hands-on work beyond the theoretical lecturers. He expressed gladness that the same was being adopted for the Ugandan context.
Both institutions are now working to finalise the specific agreements for the joint degree and exchange programs. Beyond academic training, the collaboration will advance cultural and professional exchange.
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