The two Deputy Vice Chancellors in charge of Academic Affairs and Finance and Administration, Assoc. Prof. Ernest Okello Ogwang and Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe respectively, toured the proposed lecture rooms in the halls of residence on 30th Jan 2015. The tour was aimed at assessing the readiness of the Halls of Mitchell, Livingstone, Lumumba and the Bamboo house (located at the Guest house gardens) to host lectures this semester.
These rooms which initially served as dining halls have since been converted into lecture spaces, especially following the cessation of the use of the Main Hall as teaching space. The conversions have involved fitting the halls with classroom furniture and sprucing up the floor. The sitting capacity of the halls ranges from 300-500. 
“Efforts have been made to change these halls from dining halls to lecture rooms. Improvements will continue to be made and by the end of the year we will have a better picture. We are in this together and I urge the entire university community to support the ongoing developments,” said Dr. Okello Ogwang, the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Academic Affairs.
A report from the Estates and Works Department indicates that these halls are in need of renovation both on the outside and inside. Installation of public address systems, improvement of lighting and constant maintenance among other works are some of the activities still lined up in order to fully convert the former dining halls into fully-fledged lecture spaces. The Deputy Vice Chancellor Finance and Administration, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe has since directed the Estates and Works Department to make emergency procurements.
“The Office of the DVC (F&A) has commenced procurement of 500 additional chairs with writing pads and public address systems for all the new lecture halls. The new chairs will replace broken ones and also supplement those already transferred. Efforts are being made to finalise this procurement as soon as possible,” explained Prof. Nawangwe.
“Given that the Main hall is a meeting point for many other functions, we need to find new space. We continue to look forward to the African Development Bank (ADB) project which will open up even more space. When you have your own space, it makes it easier to plan as opposed to hiring. We need to put our heads together, so that we utilise the available space harmoniously,” added Dr. Okello Ogwang.

The ADB funding will be used to support the construction of two centralized lecture facilities; one at the UCB slab (College of Business And Management Sciences- CoBAMS) and the other at the foundation next to the College of Humanities and social Sciences- CHUSS. This funding will also be used to put up a multi-disciplinary complex at the College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS). Each of these structures is hoped to have a 10,000 sitting capacity, with lecture theatres that can accommodate up to 1,000 students at a go.

Dr. Ogwang also expressed his gratitude to all Members of Staff who contributed to the recently successfully concluded 65th graduation ceremony. He however urged them to not to relax. “I sincerely appreciate all members of Staff for the hard work put into the successful completion of the 65th graduation ceremony. This is one of the key ways we account to the government, development partners, the general public and other stakeholders. The second semester is here and I urge all of us to keep up the hard work and focus on excellent results in each of our dockets. I also ask continuing students to guard against malpractices in any way or form,” he concluded.

Article by Marion Alina

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