General
CBA11 Youth Conference: Youth urged to take lead in climate change adaptation drive
Over 150 youth from Uganda and across borders participated in the two-day Community Based Adaption (CBA11) Youth Conference aimed at engaging and sensitizing the youth on Community adaptation and resilience to climate change to raise awareness and build a climate change knowledge base and innovations.
The Youth Conference was held at Hotel Africana Kampala on June 28 and 29, 2017 and focused on the theme ‘Enhancing the Ability of Youth to Build Ecosystem Resilience’. It was an affiliation session parallel to the main CBA11 International conference held from 26th to 29th June 2017 at Royal Suites Bugolobi, Kampala.
The youth were practically engaged in dialogues and discussions on climate change adaptation, resilience and mitigation; climate smart agriculture; sustainable agricultural transformation in an era of climate change; youth skills and knowledge for long-term future planning; youth leadership for climate change resilience, gender equality and adaptation planning; skills and knowledge for climate action and sharing climate change experiences.
The youth conference was organized by Makerere University Centre for Climate Change Research and Innovations (MUCCRI) hosted at the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) in collaboration with European Union (EU), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of United Nations, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and the Ministry of Water and Environment.
Officially opening the Youth Conference, the chief Guest and FAO Country representative for Uganda, Alhaji M. Jallow highlighted that 90% of the disasters in the world are due to climate change and as a result, many ecosystems in Uganda have been degraded. He said the youth being the majority of the global population; they should be empowered and considered as resources that can drive agriculture and climate change adaptation and mitigation.
“The youth need to build their capacity to make them understand the drives of climate change and the actions needed to embattle the effects must be realized. Youth can build ecosystems, so we need to invest in building their capacity and resilience towards climate change and sustainable agricultural practices,” remarked Alhaji M. Jallow.
According to Alhaji Jallow, climate change is the greatest threat to agriculture that discourages the youth from practicing in it. He noted that when the effects of climate change are thoroughly addressed, many youth will be attracted to agribusiness and agricultural production and their attitude will change. This would impact on their consciousness to work together as a community to build the resilience of degraded ecosystems and ensure sustainable production of food, animal, feed and energy for the present and future generations.
“Agriculture being the major economic backbone of Uganda, yet climate change remains a great threat to it; the youth continue to be discouraged to join the activity. Through enhancing climate change adoption towards agribusiness, agricultural production can be achieved. This will greatly counteract with the food insecurity problem.” Alhaji Jallow said.
He further noted that FAO works towards agricultural sustainability and resilience and has put in place programmes supporting different youth activities including; programmes on water livestock production; supporting youth activities like the Annual School Farm Camp and international dialogues between Ugandan secondary schools and those in Europe. He added that they have to consolidate the available resources and also introduce new aspects to provide some kind of water source to the people. He thanked the European Union for funding the projects.
He commended the good collaboration and support by CAES towards research and environmental activities. He revealed FAO’s commitment to developing, training and financing youth towards climate change adaptation and mitigation and will work on knowledge sharing and capacity building for the youth. To build a world that everybody desires to live in, he urged the government, society organizations and development partners to increase their support for the youth towards climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Prof. John Ddumba-Ssentamu, the Makerere University Vice Chancellor informed participants that the CBA11 Youth Conference was a welcome opportunity to expose university students and other youth in public and private institutions to the latest information on key activities undertaken by different stakeholders to adapt and address climate change towards development of the nation. He noted that higher institutions of learning have a great role to play towards realizing climate change adaptation and mitigation.
“Institutions of higher learning should take a lead in addressing climate change adaptation by producing knowledgeable and multi-skilled graduates, providing evidence-based options and solutions to support formulation of interventions and appropriate policies for accelerating national and regional development. Makerere University is passionate about climate change and related research activities. It takes part in organizing and actively participating in activities aimed at engaging the youth in addressing the challenges of climate change,” the Vice Chancellor said.
In efforts to address the challenges of climate change, Prof. John Ddumba-Ssentamu said that the institution established the Makerere University Climate Change Centre for Research and Innovations (MUCCRI) to enhance climate change research capacity, extension outreach and mainstream climate sciences in undergraduate programs at the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES).
He encouraged the youth to take lead in driving climate change adaptation and appealed to the participants to always seek for knowledge on climate change to pave for national and global development. He thanked the development partners for collaborating with Makerere University and also expressed gratitude to the Government of Uganda for supporting and endorsing Makerere University to host CBA11 Youth Conference.
The European Union (EU) Delegate to Uganda and Acting Head of Cooperation, Mr. Cedric Merel marked the youth conference as one of the platforms for the youth to be engaged in activities relevant for climate change adaption and mitigation. He appreciated the support and role played by education institutions in creating awareness about climate change. He also emphasized the need to integrate in a sustainable manner the youth in the programmes designed to address climate change.
“We insist on the fact that the youth are the main actors of all the actions carried out by EU. In everything we do, youth are the target group. We need to act to have a sensitization for the youth to be the champions of climate change who will sensitize others about climate chance adaptation. Youth are up to 70% of the population; this means that the power is your hands.”
Mr. Merel encouraged the youth to actively participate in the cause of climate change adaptation and express their ideas and innovations with a view of finally incorporating them into policy recommendations. He appealed to the youth to be ambassadors of climate change adaptation at all levels of climate change action including; local authorities, communities, research and innovation, academia and entrepreneurship.
Prof. Bernard Bashaasha, the Principal of Makerere University College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences (CAES) said that climate change is broad and requires everyone’s efforts. He dubbed the youth as the backbone of the country, whose energy and interests should be utilized and put to good use in relation to climate change adaptation. He advocated for training the youth and availing them with knowledge and skills required to ambush the challenges of climate change.
“We should build our capacity basing on what we have. The university being the engine of capacity building, students should be engaged and equipped with skills to tackle climate change. CAES is taking leadership in terms of industrial training in relation to climate change. We are building platforms to tackle the areas of climate change.” Prof. Bashaasha mentioned.
The MUCCRI Coordinator, Dr. Revocatus Twinomuhangi said that it is important to promote climate change awareness, conduct research, generate and disseminate information on climate chance to influence climate change policies. He informed the participants that the youth conference was organized to enable the youth acquire the skills and knowledge they needed to address issues of climate change in their homes, communities and countries.
“There is no single sector that is not affected by climate change. We want to improve knowledge and skills to generate and disseminate information in relation to addressing climate change. However, the measures taken should not hinder our economic development, but to supplement on it. People should be guided on proper land use at national, regional and household levels for sustainable development.” Dr. Twinomuhangi remarked.
Dr. Twinomuhangi thus noted the need for a link between science and the policy makers. He added that climate change brings in challenges that cannot be foreseen due to the changing patterns in climate and weather. According to him, the climate is continuously changing faster than anticipated. For that reason, he advocated for continuous research, which MUCCRI is undertaking.
Addressing participants on Youth leadership for climate change resilience, Mr. Anthony Walimbwa, a delegate from Climate Action Network Uganda (CAN-U) informed the youth that they were the most vulnerable to effects of climate change since they have limited or no means to cope or adapt.
He said that youth unemployment rate in Uganda is 11%, and about 400,000 youth are released annually into the job market to compete for about 9,000 jobs. While the youth could generate their own employment opportunities, they have limited access to financing, land and technical support.
“While the impacts of climate change are unevenly distributed across different age groups and economic classes, the youth women and children are the most affected since they are poor segments of the population. However, the youth are energetic and have a potential to take on climate change challenges through green jobs.” Mr. Walimbwa said.
Ms. Daphine Nansambu, the youth representative at CBA11 assured her fellow youth that Climate change is real even though majority may not accept it. So, their input towards combating it is extremely significant. She reiterated the need for the youth to be equipped with relevant skills and knowledge to address the challenges of climate change.
“The youth need support in terms of capacity building. The young people are natural innovators and can embrace change, so they have to take the lead in addressing climate change. If guided in the right direction, we can be able to change the community. The decisions will be made, but the youth will be the ones to implement them. Therefore, they should take a stand towards climate change adaptation and resilience,” said Ms. Nansambu
At the closure of the youth conference, Mr. Paul Mafabi, the Director of Environmental Affairs at the Ministry of Water and Environment affirmed that the greatest causes of climate change arise from emission of gases and improper disposal of waste. As a result, he said that the Government has adopted a climate change policy to coordinate climate change actions in the country. He appealed to the youth to share the knowledge acquired from the conference with their colleagues, communities and universities.
“As youth, there is need to do something practical after the conference. Climate change should be domesticated for better understanding by the communities including the illiterate, poor and children. The youth are majority in Uganda, have energy, more innovative and will live longer. Meaning if proper interventions are not taken by them, they are bound to face tougher climate change impacts as well as the generations to come.”
Mr. Mafabi congratulated the youth, organizers and supporters for successfully conducting the youth conference parallel to the CBA11 international conference. He urged the organizers to immediately create a working group through which the participants of the conference could continue networking and dialoging. He thus encouraged the youth to ensure increased tree planting, proper garbage management and any other contribution within the available youth means. He eventually declared the CBA11 Youth Conference closed.
The CBA11 Youth Conference was attended by officials from Ministry of Water and Environment, Makerere University, International Water Management Institute (IWMI); Delegates from FAO, European Union, IIED, Climate Action Network Uganda (CAN-U); the media; representatives from the Youth Go Green Group and youth from national and international universities and higher institutions of learning.
It was revealed during the conference that Uganda would host the first Africa youth climate change conference in August, 2017, where youth from all African countries will be represented.
General
Minister Janet Museveni Lays Foundation Stone for School of Graduate Studies Building, Commissions the School of Law Building and the renovated Lumumba Hall
The First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Hon. Janet Kataaha Museveni, has laid the foundation stone for Makerere University’s School of Graduate Studies building, whose construction is now underway.
The Minister laid the foundation stone for the USD8 million project during a brief function held on Wednesday 18th December 2024 at the site opposite Makerere University’s Lumumba Hall. The event was attended by several dignitaries, including the State Minister for Primary Education, Hon. Joyce Moriku Kaducu, University Council Chairperson Mrs. Lorna Magara, and Makerere University Vice Chancellor, Professor Barnabas Nawangwe.
Others in attendance included Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration, Professor Henry Alinaitwe; Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, Professor Buyinza Mukadasi; University Secretary Mr. Yusuf Kiranda; Dean of Students Winfred Kabumbuli; Guild President Vincent Lubega Nsamba; and the Vice Guild President, Joy Eve Serunjogi among others.
The building is a donation (in-kind) from the late Hasmukh Patel, an industrialist and former Chairman of Tororo Cement who passed away on August 29, 2024, after a short illness. The journey to this befitting donation to Makerere University started in December 2022, when Hasmukh Patel accompanied by some members of his family and friends visited the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe to declare his donation. From December 2022, a number of meetings were convened involving the Minister of Education and Sports, the University leadership, Mr. Hasmukh Patel, his family and Tororo Cement regarding this donation. Living true to his commitment during those meetings, his family and Tororo Cement are implementing his wishes to construct the building, which will house the School of Graduate Studies at Makerere University.
Before laying the foundation stone for the School of Graduate Studies building, Hon. Janet Museveni first unveiled a plaque to officially open the new building for the School of Law. She then headed to Lumumba Hall, where she unveiled another plaque marking the completion of its renovation.
The First Lady, who had initially laid the foundation stone for the School of Law building on May 17, 2022, returned to the main campus to officially open the completed structure. Funded by the Government of Uganda to the tune of UGX 7.3 billion, the new three-storeyed building features lecture rooms, tutorial and seminar rooms, a library, a moot court, offices, a cafeteria, a lactation room, and other teaching and learning facilities. Construction was undertaken by M/S CK Associates, with Symbion serving as a consultant.
The renovation works for Lumumba Hall commenced in June 2023, with the site handed over to the contractor, National Enterprise Corporation (NEC). Funded by the Government of Uganda to the tune of UGX 9 billion, the project involved extensive renovations to restore Lumumba Hall to its original splendor. Lumumba Hall now accommodates about 725 students.
Lumumba Hall was the first hall of residence to undergo renovation, followed by Mary Stuart Hall, which has also been handed over to NEC for refurbishment. These renovations, which began last year, are a result of the Government of Uganda’s efforts to improve the nine (9) halls of residence at the main campus.
Speaking at the event, Hon. Janet Museveni thanked the University Council and management for their dedication to rebuilding the institution. She expressed confidence that the physical restoration efforts would also rebuild the character of young people.
“There is a restoration of dignity that comes to an institution or a community when we choose to rebuild and it is not only physical, there is a spiritual restoration that comes as well. For Nehemiah, it was not just the rebuilding of a physical wall it was the rebuilding of broken lives and a broken covenant. It was the rolling away of the reproach they had suffered as a nation,” she said.
Adding; “I therefore salute the Council and the management of Makerere for your dedication to the rebuilding of this University. I am confident that as you rebuild physically, you are rebuilding the character of our young people. My prayer is that the physical restoration is translating into the spiritual restoration of this great institution.”
The first lady, Hon. Janet Museveni recalled her earlier visit to Makerere University, where she observed the dilapidated state of the halls of residence, which prompted her to initiate the renovation works.
“I remember taking a tour of the halls of residence in this University and Kyambogo University in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. My heart bled when I saw the state of the halls of residence. Like Nehemiah, I took my burden to the Lord and now see what the Lord has done! Commissioning of the refurbished Lumumba Hall today is a testament to the faithfulness of our God. It is even more gratifying to know that other projects are ongoing and these include: the renovation of Mary Stuart Hall, the construction of the Perimeter Wall, and improvements at the University Hospital, including setting up an operating theatre and ICU.” She said.
Hon. Janet Museveni also expressed gratitude to the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, for his leadership, which facilitated the realization of the Tororo Cement project. “This Project would not have been possible without the guidance and leadership of the Vice Chancellor of Makerere University, Prof. Nawangwe, who drew my attention to this offer by Tororo Cement, and requested me to endorse this Project, which will be named after Mr. Hamukh Patel,” she said.
Adding: “I am informed that the construction of this building is estimated to cost 8 Million US dollars and will consist of: lecture and seminar rooms, smart classrooms, laboratories, an innovation space, a conference hall, offices and other facilities. We remain forever grateful for this donation, which will increase access and contribute to improving the quality of postgraduate education.”
Speaking at the event, Vice Chancellor Prof. Nawangwe commended Hon. Janet Museveni for prioritizing the development of Makerere University, which has seen remarkable progress under her leadership. “Hon. Minister, from the time you took over the Office of Minister of Education and Sports and the Higher Education Sector, Makerere University in particular has transformed tremendously. Most notable is the infrastructure revolution at Makerere. On several occasions, you have come to Makerere to lay the foundations for new buildings and to open completed buildings, including our iconic Main Administration Building,” he said.
“When you inspected the halls of residence in 2021, I could see the frustration in your eyes, looking at the dilapidated state the halls were in, especially Lumumba, part of which had been condemned for 2 years,” Prof. Nawangwe said.
“Hon. Minister, I am sure that today, after seeing the glamorous new building for the School of Law and the glittering renovated Lumumba Hall, you are in a completely different mood compared to that visit in 2021. We are as delighted as you must be and your efforts are the reason for our happiness today. Our law students and professors can now comfortably study, work and conduct research in the best building for any school of law that I have seen,” Prof Nawangwe added.
Reflecting on the Graduate School Building, Prof. Nawangwe recalled when he received a proposal from Mr. Hasmukh Patel in 2022 who had initially intended to donate the Main Administration Building, which had been destroyed by fire, but opted to donate School of Graduate Studies Building after finding that the main building reconstruction had already started.
“Hon. Minister, in the morning of 13th December 2022, a miracle happened in my office in the Frank Kalimuzo Building. General David Muhoozi and Major General Apollo Gowa walked into my office with the Late Hasmukh Patel. Gen. Muhoozi introduced Mr. Hasmukh Patel as the Chairman of Tororo Cement, who after learning about the destruction by a fire of our Main Administration Building, expressed the wish to reconstruct that iconic building. On reaching Makerere, Mr. Hasmukh Patel found a contractor already on site, and he told us, that he would all the same donate a building to Makerere University as a gift on our 100th anniversary,” Prof Nawangwe said.
“He said it in such a simple way, that I thought I was dreaming. That evening, at the invitation of Mr. Patel, I visited the building that Mr. Patel had built for a school at Bukoto and I told him that a similar building for Makerere would be just what we needed for our School of Graduate Studies and Research that we needed. The University Council unanimously voted to thank Mr. Patel for his magnanimous offer and, you, Maama Janet graciously endorsed the project. I later visited Mr. Patel in Mombasa and was amazed at the humanitarian work he was doing among the communities. He was such a rare human being,” Professor revealed.
“Today we are here to witness the laying of the foundation stone for this, the largest academic building at Makerere University, and the first such donation I know by an African philanthropist to a university in Africa. The building will have lecture and seminar rooms, a conference hall, innovation spaces, PhD student rooms, computer and other laboratories, a restaurant, staff offices and other facilities. I thank Tororo Cement and the family of the Late Hasmukh Patel for honoring his wish and I wish to assure Mr. Patel, who must be in heaven smiling at us, that we will honor his legacy in this building and that we will put the building to its best use in the service of humanity, which is what Mr. Patel lived for,” Prof Nawangwe added.
On her part, the state Minister for Primary Education, Honorable Joyce Moriku Kaducu acknowledged Hon. Janet Museveni for prioritizing the Education sector in her leadership, which has led to the tremendously development of the sector.
“On behalf of the education sector, we want to thank you as the mother of the nation, indeed you are a big gift and a blessing to the nation and education at large, all this achievement would not have been possible if it was not under your visionary leadership and the guidance you have offered,” Minister Kaducu said.
Hon. Kaducu also hailed Makerere University for playing a very critical role in sensitizing, disseminating knowledge, and raising awareness to the public on the message of the Parish Development Model, which is intended to create wealth among citizens.
“As President Museveni is preaching the message of wealth creation, I want in a special way to thank Makerere University for playing a very critical role in sensitizing, disseminating knowledge, and raising awareness to the public on the message of the Parish Development Model (PDM), and they have a committee that monitors and informs government. They are indeed part of the team promoting wealth creation in this country,” she said.
Mrs. Lorna Magara, the Chairperson of the Makerere University Council said that the construction of the Graduate studies building speaks to the University’s mission of being a research-led institution because it comes as a dedicated building to house the Directorate of Research and Graduate Training, which marks the resolution of a critical gap in our institutional framework
“At the heart of Makerere University’s current strategy is the promotion of a research-led institution, with a strong focus on graduate training. The establishment of a dedicated facility for the School of Graduate Studies, which also houses the Directorate of Research and Graduate Training, marks the resolution of a critical gap in our institutional framework. The late Patel’s timely and generous contribution will undoubtedly advance graduate training and research for generations to come. We extend our heartfelt gratitude for your exceptional support,” she said.
Mr. Manish Varsani who represented the Patel family took the first lady through how Mr. Hasmukh Patel started the idea of donating the building to Makerere. He explained that, Mr. Patel intended to present a gift that was coming from the bottom of his heart, and he teamed up with General Muhoozi who led him to Prof. Nawangwe’s office.
He also recalled when Mr. Patel met H.E President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Museveni in Bukoto where he (Patel) had donated a building to a school and told the President that he would want to donate the same building to Makerere University as a gift to the First Lady Janet Museveni because he loved her so much, and in response, the President said he would take the message back to the First Lady.
The Guild President Lubega Vincent Nsamba asked the First Lady to consider constructing another hall of residence for the female students to solve what he described as an accommodation imbalance.
“Maama Janet Museveni, allow me to report to you that we still have only three halls of residence gazetted for female students against the six halls of residence gazetted for male students. These halls of residences were built back in colonial and independent times when the female students were fewer compared to their male counterparts, and to me Maama, this accommodation imbalance is something that should be addressed,” he stated.
“To me Maama, this speaks to the sense of how there is a dire need to invest in another additional hall of residence for the girl child here at Makerere University, and Maama, without any fear of contradiction, we humbly request that you consider building an additional hall of residence named after you in recognition of the contribution and honor of the service you have made for this country as a mother and as an educator,” he said.
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