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Mak Receives MUARIK AfDB-HEST State-of–the-art Graduate Lab Complex

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  • The facility is to host the First National Agricultural Library in the country
  • Mak to host the best Biotechnology, Animal, Soil and Crop science laboratories

Makerere University College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) has received the state-of-the-art Graduate Training and Research Laboratory facility from the contractor under the African Development Bank (AfDB)-HEST project. The single-storied facility estimated to have cost US$1.2million houses research laboratories, a library, offices, training rooms and other amenities.

The facility was received by the Principal CAES Prof. Bernard Bashaasha accompanied by the Ag. Director Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute (MUARIK) Dr. Alice Turinawe, Farm Manager, Mr. Chrysostom Tweyambe and other university staff on Monday, 11th February 2019.

The team inspects the soon-to-be-furnished Library space in the Graduate Training and Research Laboratory complex

The handover was attended by officials from Arch Designs Ltd. represented by Eng. Florence Lunyoro and Architect Dickson Wetala. The ceremony was also witnessed by officials from Excel Construction Company Ltd. including   Mr. Mayale Musitafa (Electrician), Ms. Turyasingula Dorcas (Electrician) and Mr. Bayi David (Administrator).

Speaking on behalf of the Project Manager, Eng. Florence Lunyoro said they were handing over the initial facility that took roughly 12 months from start to completion. The site at MUARIK was handed over to Excel Construction Company Ltd on 10th August, 2017.

“It has four laboratories, three training rooms, offices and scenery facilities. The structure is designed such that you can have extensions done for future use. It has its own sewerage treatment plant and refuse collection from waste water,” Lunyoro explained.

Prof. Bashaasha inspects the Librarian's section in the new Library Space, Graduate Training and Research Lab, MUARIK, CAES, Makerere University

Lunyoro hailed the funders and Makerere University for being supportive saying, the project has been a good one without challenges. She expressed willingness to work with the university on other projects.

“I hope you will enjoy the facility. As of now the contractor is going to clean up the facility. As per our contract and scope of works, everything is ready to be used by the university. It has only two pending components, furnishing for equipment and loose furniture to be taken care of by the university”. She added.

The Principal CAES Prof. Bernard Bashaasha appreciated the facility.

Prof. Bashaasha tours a section of the Crop Science Laboratory

“The construction works were done to the standard required. We have inspected the labs, lecture rooms, the toilets and other facilities and they are up to standard. I think the contractor did a good job,” the Principal noted.

He appreciated that the furnishings had delayed but added that the college would provide temporary facilities so that graduate students start having classes in the structure.

“I promise to maintain it as much as possible. We have already hired a firm to ensure that the facility is not vandalized and we plan to procure cleaning services to guarantee that the facility is kept to the standard for staff and students”, Prof. Bashaasha pledged.

Ag. Director MUARIK-Dr. Alice Turinawe (L) and Farm Manager-Mr. Chrysostom Tweyambe (R) inspect a section of the Soil Science Lab

Bashaasha also appreciated the library space, which he said the college would furnish.

“We intend to make it the first National Agricultural Library in the country by seeking support from both NARO and Makerere University.”

The Principal also said the structure has good facilities to anchor the university’s research and outreach.

The Team inspects one of the fixtures in the Animal Science Lab, Graduate Training and Research Lab Complex, MUARIK, CAES, Makerere University

“We have Biotechnology, Animal science, Soil science and Crop science laboratories and once we get the lab equipment that we need to get them fully functional, they will be some of the best laboratories in the country. This will go a long way in strengthening our research capacity and capability to contribute to the national goals of Agriculture”, He added.

The Principal thanked the Government of Uganda and the Ministry of Education and Sports for financing the project. He also extended his appreciation to the Vice Chancellor and the entire Makerere University Management team of for the support, pledging to put the facility to good use.

About the AfDB-HEST project

Makerere University was among Uganda’s Public Universities and the biggest beneficiary of the African Development Bank (AfDB)-HEST  5 year (2013-2018) government-secured loan. US$29.2 million was allocated to Makerere University.

The Lab Complex is fitted with ramps to enable Persons With Disability to access facilities on the first floor
 
The project was approved in 2013 with the coordinating Unit in the Ministry of Education and Sports. The Ministry’s mode of operation was that there must be one contractor to handle all constructions in one institution.

Excel Construction Company Ltd. signed a contract on 16th December, 2015 to handle constructions at Makerere University effective 1st February, 2016.  They had an 18-month contract to complete construction of all the structures in the university.

Persons With Disability will have separate well-fitted washrooms in the Lab Complex

The contractor phased the construction for easier management of the resources and started the civil works with the Central Teaching Facilities 1 and 2 next at the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS0 and the College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS) respectively.

The other project component was the renovation of nine laboratories (one in each college) and equiping lecture rooms and laboratories with modern instruction facilities. Two CAES laboratories (Biotechnology and East lab) were renovated in the second phase (July-December, 2016).

An exterior side view of the Graduate Training and Research Lab Complex, MUARIK, CAES, Makerere University, Wakiso Uganda

The rehabilitation of the MUARIK Dairy Unit was fronted as a university project. The idea was that MUAIRIK Dairy Value Chain will generate money for the University and incubate students. The unit was handed over on 22nd April 2016. The rehabilitation works for the Milking parlour, and Feed mill commenced in May 2016 and the facilities were made available for full operation in December 2016.

And finally, the initial building at MUARIK comprising Graduate Training and Research Laboratories has been handed over to the university.

Report compiled by:
Jane Anyango
Principal Communication Officer, CAES

 

Mark Wamai

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Special Exam Results -Diploma in Performing Arts 2025/26

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The results for the 2025/2026 special entry examination for the Diploma in Performing Arts held on Saturday 17th May, 2025. Candidates who scored a final mark of 50% and above passed the Examination and have been recommended to the university’s Admissions Committee for consideration.

Mak Editor

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Mature Age Scheme Exam Results for 2025/2026

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The Office of Academic Registrar, Makerere University has released full results for the Mature Age Entry Scheme Examinations for the Academic Year 2025/2026 held on Saturday 14th December, 2024.

The Candidates who scored a final mark of 50% and above passed the examination and have been recommended by the Pre-Entry & Mature Age Committee to the University’s Admissions Board for Consideration.

The Aptitude Exam  Results for 2025/2026 Academic Year released in February 2025 can be found here.

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Call for Application: 2025 SNRM session 4 Summer School

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Participants in focused group discussions. Leiden-Delft-Erasmus East Africa Research Network (LEARN) in collaboration with the Urban Action Lab at Makerere University a workshop to deliberate strategies for mitigating the impacts of climate change in urban centres in the East African Region, Theme: “Resilient Urban Futures: Adapting Livelihoods to Climate Change”, 4th-5th September 2024, School of Public Health Auditorium, Kampala Uganda.

Context:
Natural resources in Africa are being depleted at an alarming rate due to several factors, including unsustainable human activities, climate change, and population growth. A primary condition of sustainable development is to ensure that the pressures do not exceed the environmental limits, and that demand for the resources does not exceed levels that can be sustainably provided by nature. Therefore, there is a pressing need for transformative, systems-thinking approaches and tools that can tackle the diverse challenges facing these systems. In Africa, this need is compounded by a lack of data and monitoring, which significantly hinders sustainable decision-making.

Investing in young scientists who are committed to take lead in sustainable management of Africa’s natural resources is very important. Capacity building of young scientists will enhance their knowledge and skill on sustainable natural resources and their involvement for implementation of the sustainable development goals (SDG’s) in Africa. To this effect, SNRM summer schools have been implemented in three sessions in 2019, 2020, and 2022 with support from Volkswagen Foundation; to build a critical mass of skilled and competent young natural resource scientists in Africa through training, capacity building and mentorship. Session 4 (2025) will target competent young scientists (MSc and PhD students) in Africa and Germany to further develop their knowledge and skills in systems thinking, advanced data collection and analysis, and application of emerging digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), internet of things (IoT), and embracing transdisciplinary approaches. In addition, we include an ideation workshop where students can work on real problems to come up with solutions for sustainable transformations in natural resource use.

Organizers: Leibniz Universität – Hannover (Germany), University of Antananarivo, University of Abomey Calavi (Benin), Makerere University (Uganda), University of Ghana (Ghana), University of Parakou (Benin), The Technical University of Kenya, with financial support from the Volkswagen Foundation (Germany).

Venue and dates: Nairobi, Kenya, 16-28 November 2025

Target: MSc and PhD students, early in the program of less than 35 years of age from any university/research institution in either sub-Saharan Africa or Germany with an interest in natural resources management.

Participants and Scholarships: The course is fully funded and open to 20 MSc and PhD students from Africa, and 5 from Germany. Funding will cover the costs of air ticket, accommodation, meals, visa, and transportation. However, participants will cover the cost of their travel health insurance.

Topics

SNRM Summer School Session 4: Transformative pathways in biodiversity management and conservation.
This summer school is designed to deliver four modules over a two-week period. The modules are designed to enable the students to acquire new ways of designing data collection protocols and analysis for transformative sustainable natural resources management.

Module 4.1: Data collection I
Skills in data collection for a transformative and sustainable management of natural resources (water, wildlife, forest, land, livestock, crops) monitoring and data collection techniques; remote monitoring tools, earth observation system data, e.g. satellite data sources, LIDAR, and UAV aerial images. Collect and analyse In-situ data on biotic and abiotic parameters, map and analyse data using R or Google Earth Engine, field data collection and retrieving data from online databases.

Module 4.2 Data management and processing
Introduction to tools and methods of managing large and diverse data sets of natural resources such as time series, spatial, directional, and multivariate data. Practicals will include data storage, organization and conversion into various formats using databases such as PostgreSQL and statistical programming software such as R and Python; scripts.

Module 4.3 Ecological monitoring, modelling and management
This module aims to teach participants how to anticipate and validate trends that can be observed in various ecosystems. Lectures include ecological monitoring and its design; population monitoring studies; metrics in population monitoring; methods for monitoring and assessing marine ecosystems; human ecology to socio-ecological systems; climate change impact of ecosystems; suitability assessments; overview of the principles underlying wildlife monitoring and prediction systems for climate change adaptation. Practicals will include field data collection (individual and group); ecological data analysis using R or PAST; modelling and experiencing the behaviour of complex systems using Vensim.

Module 4.4 Natural habitat restoration ideation lab
This module is designed to spur students’ innovation and creativity, and to help students comprehensively identify interdependencies across the 17 SDG goals. Participants will be trained on ideation processes for solutions and intervention for transformative natural resource management. They will work collaboratively in small groups on case studies and develop pathways of transformative sustainable natural resource management. Examples of projects include forest (mangrove) ecosystem and habitat restoration, improved technologies for agricultural production, nature-based solutions for improving water quality, and reversing land degradation.

Language: The course will be delivered in English. Participants are expected to be fluent in writing and speaking the English language.

How to apply

Applicants are kindly requested to fill in the application form available from https://snrmafrica.com/ and submit the following documents in English through the system.

  • a curriculum vitae (maximum 2 pages)
  • a letter of motivation (maximum 1 page)
  • a confirmation of university enrolment
  • a reference letter from the academic supervisor
  • project summary of MSc/ PhD project (1 page including objectives, methodology
    and key findings or expected outcomes).

Important dates
Application deadline: 30th June 2025.
Announcement of accepted applicants: 15th August 2025.
Confirmation of attendance by selected participants: 12th Sept 2025.
Summer school held: 16 – 28 Nov 2025.

Further information is available from

The secretariat info@snrmafrica.com
Dr Lydia Olaka lydiaolaka@tukenya.ac.ke
Prof. Dr. Hartmut Stuetzel stuetzel@gem.uni-hannover.de

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