Makerere University on Monday 6th July officially launched the First Mak Writing Summer School, a week long training program designed to equip students and staff with the practical writing skills needed to compete in today’s job market. The official unveiling took place at the Makerere Main Building and was streamed online to accommodate the more than two hundred participants who registered, running from 1:30 PM to 2:00 PM before the first working session began.
The program is a joint initiative of the Makerere University Writing Centre and the Makerere University Press, known as MakPress. It was officially unveiled by Professor Sarah Ssali, the First Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.The occasion drew support from Professor Fredrick Muyodi, Head of the Makerere University Writing Centre, and Associate Professor William Tayeebwa, Director of MakPress, both of whom addressed participants.
Speaking first, Professor Tayeebwa outlined the mandate of MakPress, describing it as an office that reports to the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and that carries out three main functions: publishing books, publishing academic journals, and now, an expanding portfolio that includes working paper series. He noted that the traditional strength of the press has been the publication of books, and he used the occasion to showcase two recent examples authored by members of the university community.
The first was a book titled The Muchwezi, The Flower, The Suitor, written by Charles Ziwa, a staff member attached to the Writing Centre who has been coordinating the current writing camp. More so, the second was a book titled The Men I Killed, authored by a student in the Department of Journalism and Communication. Both works are currently self published, and Professor Tayeebwa used them to illustrate the kind of support MakPress hopes to extend to more writers across the university, encouraging students, staff, and even members of the public with completed manuscripts, including family histories or biographies, to bring their projects to the press for formal publishing support rather than remaining self published.
He also spoke about the press journal portfolio, which includes a Mak journal run by the School of Languages, Literature and Communication, the Working Paper Series by the College of Business and Management Sciences, and the Mawazo journal, which is shared with the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. He reported that the writing camp had already drawn about 175 participants at the time he spoke, a number he described with evident pride.
“Before any work can reach the publishing stage described by Professor Tayeebwa, it must first pass through the discipline of good writing, which is the core mission of the Writing Centre”, Professor Muyodi exclusively emphasized the arc that the summer school is taking. Established only last year, the Centre exists to strengthen the writing skills of Makerere University staff and students, with plans to extend its services to communities beyond the university and eventually across the East African region, a concept he described as still new in this part of the world.
He listed the Centres and areas of coverage as including the writing of manuscripts, grant proposals, scholarly and academic writing, curriculum vitae, application letters, and the responsible use of artificial intelligence in writing. He identified the Centres target beneficiaries as early career researchers, postgraduate students, undergraduate finalists preparing to enter the job market, and non academic staff, including registrars, who also require strong writing skills in their daily work.
In her remarks as Chief Guest, Professor Ssali described the summer school as an important bridge that transforms theoretical classroom knowledge into marketable, real world, competence based skills.
She praised the facilitators lined up for the week as experienced professionals and life coaches rather than simple motivational speakers, and expressed confidence that they would equip participants with practical, usable skills. She committed her office to working with both the Writing Centre and MakPress to institutionalize the training so that Makerere University graduates leave with more than just academic degrees, but also with the practical soft skills required to lead and transform the Ugandan workforce. Prof. Ssali conclusively declared the First Makerere University Writing Summer School officially launched, expressing hope that future editions would attract even greater resources and reach a wider audience.
Following the opening ceremony, the floor was handed to Mr Abdul Noor Luttamaguzi, who facilitated the first working session on professional CV writing. Introducing himself, he described his roles as the recently elected global student director of the World Aquaculture Society, a PhD student in the Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences within the School of Biosciences at Makerere University, a Senior Fisheries Officer with Luweero District Local Government, and the founder and director of the ANL Foundation, an organization that supports youth employment and capacity building.
Turning to the Ugandan context, Mr Luttamaguzi noted that recruiters and human resource professionals often use the terms CV and resume interchangeably, with the real distinguishing factor being length and purpose rather than strict definition.
The opening day module, covering the launch ceremony and the first session on professional CV writing, set the tone for a full week of training with subsequent sessions expected to cover application letter writing and the use of artificial intelligence in professional writing. Organizers described the summer school as the first in what is planned to be a continuing series of writing camps, with future editions expected to expand from professional skills training into writing for scholarly publication.
Across Kampala, families use saucepans, cooking pots, frying pans, kettles, and pressure cookers every day. Makerere University School of Public Health is now investigating whether some of these items may expose households to lead, a toxic heavy metal that can enter food during cooking if contaminated materials are used to make them.
The year-long study, titled “Assessment of Lead Contamination in Domestic Cookware, Supply Chains, and Exposure Pathways in Informal Settlements of Kampala,” was launched on 11 June 2026 at MakSPH’s ResilientAfrica Network (RAN) in Kololo. Supported through the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP), with funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies, and led by Mr. Douglas Bulafu, Mr. Tom Okade, and Dr. Rawlance Ndejjo, the study will assess total and leachable lead levels in commonly used cookware, map how the products are sourced, distributed, and sold, and identify feasible interventions to reduce household exposure to lead.
Ms. Prossy Nabaggala, Senior Standards Officer at the Uganda National Bureau of Standards, pictured centre, consults with study co-investigators Mr. Tom Okade and Mr. Douglas Bulafu during the launch of MakSPH’s study on possible lead exposure from domestic cookware in Kampala.
Today, lead remains a major and preventable public health concern globally. WHO reports that no level of exposure is known to be without harmful effects and estimates that lead exposure contributes to more than 3.5 million deaths worldwide, mainly through cardiovascular effects. Children and women of child-bearing age are said to be especially vulnerable, with exposure linked to impaired brain development, reduced learning ability, harm to unborn children, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and kidney damage.
In Uganda, lead exposure concerns also extend to household products and informal markets. Aluminium pots and saucepans, particularly low-cost locally fabricated items, may be made from recycled scrap metal. If contaminated materials are used, lead may leach into food during cooking or other food-contact use, creating a possible route of exposure in homes.
During the launch, Assoc. Prof. David Musoke, Head of MakSPH’s Department of Disease Control and Environmental Health, underscored the importance of involving stakeholders throughout the research process. He said engaging stakeholders from the generation of research ideas to implementation and dissemination helps ensure findings do not remain within the University but are translated into evidence that can inform policy, practice, and community action.
“We engage with stakeholders throughout the research process, from developing ideas and designing projects to implementation and dissemination,” Dr. Musoke noted. “I am pleased that this workshop brings together policymakers, the Ministry of Health, non-governmental organisations, Kampala Capital City Authority, academia, staff and students. This helps ensure that research findings do not remain at the University but are beneficial to our stakeholders.”
Assoc. Prof. David Musoke delivers remarks during the study launch, emphasising sustained stakeholder engagement to ensure research findings inform policy, practice and community action.
He observed that the study was timely, as it addresses an important yet under-examined public health concern, arguing that while lead exposure from paint, pipes and drinking water has received considerable attention, exposure through cookware remains less understood despite its widespread use in many households. He added that the new research builds on MakSPH’s broader work in disease control and environmental health and will generate critical evidence to inform action on lead exposure risks in Uganda. Dr. Musoke also commended the study team for initiating this work.
Previously, MakSPH researchers Mr. Abdullah Ali Halage, Mr. Tom Okade, Dr. James Muleme and Dr. Juliet Kiguli, together with Mr. Ahmada Zziwa and Mr. Robert Mugabi, assessed knowledge, perceptions and practices related to heavy metal contamination and health risks among residents living near Kiteezi in Kampala, Katikolo in Mukono and Nkumba in Entebbe. The study, done in 2024, reached 505 residents and captured community and frontline perspectives from people living and working around the dumpsites. It showed how daily contact with dumpsite environments may expose communities to toxic heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury through soil, water, air, food crops, animal products and waste-handling practices.
Evidence from the study, funded by the Government of Uganda through the Makerere University Research and Innovation Fund (MakRIF) and disseminated on 26 June 2025, showed that heavy metal exposure risks around the three municipal dumpsites within the Kampala Metropolitan Area were shaped by both environmental conditions and community behaviour.
Dr. Sabrina Kitaka, Member of the MakRIF Grant Management Committee, pictured centre, with research team members including Mr. Abdullah Ali Halage, Mr. Tom Okade and Dr. Juliet Kiguli, following the dissemination of findings on heavy metal exposure risks around Kampala Metropolitan dumpsites on 26 June 2025.
Although residents lived near dumpsites where waste can release heavy metals into soil, water and food chains, 76.4 per cent could not define heavy metals, and only 45.9 per cent had adequate knowledge of contamination and related health risks. Gaps extended to daily exposure pathways, with 38.4 per cent unaware that vegetables grown near dumpsites may contain high heavy metal levels and 39.8 per cent unaware that milk or meat from animals grazed near dumpsites may also be contaminated. More than half viewed dumpsite soils as fertile, 50.7 per cent considered such milk safe, and 51.3 per cent believed dumpsite waste could be used as manure.
The study recommended stronger risk communication, environmental monitoring, safer land-use enforcement and community education. The work on lead in domestic cookware now extends this focus from dumpsite-related heavy metal exposure to a possible household pathway. Mr. Douglas Bulafu, an early-career researcher and Principal Investigator of the study, said the team will examine whether commonly used cooking pots, saucepans and related utensils contribute to exposure, and generate evidence to guide safer cookware use, standards and market oversight.
“Lead contamination has been documented from sources such as paint, fuel and air pollution, but less attention has been given to cookware as a potential pathway of exposure. That is the gap this study seeks to address,” Mr. Bulafu said. “We focused on Kampala because it has many informal settlements, small-scale cookware workshops and a large consumer market where low-cost cookware is widely produced, sold and used. When people buy these products, they often do not know where they were made, what materials were used, or whether they contain lead. The supply chains are also poorly understood, meaning households could be exposed without knowing.”
Mr. Douglas Bulafu, Principal Investigator, speaks during the launch of the MakSPH study on possible lead exposure from domestic cookware in Kampala, highlighting the need for evidence to guide safer cookware use, standards and market oversight.
The study will use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods design to connect laboratory evidence with supply-chain realities in Kampala’s informal settlements. The team will purchase about 100 cookware samples from open-air markets, roadside vendors, retail shops and supermarkets in Kisenyi, Katanga, Bwaise, Namuwongo, Banda and Kasubi, test them for total and leachable lead, and conduct about 30 key informant interviews across the supply chain to understand how cookware is sourced, produced, distributed and used.
Findings will be validated with stakeholders and used to identify feasible interventions, including stronger regulation and enforcement, raw-material control, better manufacturing practices, market surveillance and consumer awareness. The evidence is expected to support standards development, product testing, policy uptake, safer manufacturing practices and public guidance on cookware choices, helping reduce household exposure to lead and associated health risks.
Speaking on behalf of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Didacus Namanya, a health geographer and environmental health expert, welcomed the study, saying scientific evidence on lead exposure is critical because public health decisions can have lasting consequences for life and wellbeing.
Dr. Namanya implored the research team to ensure the evidence from the study informs decisions beyond academia, shaping policy, strengthening public health practice and guiding practical measures to reduce lead exposure in communities. He emphasised that research should not remain in the “ivory tower” but reach decision-makers and the public, so that evidence from the study translates into policy, practice and stronger protection for communities.
Dr. Didacus Namanya, speaking on behalf of the Ministry of Health, delivers remarks during the study launch on 11 June 2026, urging the research team to ensure evidence on lead exposure informs policy, practice and practical community protection measures.
The Office of Academic Registrar, Makerere University has released admission lists of candidates admitted under the Talented Sports Men & Women, Disability and District Quota Schemes with Government sponsorship 2026/27 Academic Year including appeals and remarked cases.
Other admission lists released include A-Level Applicants with Ugandan and those with Foreign Qualifications, Diploma in Performing Arts, Mature-Age Entry and Bachelor of Education (EXTERNAL Batch 2) for the Academic Year 2026/2027 under self sponsorship.
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