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CPD, Networking Platforms, Mentorship Needed to Enhance Capacities of Women to Leadership Positions in Uganda

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On Thursday 5th November, 2020, a project titled Enhancing Capacities of Women to Leadership Positions in Universities in Uganda (WOLEP) held a Dissemination Event at the Central Teaching Facility 1 (CTF1), Makerere University. The Principal Investigator (PI) WOLEP is Dr. Florence Nakamanya, Lecturer, East African School of Higher Education Studies and Development (EASHESD), College of Education and External Studies (CEES). The WOLEP team that also includes Assoc. Prof. Ronald Bisaso and Ms. Sharon Ainmbabazi recommended that Continuous Professional Development (CPD), Suitable Networking Platforms and Structured Mentorship Programmes are needed to enhance capacities of both incumbent and aspiring women leaders in Uganda’s Higher Education sector. The Dean, EASHESD, Assoc. Prof. Ronald Bisaso who was the moderator welcomed members to the dissemination and gave a preamble of the WOLEP project. The event started with a prayer led by Sr. Bernadette Lutaaya.

The event attracted a number of distinguished personalities who attended both physically and online. In attendance online were; Prof. Joy C. Kwesiga,  the Vice Chancellor of Kabale University and  the Guest of Honour, Prof. William Bazeyo, the Chairperson Grants Management Committee (GMC), Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (Mak-RIF), Prof. Charles Masembe, GMC Member, Prof. Fred Masagazi Masaazi,the Principal, College of Education and External Studies(CEES), Ms. Harriet Adong, Head, Communication, RIF, Prof. Monica Chibita, Dean, Faculty of Journalism, Media and Communication, Uganda Christian University (UCU), Assoc. Prof. Betty Ezati, Dean, School of Education, Makerere University and GMC Member. In the physical meeting, we had the project team members, women leaders from Ugandan Universities including Makerere University, Kyambogo University, Ndejje University, Kampala International University, St. Lawrence University, Al-Mustafa Islamic College and female employees from the National Planning Authority (NPA) among others.

A Screenshot of the ZOOM session with Clockwise: Dr. Florence Nakamanya, Prof. Charles Masembe, Ms. Sylvia Nakirya and Prof. William Bazeyo

Dr. Nakamanya in her presentation highlighted that the project was made possible with funding from the Government of the Republic of Uganda through Mak-RIF. The PI noted that there exist leadership training programmes aimed at building capacities of female leaders in different parts of the world including Uganda. However, the numbers of women in leadership positions are still miserably low. For instance, she noted, we have only three female Vice Chancellors in Uganda and yet there are over 50 universities. Besides, the leadership training programmes provided are adhoc in nature, they are developed in the western world and adapted to African context, do not meet the current and emerging needs and largely depend on the availability of funding. This then created the need for the WOLEP project.

She enlisted the objectives the project as follows;

  1. To analyze the Leadership-related Training Programmes (LTPs) that women in leadership positions in universities in Uganda have attended.
  2. To establish the leadership-related competence profile for women in leadership positions in universities in Uganda.
  3. To investigate whether the existing leadership-related training programmes influence women’s aspirations and progression to leadership training positions in universities in Uganda.
  4. To examine women’s experiences with the existing Leadership-related Training Programmes in universities in Uganda.
  5. To identify the capacity needs and what works for women to occupy leadership positions in universities in Uganda.
The WOLEP Team R-L: Ms. Ainmbabazi Sharon, PI-Dr. Florence Nakamanya, Dean EASHESD-Assoc. Prof. Ronald Bisaso with Mak-RIF Communications Officer-Ms. Harriet Adong at the event.

The WOLEP project employed an interpretive approach to research because the team wanted to get an in-depth understanding of the issue that was under investigation. The participants of the project included the incumbent and aspiring female leaders. The Incumbents comprised of senior female leaders like Vice Chancellors, the middle leaders (Deputy Principals and Deans) and the lower leaders such as examination and research coordinators. The aspiring female leaders constituted any female academic member of staff in the university. The participants were purposively selected on the basis that they had ever attended a leadership-related training programmes and were drawn from the different categories of Ugandan Universities. The universities were categorized into public, private religious-affiliated and private-for-profit universities. Data was collected through interviewing 29 participants comprising of 2 senior female leaders, 9 middle female leaders, 9 lower female leaders and 9 aspiring female leaders.

The findings of the study include;

Objective One, where different Leadership-related Training Programmes (LTPs) were analyzed: It was discovered that the participants had attended international leadership-related programmes. Whereas the senior female leaders had participated in programmes organized by the Commonwealth, Higher Education Resources Services, Inter-University Council of East Africa, RUFORUM, the middle female leaders highlighted trainings such as the International Deans’ Course adn COACH AFRICA workshops in South Africa and Finland. Importantly, the international trainings were attended by mostly participants at all levels of leadership from the public universities. The middle female leaders had attended national leadership-related trainings particularly those organized by the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) whereas the lower and aspiring female leaders had mostly participated in internal institutional trainings.

Objective Two, which was about the competence profile of female leaders: She said that during the interviews, the participants shared competences related to leadership and management, teaching and research. Specifically, competences related to pedagogy, curriculum, research, social challenges, customer care, ICT, confidence building, teamwork, conflict resolution among others. She asked participants to reflect on how they teach and supervise graduate students in higher education.

Objective Three, on whether the existing LTPs influenced women’s aspirations and progression to Leadership: The female leaders shared that the training enabled them to acquire knowledge, share experiences, provided opportunities for personal professional development and networking. In-depth analysis had confirmed that the female leaders’ experiences with the existing LTPs influenced their desire to aspire and progress to academic and administrative leadership positions in Ugandan universities. For example, a female senior leader serving in a public university had said that “we are always given an opportunity to share experiences in the leadership training programmes. I ask colleagues and they would tell me how to solve it. I would get tips that I learn which makes me perform better in my work.”

Objective Four focused on experiences with LTPs: The focus was on the programme structure, stakeholder involvement and post-training experiences. The participants shared that the content provided in the trainings was too broad, theoretical and delivered in a very short period of time and yet very costly. She noted that there was limited stakeholder involvement, the training needs analysis was hardly done and there was unclear selection process. It was also found out that most of the LTPs that female leaders attend in Ugandan universities lacked the aspect of mentorship and did not make follow-ups. In view of this, achievement of the intended outcomes was constrained.

Objective Five identified the Capacity Needs for female leaders: The findings showed that the female incumbent and aspiring leaders would like to be capacitated in areas including networking and mentorship, research and publishing as well as leadership and management skills. 

The study concluded that:

  1. Female leaders had attended International, National, and Institutional LTPs.
  2. The competence profile of female leaders comprised of leadership and management, teaching and research skills developed from the training programmes.
  3. LTPs had influenced women’s desire to aspire and progress to leadership positions.
  4. LTPs were too costly, theoretical with broad content, with limited stakeholders’ involvement, no follow up and lacked mentorship opportunities.
  5. Networking, mentorship, research and publishing as well as leadership and management skills were the capacity needs of incumbent and aspiring female leaders in Ugandan Universities.

The study recommended that:

  1. Continuous Professional Development should be rolled out for both incumbent and aspiring female leaders. The modularized programme that has been developed out of the current study will span a reasonable period of time and will be flexibly delivered using blended training approaches at the East African School of Higher Education Studies and Development, Makerere University.
  2. Universities should initiate sustainable networking platforms that provide avenues for incumbent and aspiring leaders to share experiences, challenges and new insights on how to perform their duties through periodic meetings and reflective seminars that could be flexibly organized or delivered using online technologies and social learning platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, Zoom etc.
  3. The Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and other relevant stakeholders should collaboratively initiate and support robust structured mentorship programmes for women in higher education where those with rich experience are invited to share their life stories which could be published in different formats like videos and used to continually nurture aspiring leaders and equally enhance women’s progression to leadership

The study proposed an intervention/solution/programme informed by a range of capacity needs that were highlighted by women at the different levels of leadership. The two modules developed to be flexibly delivered are:

  1. Leadership and Management in Higher Education
  2. Career Advancement of Women in Higher Education

The PI shared a quote by Sheryl Sandberg:“If more women are in leadership roles, we’ll stop assuming they shouldn’t be”.

Prof. Joy Kwesiga, Vice Chancellor Kabale University

In her welcome remarks, Prof. Joy Kwesiga the Guest of Honour congratulated the project team on the important research in which she participated and that she had been looking forward to the general research results. She highlighted that there was a minimal number of females that participate in higher education leadership. She shared her past experience while serving in Makerere University and expected the findings to trigger reflection on how to increase the number of women in leadership positions through established policies, support mechanisms and practices. Prof. Kwesiga noted that when the only female presidential candidate Nancy Kalembe said that females are going to break the glass ceiling and that becoming president was one of them, her mind was drawn to the importance of gender perspectives in leadership and management, in teaching, and research. Finally, she said she was glad that the study had been successfully conducted and that it would open up into a wider field so that we can have specialists.

Prof. Fred Masagazi Masaazi

The Principal CEES, Prof. Fred Masagazi Masaazi in his remarks, congratulated the lead researcher Dr. Nakamanya Florence and the research team upon attaining the milestone. He said that, whereas research was a boost to our academic endeavors, it was also a springboard for opening up space for national development. He further said that he strongly believed that the findings would go a long way in informing gender policy and other aspects related to gender and Higher Education. He thanked the Dean, East African School of Higher Education Studies and Development (EASHESD), for the support in ensuring that the School contributes to the body of knowledge, and for impacting on the College’s visibility. He further thanked the Mak-RIF team for the support and for identifying and funding the special area of study on enhancing capacities of women to leadership positions in universities. He concluded by noting that young researchers like Dr. Nakamanya were pillars for the University’s development.

Prof. Charles Masembe

Prof. Charles Masembe, Member of the Mak-RIF Grants Management Committee (GMC) in his speech welcomed the participants noting that they had been drawn from different universities and organisations. He thanked them for making time to attend the dissemination. He thanked the researchers and innovators for their tireless efforts. In a special way, he thanked the Government of Uganda for the continued support to Makerere University and for funding research through Mak-RIF. He further said that for a country to move from lower to middle income status, it needs research. In addition, he said that Mak-RIF is aimed at complementing available research funding to address unfunded priorities critical to accelerating development across different sectors of the economy in Uganda. He was happy that the WOLEP project had unearthed the capacity needs of the different categories of female leaders. He implored the project team to partner with a range of stakeholders to address the capacity needs as they roll out the project’s proposed training programme.

Prof. William Bazeyo

Prof. William Bazeyo Chairperson Mak-RIF Grants Management Committee (GMC), thanked the organizers for the Dissemination. He highlighted that this was the first dissemination he had attended ever since the fund started. He congratulated Dr. Florence Nakamanya and her team and thanked the Principal, Professor Masagazi for supporting research efforts in CEES.  He noted that he believed in negotiation and he challenged every researcher to become a negotiator so as to ensure research uptake by the policy makers. He noted that since Makerere has the capacity and the negotiation skills, it should do better. He acknowledged the contributions of other teams on RIF1 and RIF2 and announced that RIF3 had been approved. He emphasized that whereas RIF1 was UGX 30 billion, RIF2 was UGX 30 billion and COVID-19 Response UGX 9.3 billion, he had negotiated for a greater allocation of funds for RIF3 and it will be higher, if not double.

He informed participants that he was also negotiating on how Makerere University (Mak) can support other universities to do research. He cited an example of a model university in Malaysia which was leading in research and had been funded to support research and capacity building in other public universities. Furthermore, he re-echoed the need of researchers to reach out to stakeholders and different ministries to share research findings. He called upon all researchers to begin writing policy briefs. He finally set a challenge to his colleagues on the GMC to start a programme to train researchers on how to write policy briefs.

Article by John Nuwagaba, CEES

Education

CEES Newsletter March 2024

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Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Over 600 awarded UBTEB certificates

Over 600 students of Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus have graduated with diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB).

“This academic achievement has launched your real beginning in higher education academics and career growth. For those who had challenges with Advanced Level as a prerequisite for University or academic progression, the diploma comes handy and will enable you to now register for your desired degree course,” Prof. Mugagga said.

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Over 600 awarded UBTEB certificates

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Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Over 600 students of Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus have graduated with diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB).

Speaking during the graduation ceremony on Feb 3, 2024, at Makerere University Yusuf Lule Auditorium, Prof. Anthony Muwagga Mugagga, the Principal of the College of Education and External Studies, where the Centre for Lifelong Learning is housed, said the college seeks to address all education levels including tertiary Education, thus the formation of CLL, which caters for those people who may not have been able to join mainstream university education.

Prof. Mugagga said the university is trying to reduce school dropouts by offering UBTEB courses, respond to the government’s call for science education in Uganda and also address the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG4) which calls for education for all.

Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

“This academic achievement has launched your real beginning in higher education academics and career growth. For those who had challenges with Advanced Level as a prerequisite for University or academic progression, the diploma comes handy and will enable you to now register for your desired degree course,” Prof. Mugagga said.

He cautioned the graduands against reckless behavior which could lead to sickness and early death. “Be very cautious and protective of your lives. You have one life; therefore, you cannot afford to waste it. Hold your life very preciously and jealously.”

Mr. Geoffrey Kawanguzi, the Deputy Executive Secretary, admonished educational institutions against illegally awarding qualifications to students.

Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Mr. Kawanguzi, said many institutions are hoodwinking students and awarding them certificates and diplomas which are not recognized by the government.

Mr. Kawanguzi urged parents to be cautious while selecting higher institutions and to check that the institution qualifies to provide national exams.

“Before you pay school fees to an institution where you want to take your child, first ask whether that institution offers national exams. Certificates offered by illegal Institutions end in that school, you cannot take them anywhere,” Mr. Kawanguzi said as he conferred 613 students from the university’s main campus and Jinja campus with national certificates and diplomas in technical and business education.

Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Students received National diplomas in Mechanical Engineering, Architecture, Planning and Management, Business Administration and Management, Civil Engineering, Procurement, Electrical Engineering and Logistics, among others.

Mr. Kawanguzi said it is only UBTEB national exams that are recognized by the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) and the National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC).

He encouraged graduands to make good use of the knowledge they have acquired from their respective disciplines to develop their communities and create job opportunities for their communities.  

Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

“The world has a lot of opportunities for each of us to explore according to our talents and gifts. Let’s put to good use our knowledge and skills to fulfill the use and continue to pursue the journey of acquiring more knowledge to better our areas for professional growth and development.”

The Deputy Director of the Graduate School, Dr. Wamala Robert, who represented the Vice Chancellor urged graduands to apply the skills and knowledge they have gained to face the world and solve its challenges.

“The world you have entered is dynamic and ever challenging. Use the education and the experience you have gained here to navigate the complexities of the global landscape,” he said.

Makerere University Centre for Lifelong Learning and Makerere University Jinja Campus graduation of Diplomas and Certificates from the Uganda Business and Technical Examinations Board (UBTEB), 3rd February 2024, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

He added: “As you step into this new chapter of your lives, I urge you to continue embracing curiosity, pursuing knowledge for excellence. Be bold in your ambitions, compassionate in your endeavors, and always mindful of the impacts you can have on the world around you. Remember that the values instilled in you during your time at Makerere will serve as a compass guiding you through the diverse path that lies ahead of you.”  

Prince Immanuel Oluka, a graduand of a diploma in Civil Engineering, said he doesn’t regret taking up the course because he has acquired the necessary skills to go out and address world challenges.

“We have been doing real life projects which are hands-on, even now there is a site we are working on. We are confident we can go for government contracts of constructing buildings and roads,” Oluka said.

Risper Atwine Twinomugisa, a graduand of a national diploma in Architecture, said she has specialized in drafting and drawing plans for houses and her future is bright with the skills at hand.

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CEES graduates 1,000 students as best researchers are awarded

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The DVCFA-Prof. Henry Alinaitwe (R), Academic Registrar-Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi (L) and Principal-Prof. Anthony Muwagga Mugagga (6th L) with CEES Staff. 74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Frank Kalimuzo Central Teaching Facility, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

The College of Education and External Studies has today January 30, 2024, the 2nd day of the 74th graduation ceremony, graduated 1,019 students. At the same function, five of the college’s senior researchers received the Vice Chancellor’s Research Excellence Award 2023.

74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Vice Chancellor's Research Excellence Awards 2023, Plot 34 Edge Road, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

The researchers, Prof. Paul Muyinda Birevu, Dr. Sekatawa Kenneth, Assoc. Prof. Jude Ssempebwa, Dr. Nambi Rebecca and Dr. Bateganya Lukoyaa Najib, were recognized for having the highest number of publications, in the last 5 years, in the college.

This year’s graduation saw 7 people graduate with PhDs, 51 with Masters, 81 with Post graduate diplomas and 880 with undergraduate degrees from the College of Education and External Studies. Of these 618 are female while 401 are male representing 60.6% and 39.4% respectively.

74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Vice Chancellor's Research Excellence Awards 2023, Plot 34 Edge Road, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

During the course of the 74th graduation ceremony, a total of 12,913 graduands will receive degrees and diplomas of Makerere University. Of these, a total of 132 graduands will graduate with PhDs, 1585 with Masters degrees, 11,016 with Bachelor’s degrees, 156 with postgraduate diplomas, and 24 with undergraduate diplomas.

53% of the graduands are female and 47% are male. In the category of PhD graduands, 46 are female and 86 are male. In the category of students graduating with Master’s degrees, 699 are female and 886 are male.

74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Vice Chancellor's Research Excellence Awards 2023, Plot 34 Edge Road, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

While addressing the graduands, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, said the university’s goal is to graduate at least 200 PhDs per year in response to the World Bank’s call for at least 100,000 PhDs for Africa over the next 10 years, to pull the continent out of poverty.

He also congratulated the college upon the various milestones achieved in the last one year. He appreciated the Institute of Open, Distance and e-Learning (IODeL) which has continued to provide backstopping support services to all Colleges in the University for transforming the classroom-based course content into well-instructionally designed online course content for blended teaching and learning.

74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Vice Chancellor's Research Excellence Awards 2023, Plot 34 Edge Road, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

“In the last year, with support from the Government of Uganda, and development partners such as Mastercard Foundation, Norad, DIKU and among others, the College of Education and External Studies has supported and mentored lecturers in developing 1,300 quality and inclusive online learning courses across all colleges. By June 2024, more than 3000 courses will have been transformed. The University has acquired five (5) multimedia studios to aid in the production of multimedia content for pedagogy,” Prof. Nawangwe said.

74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Freedom Square, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Makerere University Transcripts and Certificates

In the past two years, Makerere University has come up with measures aimed at making the issuance of academic transcripts and certificates very fast and convenient by shortening the clearance process. In November 2022 the university organized the Public Fair on Transcripts and Certificates during which more than 4,650 certificates and 4,113 transcripts were issued. This year, with the support of the University Council and Senate, the Department of the Academic Registrar, the Directorate of ICT Support Services, and the leadership at the Colleges, the academic transcripts for students graduating during the 74th graduation ceremony were printed before graduation. “The academic transcripts are ready and they are due for issuance to graduands who have satisfied the academic and financial obligations  I therefore urge all our graduands to pick their transcripts from their respective colleges,” the VC said.

74th Graduation Ceremony, Day 2, College of Education and External Studies (CEES), 30th January 2024, Freedom Square, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

The Vice Chancellor congratulated all graduands and called on them to Cherish the knowledge and experiences they have received, but remember that learning never ends.

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