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Natural Sciences

Commemorating World Fisheries Day – Stakeholders call for more Investment in Fish Farming

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The Minister of State for Fisheries, Hon. Hellen Adoa, and the Archbishop of Gulu Dioscese, His Grace John Baptist Odama arrive for celebrations to mark World Fisheries Day on 22nd November 2021, Layibi Gulu City

Theme of the 2021 World Fisheries Day celebrations:“Recognizing and Supporting the Contribution and Sustainable Development of Small Scale Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture”

The World Fisheries Day celebrated on 21st November annually presents an opportunity for stakeholders in the fishing industry to reflect on the state of Fisheries resources.

On 22nd November 2021, Uganda joined the rest of the world to commemorate the day. The celebrations to mark the day were held at St. Isidoro (Negri) Bar-Dege, Layibi Division in Gulu City. The event was presided over by the Minister of State for Fisheries, Hon. Hellen Adoa and attended by major actors in the fisheries industry in Uganda as well as political and religious leaders from Gulu District.

Highlighting the achievements and challenges faced by the fisheries sector globally, participants expressed concern over the continued depletion of fish from water bodies as a result illegal and unregulated fishing methods.

Dr. Jackson Efitre (2nd L) explaining to the Minister how the solar tent drier works.
Dr. Jackson Efitre (2nd L) explaining to the Minister how the solar tent drier works.

Addressing participants, the Minister of State for Fisheries, Hon. Hellen Adoa called for more investment in fish farming to salvage the industry. “The fishing sector is faced with numerous challenges. The persistent use of illegal fishing gears and methods has resulted in catching and processing of immature fish. This has led to the decline of fish stocks reducing fish catches and consequently undermining the contribution of the sector to the economy,” she explained, calling on the general public to embrace aquaculture.

“Uganda is well endowed with water resources, good climate and raw materials for the production of fish feeds. With all these, we are well positioned to undertake aquaculture. Aquaculture can be practiced on commercial scale, in ponds, tanks and cages and has great potential to fill the gap created by the declining fish catches from natural water bodies. It also has potential to provide employment,” she noted.

The Minister acknowledged the support rendered by various actors towards the development of the fishing industry, one of the country’s major foreign exchange earners.

Emphasizing the contribution of the Fisheries Sector to the economy, the Director Fisheries at the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), Ms Joyce Ikwaput Nyeko called for concerted efforts to address the challenges affecting the industry.

The NutriFish Uganda project team with the Minister.
The NutriFish Uganda project team with the Minister.

“Uganda is blessed with a lot of water resources with 20% of our surface area covered by lakes, rivers, swamps, and has potential to provide 1.7 million tonnes from both aquaculture and capture fisheries. This is however undermined by numerous challenges including unregulated fishing, lost fish habitats and global warming. This calls for drastic interventions to sustain the industry,” she said.

Currently, Uganda exports fish worth USD 177 million and is second to coffee in foreign exchange earnings from non-traditional exports. The fishing industry in Uganda provides employment to 1.2 million people and supports 5.3 million people. Besides the commercial benefits, fish and fisheries products play an important role in food and nutritional security around the world. 

Representing Hauge Aqua, Dr. Ronald Semyalo, a Lecturer at the Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University called for more training and skilling of youth in Fisheries and Aquaculture as a measure to minimize unemployment. The Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, Makerere University supports training in fisheries and aquaculture at various institutions in the country.

Exhibitions

The Minister touring the exhibition stall of NutriFish Uganda, a project under Makerere University Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries, College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS).
The Minister touring the exhibition stall of NutriFish Uganda, a project under Makerere University Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries, College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS).

As part of the activities to mark the day, key stakeholders in the fishing industry including the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries; the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO); NutriFish Uganda; and the National Fisheries Resources Research Institute (NaFIRRI) showcased some of their products.

Exhibition by NutriFish Uganda

Supported by the International Research Development Centre (IDRC) and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) through their joint programme, Cultivate Africa’s Future Fund (CultiAF), NutriFish aims to address the nutritional needs of vulnerable groups that cannot afford expensive commercial fish but are in critical need of high quality nutritious diets.

As key stakeholders in Uganda’s fishing industry, the project team led by Dr Jackson Efitre actively participated in the exhibition to mark World Fisheries Day in Gulu City. At their stall, the researchers showcased some of their products from small pelagic fish, actively engaging and explaining to participants the nutritional benefits and the product flow process of the fish. Some of the products showcased included, composite flour enriched with mukene (silver fish), Baghia from Nile Perch, fish sauce with mukene, instant porridge enriched with mukene, fish seasoning with mukene, mukene snack and the solar tent drier.

Graduation Ceremony – Award of a Certificate in Community Aquaculture, Level 1 

Officials and Graduates from Community Aquaculture Schools in Gulu and Arua Districts pose for a photo with the Minister after receiving their certificates.
Officials and Graduates from Community Aquaculture Schools in Gulu and Arua Districts pose for a photo with the Minister after receiving their certificates.

During the ceremony, 100 students from two community aquaculture schools in Arivu, Arua District and at St. Isidoro Farm in Gulu District graduated with a Certificate in Community Aquaculture, Level 1. The graduation ceremony was presided over by Gulu Archdiocese Archbishop, His Grace John Baptist Odama.

The two schools were established with support from Caritas International as part of the contribution of the Catholic Church towards the development of aquaculture in Uganda, and eradication of poverty and hunger in line with sustainable development goals 1 and 2. The project aims to uplift the lives of the vulnerable and unemployed youth and women through creating skills in fish farming, entrepreneurship, and cooperatives for marketing products in the fish value chain. To date, 1,051 students have completed training at these schools.

In his remarks, the National Director, Caritas Uganda, Msgr. Dr. Francis Ndamira appreciated the support rendered by Makerere University Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences towards the training of students.

Traditional dancers entertain guests at the World Fisheries Day celebrations held at St. Isidoro (Negri) Bar-Dege, Layibi Division in Gulu City on 22nd November 2021.
Traditional dancers entertain guests at the World Fisheries Day celebrations held at St. Isidoro (Negri) Bar-Dege, Layibi Division in Gulu City on 22nd November 2021.

Natural Sciences

15 PhD Positions: Human River Systems in the 21st century

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15 New Positions Open in the FWF PhD Program "Human River systems in the 21st century (HR21)". Application Deadline: 2nd April 2024. Austria. Europe

Highly qualified applicants from all over the world are invited to apply for the PhD Program “Human River systems in the 21st century (HR21)”. The 15 positions are fully funded and the Doctoral Programme is providing additional resources for conference presentations, retreats etc.

The 15 PhD research topics are:

  • Topic 1: Role of hydrological extremes (floods) for sediment transport and morphodynamics in the human-river system
  • Topic 2: Material resources demand and flows of hydraulic structures to prevent societal impact of extreme events (social ecology, environmental history)
  • Topic 3: Intermittent flow – hydrological effects and impacts on benthic communities, ecological state and functioning of riverine systems
  • Topic 4: Drought, low flow and warming – hydrological effects and impacts on the ecological state and functioning of river systems
  • Topic 5: Water transit time distributions as indicators for the vulnerability of riverine ecosystems under different pressures from social metabolism
  • Topic 6: Analyzing possible contributions of re-activated former watercourses towards a more sustainable transformation of industrialized riverine landscapes in urban areas
  • Topic 7: The role of the latest industrial revolutions on instream processes and ecological vulnerability of IRL
  • Topic 8: The effects of infrastructure development on ecological and ecosystem service network properties in river systems
  • Topic 9: The impact of urban settlements on organic matter and nutrient flows in industrialized riverine landscapes – What can we learn from the past?
  • Topic 10: Urban metabolism, a river’s ecohydrology and industrialization: Vienna and the Danube, 1800-2000
  • Topic 11: Impact of external organic matter sources on nutrient, sediment and water transport from cropland into streams
  • Topic 12: Impacts of bioenergy crops used as riparian buffer strips on stream ecosystems’ functioning
  • Topic 13: Sustainable hydropower & and the water-energy-food nexus in multi-stressed IRLs: Challenges and solutions for science & management
  • Topic 14: Integrated modelling of farmers’ climate change impact and adaptation appraisal to inform regional human river nexus management
  • Topic 15: Strategic planning approaches to territorial governance of industrialized riverine landscapes

For more information, please visit: https://short.boku.ac.at/q9ry2k

Application deadline: 2nd April 2024

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Natural Sciences

Dr. Tugume Patience Wins OWSD Early Career Fellowship

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Dr. Tugume Patience, Department of Plant Sciences, Microbiology and Biotechnology, College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS), Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Dr Tugume Patience, a Lecturer in the Department of Plant Sciences, Microbiology and Biotechnology at the College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS), Makerere University is one of the 28 women who have been granted the 2023 OWSD Early Career Fellowship.  These scientists will receive up to USD50,000 to lead research projects and establish research groups at their home institutions in 16 countries in the developing world, to maintain an international standard of research and attract scholars from all over the world to collaborate. Funding for the fellowships is generously provided by Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC).

During the 3-year fellowship, fellows will receive specific training to build on their leadership and management skills and develop connections with a variety of public and private sector partners to potentially convert their research into marketable products or guarantee its impact on a broader scale. By improving their communication and outreach skills, fellows will also learn to effectively present their research to various audiences, thus attracting new collaborators and potential funders to ensure the sustainability of the research project.

Dr Tugume’s Project – Biological Systems and Organisms

This project will use various forms of bio-wastes from households and urban centres in Uganda as raw materials for production of biogas, as well as an eco-friendly bio-fertilizer and bio-pesticide. Large amounts of unconsumed food are often thrown away in homes and urban centres that could be converted into useful products that would supply energy, enhance agricultural productivity and reduce deforestation. This project will construct anaerobic bio-digester tanks to process different kinds of bio-waste into biogas, a renewable energy source, and evaluate yields of biogas from different bio-wastes and combinations of bio-wastes. It will additionally produce a bio-fertilizer to enrich soil and a bio-pesticide to manage agricultural pests. The project will also equip households with the skills to biologically convert wastes into value-added products, training women and youth in biogas production and usage.

Details on the fellowships at: https://owsd.net/news/news-events/introducing-2023-owsd-early-career-fellows

Congratulations Dr Tugume

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Agriculture & Environment

CoSTClim – NORPART Call for Applications for Masters Student Mobility to Norway 2024

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Makerere University (MAK) in collaboration with Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Uganda Martyrs University (UMU) and Regional Universities Forum (for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) are implementing a five-year CoSTClim project (Collaborative Action for Strengthening Training Capacities in Climate Risk and Natural Resource management). The main goal of the project is to improve the quality of training, education and research at the partner institutions with a dedicated focus on climate risk, disaster risk management and natural resource management. CoSTClim builds on a range of other capacity development projects funded by the Norwegian Government at the partner institutions, and has a specific focus on education.

One of the components of CoSTClim is student mobility from Uganda to Norway and from Norway to Uganda. Therefore, we are inviting applicants from Makerere University for Masters student mobility scholarships to NTNU for the Autumn semester in 2024. There are five mobility scholarship slots available for this year. The scholarship will cover 5 months (August-December 2024) stay at NTNU in Trondheim, Norway. The successful candidates can enroll in selected course units at NTNU as well as leveraging the stay to write their master’s thesis. The width and breadth of available course units from which the candidates can select are found: https://www.ntnu.edu/geography/exchange-students

Limited research supervision will also be given by NTNU staff but the primary supervision responsibility stays with the allocated supervisors at Makerere University or Uganda Martyrs University.

Eligibility and requirements for the mobility applicants
a) The applicant should be a fully registered student in a relevant Masters programme at
Makerere University or Uganda Martyrs University, which aligns to the CostClim
thematic focus area.
b) The focus of the research of the applicant should align strongly to climate risk, disaster
risk management, natural resource management or agriculture.
c) The applicant should be progressing well on the masters programme and within the
stated duration of the programme (2-3years).

Application procedure
Interested and eligible Masters students should send the following;
a) A one page application letter
b) A motivation statement and plan for the time at NTNU (1-2 pages)
c) A letter from the Head of Department attesting to your registration, study status and
progress on your programme.
d) Copies of your undergraduate transcript and partial transcript or HOD endorsed
results for your current studies.
Application with all the required documents should be submitted by email to the contacts
below in one message.

  1. Yazidhi Bamutaze (for applicants from MAK)- yazidhibamutaze@gmail.com
  2. Runyararo Jolyn Rukarwa – r.rukarwa@ruforum.org
  3. Charlotte Nakakawa Jjunju – charlotte.jjunju@ntnu.no
  4. Joseph Sekandi sekjoseph@gmail.com
    Short listed applicants will be invited to complete educational procedures at NTNU under the
    exchange arrangement. A scholarship

The application deadline is Thursday 29th February 2024.

For further details, kindly download the document by following this link.

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