General
Mak signs Agreement with CIVIS-An Alliance of 10 European Universities
Introduction
The Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs), Associate Prof. Umar Kakumba, together with the Deputy Director Directorate of Research and Graduate Training (DRGT), Associate Prof. Robert Wamala and the International Relations Officer, Ms Martha Muwanguzi attended an event , New Horizons for a European –African Partnership at Aix-Marseille University, France. The event was on the invitation of the Vice –President of International Relations of Aix-Marseille University. Held from 8th to 12th March, 2022, the event was organized by CIVIS ; a European University Alliance – and punctuated by conferences and workshops with a focus on importance of the Alliance in strengthening Europe-Africa partnerships.
The Opening ceremony was held in the Amphi Gastaut. the Main Hall of Aix Marseille University. In his welcoming remarks, the Rector Aix Marseille University, Prof Eric Berton was delighted to receive participants especially those from Africa. CIVIS wants to create socially justifiable partnerships and Africa is an essential part of the Alliance with the European universities.
The Director of Strategic Projects and Networks at Aix Marseille, Ms. Camille de Garidel-Thoron introduced the participants to CIVIS. This was followed by another presentation by the Coordinator, CIVIS African and Mediterranean partnerships, University of Tübingen, Germany, Dr Christian Möllman.
Background to CIVIS-A European Civic University
In his remarks, the Coordinator explained that CIVIS is a European Civic University formed by the alliance of ten leading research higher education institutions across Europe namely: Aix-Marseille Université (France); Universite of Bucharest (Romania); Sapienza Universitá di Roma (Italy); Stockholm University (Sweden); Université libre de Bruxelles (Belgium); Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain), Eberhard Karls Universitӓt Tubingen (Germany), University of Glasgow (United Kingdom); The Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (Austria) and the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece).
The Alliance brings together a community of more than 470,000 students and 58,000 staff members including 35,000 academics and researchers. The CIVIS member universities actively contribute to the social, cultural and economic activities of the urban environments they are situated in and also promote inclusiveness, gender equality, non-discrimination and social equity. CIVIS strengthens interactions, knowledge production and skills amongst its members and with citizens, the communities, businesses, social and cultural associations. These interactions help reduce inequalities, increase access to quality training and opportunities for students and staff.
CIVIS is governed by a Board of Rectors, headed by a President and two Vice Presidents who make decisions. It has a Steering Committee headed by the President and a CIVIS Administration with a Project Team. There are three councils namely, Global Participant Council, Global Student Council and a Global Consultative Council.
Alliance between CIVIS and African Universities
Humanity now faces global problems such as climatic change, diseases and epidemics, unplanned cities and settlements, to mention but a few. It is important to note that these challenges cut across borders and continents. Therefore, collaboration and partnerships with African Higher Education Institutions (HEI) would be crucial and important to establish. It is on this basis that particular African universities were invited by CIVIS to participate in the events with the aim of extending the partnership to the African continent. Six universities were invited: (i) Makerere University (Uganda); (ii) University of Sfax (Tunisia); (iii) University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa); (iv) Université Hassan II de Casablanca (Morocco); (v) Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (Mozambique), and (vi) Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar (Senegal).
The collaboration and partnership broadens the network for student and staff mobilities as well as study visits. Further, it also supports equitable research partnerships in higher education agreed upon in the European Union and African Union Innovation Agenda which opens up new channels for South-South cooperation. University partnerships have also become powerful vehicles for promoting civic and democratic engagement as well as international economic development.
Presentation by Makerere University
The Vice Chancellors in the African countries presented information about their universities, including identification of areas where they could work together with the European counterparts in the Alliance.
In his remarks, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs), Associate Prof. Umar Kakumba thanked the organizers of the event and the invitation extended to Makerere University in particular. He supported the idea of a European-African Universities partnership and believes that it will contribute to the Africa Agenda 2063 and its attendant action plan. The aim should be to support research collaboration in selected fields among Africa and the member universities and to strengthen the research infrastructure at the member universities such as Science laboratory and training equipment; research in agricultural value addition and food security; infrastructure planning and management; research in public health and infectious diseases management as well as research in refugee and migration issues.
Prof. Kakumba emphasized that signing an MoU is a great step in the right direction. This should follow a statement of clear roles and responsibilities, and mutual benefits. Furthermore;
- There is need to plan big but start small.
- There should be options of choosing a low cost, simple activity with high impact such as seminars, workshops, regular partnership meetings, student/staff exchange to give partner institutions a chance to learn about each other’s systems, processes and stakeholders.
- There is need to plan and understand the individual institution’s responsibilities and obligations in the partnership and set up timelines, deliverables and milestones.
- It is crucial to establish exactly who will be involved, how communication should happen and what decisions need to be taken in the short term.
Following presentations by all the six African Universities, a discussion was made to explore common grounds on how the European Alliance can serve African partners. In his remarks, Associate Prof. Robert Wamala emphasized the need to document the roles and expectations of the African in the Alliance. In his remarks, Robert Wamala noted that Universities in the CIVIS Alliance were at a higher advantage in regards to research capacity when compared to the African counterparts. Therefore, the need to build an equal partnership in an unequal world needed to be prioritized.
Expectation(s) of the Collaboration
Collaboration in CIVIS is organized around hubs in five multidisciplinary research areas linked to CIVIS values where multiculturalism and multilingualism are encouraged and emphasized , working together to address UN Sustainable Development Goals. The four Hub Chairs made presentations of respective hubs: (i) Hub One focuses on Climate, Environment and Energy; (ii) Hub Two focuses on Society, Culture and Heritage; (iii) Hub Three focuses on Health; and (iv) Hub Four focuses on Cities, Territories and Mobilities. Hub Five is yet to be established. Activities in the Hubs include webinars, workshops, summer schools, field camps and course offerings. Each Hub must have at least three or more CIVIS universities.
All participating universities agreed that there was need to move from unilateral projects to multilateral partnerships and provide input into AU-EU Innovation Agenda and establish advanced study centres. It was noted that in order to have successful international partnerships, equity, trust, transparency and mutual respect for the needs and interests of partners were key to their success and sustainability.
Research collaboration is very important with European universities. The funding received is normally from Erasmus+ but there is need to move further to funding agencies that provide support for education such as CIVIS. It was further noted that mobility and exchanges of students and staff is there to stay and cannot replace human interaction, and other forms of education need to be developed and blended with virtual mobility. Furthermore, what is good for our students is good for our partnerships“Together we are stronger”. In this partnership, there is need to have a joint practical collaboration by “Building an equal partnership in an unequal world”
Signing of Agreements
At the end of the three- day conference, the Vice Chancellors of the African universities signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement with CIVIS (A European Civic University Alliance) to lay a foundation for collaboration in research and education focusing on societal challenges, mobilities and institutional development.
Expectations of Makerere University
Similar to the rest of the African Universities, Associate Prof. Umar Kakumba presented the expectations of Makerere University from the Alliance. These included, but were not limited to the following:
- Potential for staff and student mobility within member universities in the Alliance
- Development of joint degree programs around the hub themes
- Mobilization of international funding for research
- Cross disciplinary activities including workshops, seminars and Conferences
- Improving research infrastructure in partner universities in the Alliance
Photo Gallery
Compiled by Ms. Martha Muwanguzi, International Officer, Makerere University
The Makerere University Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe has today, Friday, 26th June 2026 handed over the CCE (Complex) Hall of Residence Site to National Enterprise Corporation (NEC) Managing Director and CEO, Lieutenant General James Mugira for renovation and overhaul works. The UGX 12billion Government of Uganda-funded works, expected to be completed within a year, are the fourth project to be undertaken by NEC. They were preceded by; construction of the University Perimeter Wall, Renovation of Lumumba Hall, and Renovation of Mary Stuart Hall.
NEC’s Record Lauded
Prof. Nawangwe in his remarks at the handover ceremony lauded these projects. “The quality of work done by NEC makes us proud because we can finally say that we have Ugandans who can do the things, which we previously depended on foreigners to do.” He therefore thanked the Government of Uganda for fully funding the projects and the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Hon. Janet Museveni, whose visit set the renovation projects in motion.
The Vice Chancellor added that as the Alma mater for most members of both the Contractor and Project Management Teams, this was a moment of great pride as their expertise and skills have saved the country billions of taxpayers’ money. “Thank you for being patriotic”, he commended.
Prof. Nawangwe concluded by noting that CCE Hall, by virtue of its location, provides a first impression of Makerere University as a whole. He therefore urged the contractor to ensure that upon renovation, CCE Hall would create a memorable and lasting first impression, exceeding even that of the renovated Mary Stuart Hall.
A Project Fueled by Nostalgia
Speaking of impressions, Lt. Gen. Mugira, with nostalgia recalled that close to 42 years ago, he not only attended his first lectures in Hall 1 of the CCE Complex but also, on a more personal note added, “my wife was a resident, and so I have every motivation to put in a lot of effort and make sure that I deliver more than was done with Mary Stuart and Lumumba.”
He therefore extended heartfelt appreciation to his Alma mater Makerere University for the trust and confidence bestowed in NEC, which underscored their ability to deliver. “Trust is earned through performance, through integrity and consistency, and your decision to engage us motivates us to work even harder to exceed your expectations.”
In his remarks, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Finance and Administration) Prof. Henry Alinaitwe reechoed the need to ensure that the project is executed with adherence to the cost, quality, specifications and safety related issues as earlier shared by the Acting (Ag.) Chief Engineer of Estates and Works, Eng. Ezra Sekadde.
“NEC has already demonstrated this (with previous projects), and that is why we have all the confidence that you can deliver this project within 12 months” remarked Prof. Alinaitwe. He equally lauded the Project Management Team (PMT) led by Arch. Dr. Kenneth Ssemwogerere whose supervision ensures timely project completion.
Relatedly, Arch. Dr. Semwogerere was on 25th June 2026, the eve of the handover, promoted to the rank of Associate Professor, a milestone Prof. Alinaitwe attributed to his track record as Head of PMT. He therefore, on a light note, urged him to keep up the good work as this could equally contribute to his promotion to the rank of full Professor.
Also present at the handover ceremony was the Principal, College of Education and External Studies (CEES) Prof. Anthony Mugagga, whose unit will be greatly affected by the renovations. He nevertheless welcomed and reiterated his full support for the project, noting that just as renovation of Lumumba and Mary Stuart Halls had resulted in many alumni revisiting, the CCE Complex would upon renovation attract former residents and teaching professionals to give back or forge new partnerships.
Student Welfare at the Forefront
On her part, the Dean of Students Dr. Winifred Kabumbuli lauded the renovations of Halls of Residence as a clear demonstration of Government’s dedication to the improvement of student welfare, and creating an environment conducive for nurturing responsible citizens who can contribute to national development. She pledged her Office’s and the Student Leadership’s readiness to ensure that the renovated facilities used responsibly for the benefit of future generations.
As a resident of the recently renovated Mary Stuart Hall, 92nd Guild President H.E. Kadondi Gracious could not help but appreciate how impactful the renovation of CCE Hall would be to student welfare. “The female students will be very excited (to occupy CCE Hall) but the male students will be left complaining – so we shall be expecting more renovations, not just for the female but also the male students,” she amiably concluded.
General
Makerere University Leads EU-Funded MAGNETISE Project to Strengthen Gender Equality in Higher Education Across Sub-Saharan Africa
A consortium of African and European universities has intensified efforts to mainstream gender equality in higher education through the MAGNETISE project, with Makerere University taking a leading role in hosting a high-level workshop that brought together policymakers, researchers, and gender experts to reflect on institutional progress, persistent gaps, and future strategies.
The initiative, focused on Mainstreaming Gender in Higher Education Institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa (MAGNETISE), is supported by the European Union and implemented through a multi-country partnership involving institutions in Uganda, South Africa, and Europe. It aims to move beyond policy formulation to practical implementation, monitoring, and institutional accountability in gender equality.
At the heart of the discussions was a shared concern: while universities across the region have developed gender policies over the past decades, translating these frameworks into measurable, lived institutional change remains uneven.
A Consortium Approach to Gender Mainstreaming in Academia
Opening the workshop, held at Makerere University recently, the project lead, Professor James Acai Okwee who is also deputy Principal CoVAB, described MAGNETISE as a collaborative effort designed to strengthen institutional capacity for gender equality planning across higher education systems in Sub-Saharan Africa.
He explained that the consortium includes Ugandan partners such as Makerere University and Muni University, alongside South African institutions including University of KwaZulu-Natal, Rhodes University, and Nelson Mandela University. European partners include Katholieke Hoge school VIVES Zuid (VIVES) and KMOP Policy Centre from Belgium, as well as Research Innovation and Development Lab (ReadLab) and University of Peloponnese. The consortium also includes additional European academic collaboration through the University of Applied Sciences and related policy and research networks.
According to Acai, the core objective is not simply to produce policies, but to ensure universities develop functional gender equality plans supported by implementation tools, monitoring frameworks, and institutional accountability systems.
“We have had policies since the early 2000s, but the real question is: where is the implementation plan, and how do we track progress?” he noted. “If a policy says 40 percent representation for women in leadership, we must be able to measure whether that is being achieved.”
He emphasized that MAGNETISE would support training, capacity-building exchanges with European institutions, student engagement programmes, and the development of a digital knowledge hub for gender equality.
Makerere University’s Institutional Position on Gender Equality
Representing university leadership, Dr. Suzan Mbabazi of Makerere University’s Gender Mainstreaming Directorate reaffirmed the institution’s commitment to advancing gender equality across its academic, research, and community engagement mandate. She highlighted significant progress made over more than two decades, citing policies such as the Gender Equality Policy and the Regulations Against Sexual Harassment, alongside governance frameworks that have institutionalized gender equity. Makerere has also established key structures, including the Institute of Gender and Development Studies and the Gender Mainstreaming Directorate, to coordinate initiatives across faculties. Yet, Dr. Mbabazi cautioned that structural achievements do not erase systemic challenges. “Despite progress globally and locally, we must acknowledge persistent gaps, biases, and inequalities within higher education institutions,” she said, stressing the need to bridge policy and practice. She urged participants to prioritize awareness creation, institutional analysis of existing gaps, and deliberate action to dismantle structural barriers. Reaffirming management’s support, she called for continued collaboration among institutions and stakeholders to sustain momentum in gender mainstreaming.
Preliminary Survey Findings Reveal Mixed Progress
Presenting the initial findings of a university-wide survey, Dr. Peace Musiimenta of the School of Women and Gender Studies at Makerere University revealed that responses from 82 participants across various units highlight both progress and persistent challenges in advancing gender equality. While many acknowledged strides in gender mainstreaming, structural and cultural barriers remain entrenched. The study found that although gender policies exist, their implementation is often inconsistent, and initiatives risk being treated as isolated projects rather than integrated institutional practices. Dr. Musiimenta noted that some staff perceive gender programs as overly focused on women, fueling resistance and ideological tensions within academic spaces. She emphasized that the challenge is no longer the absence of policy but the need to ensure visibility, ownership, and effective application of existing frameworks to embed gender equality across the institution.
Gender Audit Highlights Structural Gaps and Progress
Expanding on the institutional audit, Dr. Florence Ebila outlined the methodology and preliminary findings of the gender audit conducted between May and June 2026.She explained that the audit examined institutional policies, governance systems, practices, organizational culture, and perceptions of gender equality.
The study drew data from multiple administrative units including human resources, academic registrars, estates and works departments, and student leadership structures. Ebila reported that Makerere University has made significant institutional progress, including the establishment of gender-focused units and integration of gender considerations into teaching, research, and governance. However, she identified persistent disparities in representation, particularly in science-related disciplines where male staff and students remain dominant.
She also highlighted infrastructural gaps, noting that while newer buildings are increasingly accessible, several older facilities lack adequate support for persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
Another concern raised was limited gender-responsive budgeting, with insufficient allocation of resources to sustain gender mainstreaming activities across all units. “The challenge is not just policy design, but operationalization at all levels of the institution,” she said.
Gender, Identity, and Institutional Culture: A Critical Reflection
A keynote reflection by Dr Josephine Ahikire introduced a deeper theoretical lens to the discussion, situating gender mainstreaming within broader questions of institutional power, identity, and cultural norms.
Ahikire emphasized that gender mainstreaming is not a technical exercise but a structural transformation process that challenges entrenched systems of privilege.
She used the example of Makerere University’s centenary monument, where a male graduate is prominently positioned in front view while a female graduate is placed at the rear, to illustrate how symbolic representations can reflect deeper institutional biases.
“What appears natural often hides embedded inequality,” she argued. “Even symbolic structures matter because they reflect how institutions imagine gender.”
Ahikire acknowledged Makerere University’s progress in policy development and institutional frameworks but cautioned that deeper cultural transformation is still required.
She emphasized the need to interrogate curriculum design, research systems, and informal institutional practices that may perpetuate inequality despite formal commitments to inclusion.
She further argued that gender discourse must retain its political dimension, noting that terms such as feminism should not be avoided but engaged critically in order to address structural inequality.
“Gender equality work is not about comfort,” she said. “It is about questioning established norms and rethinking how power is distributed.”
Institutional Achievements and Remaining Challenges
Across presentations, several common themes emerged.
Participants acknowledged that Makerere University has developed one of the most advanced gender mainstreaming frameworks in the region, including:
- A dedicated gender equality policy framework
- Sexual harassment regulations and safeguarding policies
- Institutional gender mainstreaming structures
- Student engagement programmes and gender clubs
- Scholarships supporting women in science and disadvantaged backgrounds
- Increasing integration of gender into teaching and research
However, speakers consistently highlighted persistent challenges, including:
- Limited implementation of gender policies at departmental level
- Uneven representation of women in senior academic ranks
- Infrastructure gaps affecting accessibility and inclusion
- Weak gender-responsive budgeting mechanisms
- Resistance and misunderstanding of gender equality concepts
- Fragmentation of gender work across isolated units
Towards a Comprehensive Gender Equality Plan
A key outcome of the MAGNETISE project is the development of a comprehensive institutional gender equality plan for Makerere University, supported by monitoring tools and a sustainability framework.
The plan is expected to consolidate existing policies into a coherent implementation strategy, linking institutional commitments to measurable outcomes.
It will also include a handbook for monitoring gender equality initiatives and a digital platform for knowledge sharing among students and staff.
Project leaders emphasized that sustainability will depend on institutional ownership beyond donor funding, particularly through integration into university governance systems.
A Continuing Institutional Journey
The workshop concluded with a shared recognition that gender equality in higher education remains a work in progress, requiring sustained institutional commitment, cultural transformation, and accountability mechanisms.
While Makerere University has made notable progress over the past decades, speakers agreed that the next phase of gender mainstreaming must focus on implementation, visibility, and structural change.
As the MAGNETISE project continues across partner institutions in Africa and Europe, it positions itself not only as a research initiative, but as a long-term institutional reform effort aimed at reshaping how universities understand and operationalize gender equality in higher education.
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