Agriculture & Environment
New CAES Principal Delivers Inaugural Speech, explains strategies for improving the College
The new Principal, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES), Makerere University, Dr. Gorettie N. Nabanoga delivered her inaugural speech to the College community on Friday, 4th March 2022. During the event held in the Biology Laboratory at the School of Agricultural Sciences, CAES, the Principal acknowledged the transformative leadership of the outgoing Principal, Prof. Bernard Bashaasha. She also recognized the former deans and Heads of Department for the excellent service to CAES and Makerere University in general. These included; Prof. Johny Mugisha, Dean School of Agricultural Sciences (2013-2021); Prof. Jacob Agea who served as Head Department of Extension and Innovation Studies (2015-2019); Prof. Paul Kibwika, Head Department of Extension and Innovation Studies (2011-2015); Prof. Archileo Kaaya, Head Department of Food Technology and Human Nutrition (2011-2019); Prof. Phillip Nyeko, Head Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism (2011-2019); Dr. Denis Mpairwe, Head Department of Agricultural Production (2011-2019); and Dr. Yazidhi Bamutaze, Head Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Climatic Sciences (2015-2019). Dr. Nabanoga presented plaques to the outgoing Principal and former administrators in recognition of their excellent service to the College and University in general. The Principal together with members of staff from the School of Forestry, Environmental and Geographical Sciences, led by the Dean, Dr. Fred Babweteera presented various gifts to the outgoing Principal.
Principal’s address
Addressing the CAES community, Dr. Nabanoga appreciated the support accorded to her by all staff and students while she served as Deputy Principal. “The support motivated me to offer myself to serve as Principal of this mighty College,” she noted.
She acknowledged the support rendered to her by the outgoing Principal, Prof. Bernard Bashaasha that greatly advanced her leadership skills. “The job description of the Deputy Principal is shaped/defined by the Principal, and it on this note that I am profoundly grateful to Prof. Bashaasha for having incrementally assigned me roles and responsibilities that nurtured my leadership skills. Your selfless service and leadership were a source of inspiration that gave me confidence to pursue this leadership position, to add a building block on your achievements,” she said.
Dr. Nabanoga explained that Prof. Baashaasha’s contribution remains a strong foundation for CAES’ journey to excellence. “There’s no price I can pay to reciprocate your contribution to my leadership skills, except ensuring that your contribution to CAES’ growth is sustained. Thank you very much for building a firm foundation on which I will ably make a contribution.”
While appreciating the Deans and Heads of Department, Dr. Nabanoga noted that the great performance of a Deputy Principal is anchored on the committed service and management skills of the former. “I appreciate the Deans and Heads of Department that I worked with in the last eight and a half years as Deputy Principal. You indeed made it easy for me to deliver on my mandate,” she explained.
Dr. Nabanoga equally applauded Prof. Jacob Godfrey Agea and Dr. Patrick Okori for offering themselves for the position of Principal, CAES. “You indeed demonstrated to Makerere University that CAES has potential leaders. I know that you have a lot of experience, knowledge, and competences to make good leaders. I pledge to seek and integrate the ideas presented in your manifestos and will continue to seek your counsel and guidance for the betterment of CAES,” she said.
She appreciated the Search Committee, the University Management, Council and the Chancellor, Prof. Ezra Suruma for their trust and confidence in her leadership potential. Following a rigorous search process, the Chancellor appointed Dr. Nabanoga Principal, CAES effective 1st February 2022 for a period of four years.
CAES’ Journey to 2025
Highlighting the achievements, challenges and strategies for improving CAES in the next four years, Dr. Nabanoga reminded members of staff that CAES is a great College with a lot of potential in the area of human capital development through the teaching programmes offered and research and innovations that significantly contribute to Makerere University ranking and brand. “All achievements in the areas highlighted have been possible because of staff commitment, an enthusiastic student community, as well as productive and well maintained research and incubation centres including the Makerere University Regional Centre for Crop Improvement (MARCCI), Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute Kabanyolo (MUARIK), the Makerere University Biological Field Station (MUBFS) and the Food Technology and Business Incubation Centre (FTBIC),” she explained, noting that despite the enormous achievements, there is still a lot more potential opportunities that can move CAES to greater heights. “This can only be possible if we deliberate and focus to address the historical and contemporary challenges, while harnessing the unlimited opportunities within and around us,” she noted.
Quoting General George Washington, the First United States President who said “The Honour and Success of the army depends upon harmony and good agreement with each other”, Dr. Nabanoga explained that success can only be realized if there is collective consciousness on the shared mission in an organization. “We are an army of intellectuals whose sole purpose is to shape discourses in our respective disciplines. This can only be possible if we cultivate harmony at CAES and have meaningful engagement with partners. This is a mission I will wake up to pursue every day,” she said.
Structural and operational challenges and strategies to address them
Highlighting the structural and operational challenges that undermine teaching and learning as a key component of the University and College mandate, Dr. Nabanoga explained that CAES programmes require skills development, calling for improvement in practical training. “The quality of practical training at the College has declined over the years majorly because of insufficient and late disbursement of funds for conducting practical training. We do not have enough technical staff in our laboratories. These challenges limit the skillset imparted to the CAES graduate, yet the world today requires human resource with appropriate skillset. As Makerere works towards improving the budget prioritization and funds disbursement routines, we need to diversify collaborations with industry to enable our students to engage in meaningful academic and work experience internships,” she explained.
Regarding the heavy teaching load for academic staff amidst other mandates of research and knowledge transfer partnerships, Dr. Nabanoga explained that most units are understaffed, working with half of the established positions. This, coupled with the low morale amongst teaching and non-teaching, she noted was largely affecting efficiency. “The effects of this include the declining number of grant-winning research proposals, delayed submission of results, and inadequate student research supervision.”
In a bid to improve research and innovations at the College, Dr. Nabanoga called for the revitalization of relationships with former and new development partners with a global research focus. “Additionally, all Units should be encouraged to establish functional relationships with sister Units in Universities in the global North. We also need to work towards fully operationalizing research grant units, and creating incentives for researchers.
On graduate training programmes that are currently experiencing low enrolment, at 6% as opposed to the 40% desired in the University’s Strategic Plan 2020-2030, Dr. Nabanoga said the College through the Office of the Deputy Principal would work on developing a strategy to market graduate programmes. In order to improve the graduate students’ constraint of funding innovative research, she committed to provide support to schools and departments to develop research proposals with a provision of research funds for graduate students. She also committed to foster continuous improvement in the graduate supervision and examination processes, which shall improve the current graduate completion rate from 75% to 90%. “This will require efforts in areas such as increasing the pool of examiners, full operationalization and utilization of the Grad-Track System, developing a system of recognizing best performing examiners, and supporting Units to establish incubation centres to promote innovations.
On resource mobilization, Dr. Nabanoga noted that together with all staff, she would work towards exploring and fully utilizing MUARIK and other Institutes and Centres of Excellence at the College. “We need to change our mindset in sorting these challenges if we have to fast track research and innovation. I propose that we intention and purpose to become entrepreneurs in Academia. My dream is to see CAES as the Apex of impactful research and Human Capital Development, fitting the world of work, with innovative entrepreneurial operations,” she said.
Dr. Nabanoga emphasized the need for inclusivity at all levels of operation, committing that she would support schools and department to form engendered working committees to address their unique challenges.
Concluding her remarks, Dr. Nabanoga recognized the unique services of administrative and other non-teaching staff at the College. “The cleaners do a noble job to keep us healthy, the registrars absorb most of the complaints from the students, and the finance team are the engine of the College operations. All these categories of staff including the Human Resources team, communications team and ICT staff are our unsung heroes and heroines. I pledge to be responsive to your needs, interests and aspirations. I will continue to maintain my open door policy. Feel free to walk in and if you don’t, I will walk to you. I reiterate my commitment to a co-creative approach in identifying and addressing the barriers in our areas of mandate.”
At the event, several members of staff paid glowing tribute to the outgoing Principal, Prof. Bernard Bashaasha for his excellent leadership skills, cooperation, and improvement of the teaching and research infrastructure at the College, and appealed to him to continue offering them guidance.
In his remarks, Prof. Bashaasha acknowledged the overwhelming appreciation of his service by members of staff at the College. He pledged continued support to the new Principal and all staff at the College.
The event was crowned with a cocktail party for all staff held in the School of Agricultural Sciences Quadrangle.
Makerere University Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe on 19th July 2024 endorsed the Memorandum of Understanding between Makerere University and Oregon State University to collaborate in different aspects of academics. The MoU signing ceremony was witnessed by members of staff from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) namely; Dr Revocatus Twinomuhangi, Dean, School of Forestry, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences; Dr Lawrence Orikiriza Head, Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism; and Prof. Jim Ayorekire from the same department. Oregon State University was represented by Dr Ian E. Munanura, an Associate Professor in the Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, College of Forestry, and Ms. Racheal Fahrenbach, Manager International Programs at the College of Forestry. At Makerere, the MoU will be implemented by the Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism under the leadership of Prof. Jim Ayorekire. At Oregon State University, it will be implemented by the College of Forestry.
Under the MoU, the two institutions have agree to mutually promote the following programmes, based on their respective academic and educational needs; i) Exchange of scholars and faculty staff, ii) Exchange of undergraduate and graduate students for research and study, iii) Exchange of academic information and materials, iv) Joint research activities and publications, v) Participation in conferences and academic meetings vi) Joint running of short-term academic programs, vii) Resource mobilization in respect of areas of mutual interest, and any other areas which may promote their mutual interests.
During the ceremony, the Vice Chancellor noted that programmes agreed on in the MoU were in line with the University’s Strategic Plan, and would greatly advance Makerere’s aspiration to become a research-led University. “As we move towards becoming a research-led University, we aim to contribute to the realization of Agenda 2063 which seeks to have Africa produce at least one million PhDs as one of the measures to eradicate poverty from the continent. Partnerships like this will help us achieve our target, by building our supervision capacity,” he explained, pledging support towards the implementation of the MoU.
Dr Ian Munanura on behalf of Oregon State University expressed gratitude to work with Makerere, noting that the partnership would strengthen research capacity of the two institutions and support the mentorship of the next generation of scientists to deal with the challenges facing humanity including climate change and unemployment.
About the Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism at Makerere
The Department of Forestry, Biodiversity, and Tourism under the School of Forestry, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences at the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University offers programmes namely; Bachelor of Science in Conservation Forestry and Products Technology; Bachelor of Social and Entrepreneurial Forestry; and Master of Science in Agroforestry. Specific courses offered under those programmes include; Agroforestry Systems, Practices And Technologies; Drylands Agroforestry; Advanced Community Forestry; Gender Issues In Forestry; Advanced Biodiversity Conservation; Ecophysiology and Agronomy; Forestry For Rural Development; Natural Resource Management; Tropical Forest Ecology And Management; Forestry Business Management; Entrepreneurship In Forestry; Forestry And Food Security; Indigenous Knowledge in Resource Management; Biomass Energy Production and Conservation; Land Use Planning and Watershed Management; Forest Planning and Development; Forest Ecosystems and Livelihoods; and Forest Planning and Development. The Department also conducts a wide range of research in the fields highlighted above. The training offered exposes graduates from the department to a wide range of employment opportunities.
About the College of Forestry, Oregon State University
The Oregon State University College of Forestry is an internationally recognized leader that is transforming education, research and policy for managing and sustaining working forest ecosystems in the 21st century. The College offers a world-class education that provides a wide variety of opportunities following graduation. Academic excellence is the hallmark of the College of Forestry programs at Oregon State University. Ranked as one of the premier forestry schools in the world, students find a variety of programs that offer broad education, rigorous depth and professional focus. The College is known for its collaborative research approach to advance knowledge and bring solutions to issues facing forest landscapes and ecosystems. It takes pride in creating new and innovative approaches to help partners enhance people’s lives while improving the health of lands, businesses and vital ecosystems.
Agriculture & Environment
Mak, Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology Sign Collaboration Agreement
*****Under the MoU, the two institutions will among other activities, collaborate in the areas of teaching and learning, research and publication, technology transfer, and resource mobilization in respect of areas of mutual interest.
Makerere University has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology (NUIST) to formalize collaboration. Under the agreement, the two institutions intend to leverage each other’s respective strengths, experience, technologies, methodologies, and resources to achieve shared and complementary goals. Areas of cooperation will include; i) Mobilization of resources in respect of areas of mutual interest, ii) Conducting research, publishing research findings, and promoting outreach to the relevant state and non-state actors, iii) Exchanging academic and technical information including transfer of technology between the two institutions within acceptable institutional structures and policies, iv) Staff and student exchanges, v) Strengthening networking and identifying partnership opportunities between the two institutions/parties, and vi) Organizing and participating in joint academic activities such as seminars, workshops and conferences in respect of areas of mutual interest. The two institutions are also in negotiations to establish an African climate school to strengthen research and training in atmospheric science/ meteorology.
On 12th July 2024, representatives from the two institutions met at Makerere University to sign the MoU and further deliberate on the proposed areas of collaboration. Besides the other proposed areas of collaboration, the meeting held at the School of Forestry, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences (SFEGS) discussed the Reverse 2+2 programme proposal, a joint education programme collaboratively designed by both parties. The programme is implemented in two phases. Phase one covers the first two years, during which students undertake full-time studies at a foreign institution, completing prescribed courses (earning transcripts from the foreign institution) and meeting admission requirements of NUIST. Phase two spans the next two years, with students studying full-time at NUIST. Upon completing the required courses, practical activities, and graduation projects offered by NUIST, students will receive a graduation diploma from NUIST and a bachelor’s degree from both institutions. At Makerere University, the MoU will be implemented by the School of Forestry, Environmental and Geographical Sciences, and will be coordinated by Dr Alex Nimusiima, Senior Lecturer and Coordinator of the Meteorology Unit. At NUIST, the programme will be managed by Dr. Yueyue Yu, Professor of school of Atmospheric Science.
In his remarks presented by the Dean, School of Forestry, Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Dr Revocatus Twinomuhangi, Makerere University Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe pledged support to ensure successful implementation of the programme. “The field of atmospheric science/ meteorology, the main focus of this cooperation, is very important especially for our country Uganda which depends mainly on rain-fed agriculture and also in this era of climate change where strengthening this discipline will be important for successful adaptation and mitigation of climate change,” he noted, emphasizing the importance of partnership in fostering Makerere’s aspiration of becoming a research-University.
Commenting on the MoU, the Vice President Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology committed to support the programme with hope that it will serve as a role model in the educational cooperation between Uganda and China.
About NUIST
Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology (NUIST), founded in 1960 and renamed from Nanjing Institute of Meteorology in 2004, was designated as one of the national key institutions of higher education in 1978. NUIST is co-constructed by the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA), the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) and the Ministry of Education. In 2017, NUIST was on the list of China’s “Double First-class” construction universities and disciplines as well as Jiangsu high level universities. Currently, NUIST has about 35800 full-time students, including 28,300 undergraduate students, 6,200 postgraduate students and 1,300 international students. There are more than 2,000 full-time faculty members, with more than 120 high-end scholars including academicians of Chinese, EU, French, and Russian Academies of Sciences, MOE Special Professors and National Distinguished Young Scholars.
NUIST has established cooperative relationship with over 100 overseas universities and colleges from over 30 countries and regions including Yale University, Harvard University, the University of Reading, the University of Manchester, South East Technological University, Carlton University, Delft University of Technology, Macquarie University and Monash University. To date, the WMO Regional Training Centre Nanjing at NUIST has trained over 4,300 senior meteorological and hydrological professionals for 158 countries and regions and become the world’s largest training centre of top quality. Diversified cooperation modes with worldwide first-class universities is a characteristic of NUIST’s international cooperation, among which to establish joint research institutes is the most effective one.
More photos from the event
-
General1 week agoUndergraduate Admission Lists under Government Sponsorship 2024/2025
-
General1 week agoUndergraduate Admission List Private Sponsorship Scheme 2024/2025
-
General1 week agoRe-advertisement: Undergraduate Programmes 2024/2025
-
General6 days agoDiploma/Degree Holders Admission Lists 2024/25
-
General1 week agoFreshers’ Orientation and Registration For 2024/2025 Academic Year