General
Mindset Education can Fast Track Uganda’s Development – Dr. Hun Mok Lee
The Secretary General of the International Youth Fellowship (IYF), Dr. Hun Mok Lee has assured the Makerere Community that Mindset Education (ME) holds the key to fast tracking Uganda’s National Development from the present state to the first world. His assurance was based on the pivotal role played by ME in South Korea’s own miraculous growth and transformation from a GDP Per Capita of US$ 79 in 1963 to the current US $ 35,000. He made the remarks at a meeting with members of Top Management on 9th September 2022 in the Council Room, Frank Kalimuzo Central Teaching Facility (CTF).
Mind Education, he said, is built upon the three tenets of;
- Development of the ability to think deeply,
- Formation of a strong heart, and
- Cohesion through exchange.
Delving deeper into each tenet, Dr. Lee shared that Korean companies such as Samsung, LG and Hyundai that had previously treasured candidates with high Intelligence Quotient (IQ) were gradually moving over to those with high Emotional Quotient (EQ). Candidates with high EQ, he said, have the ability to think deeply, exercise self-control, consider others better than themselves, stay humble and put the needs of others before their own.
A strong heart, he continued, was the key to living a happy and healthy life. “Through the Mind Education, if you grow the immunity of the heart or if you make your heart become strong, it won’t be that you don’t have difficulties, you will have difficulties but you will overcome them” he counselled, adding that “rather than not having a problem, it is better to have the problem and have the power to defeat it.”
Dr. Lee added that South Korea has also applied ME to the field of sports with amazing results. The application of ME, he said, is the reason why players like Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min jointly claimed the 2021/22 English Premier League Golden Boot prize alongside Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah. Other feats he shared included South Korea’s second place finish in the FIFA U-20 World Cup held 2019 in Poland. Originally perceived as underdogs, the team was not expected to progress past the group stages. And so it was extremely shocking when they went all the way to the finals, eventually losing 3-1 to Ukraine.
He then took this as the perfect opportunity to share one of Michelangelo, the famous Italian painter, sculptor and poet’s quotes.
“The greatest danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.”
― Michelangelo Buonarroti
On the third tenet of cohesion through exchange, Dr. Lee shared the mystery behind the California redwood, a tree that rises to heights of over 110 metres, lives for over 2,000 years and yet has roots less than three metres deep.
“The roots of the redwood stick together” said Dr. Lee emphatically. “And so they hold one another, they share the nutrition together, live 3,000 years and they do not fall over during the hurricane” he further described.
Based on the above tenets, the Secretary General without hesitation described Mind Education as the single most powerful force behind the transformation of South Korea from a poor agricultural country into highly industrialised nation.
“In South Korea, we do not have even one single coffee tree, but how did we become the world’s third largest exporter of coffee?” he asked, pausing for a second before quickly answering “We imported the coffee beans from Africa and begun to think deeply, and made them into a coffee product that we export to Europe, America and the Middle East.”
“We don’t even have one single drop of petroleum,” he continued. “We import crude oil from the Middle East, refine it into many petroleum products and export them – we are ranked number one in the world” explained Dr. Lee, further driving his point on the benefits industrialisation home.
His most profound example of the day was Thomas Alva Edison, famously known for inventing the light bulb. Described as having “an intellectual disability” by his childhood teachers, the turning point for Edison, shared Dr. Lee, was when his mother, upon receiving this report from her son’s school refused to describe him as such, and instead convinced him that he was a genius.
“He was the genius of the geniuses. Which university do you think he graduated from? From Harvard University? Oxford University? No way. With the mindset, he is the one who invented the most in human history… misery and happiness is made from the heart. If you receive Mind Education, you can change.” concluded Dr. Lee.
The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe in his remarks thanked Dr. Hun Mok Lee for his visit and insightful presentation, noting that South Korea’s first class infrastructure and facilities are proof that investing in Mind Education pays off. He added that Makerere as the top University has the responsibility to prove to the rest of the country that ME indeed works.
“We must begin somewhere and move fast. Dr. Lee’s presentation showed that it was after 30 years of changing the education system that the economy finally took off and so we must appreciate that it takes some time” added Prof. Nawangwe.
The Dean, School of Psychology Assoc. Prof. Grace M. Kibanja thanked the Secretary General for his enlightening presentation and the IYF Uganda office for the support and good working relationship over the years. Giving a brief history of the collaboration, she shared that the two parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 8th February 2016, under the Deanship of Prof. Peter K. Baguma.
The MoU was aimed at facilitating; joint youth development, annual youth camps, workshops, voluntary community activities especially training youth through district leadership and teaching Mind Education. As a result, the National Mind Education Programme was launched at the Freedom Square on 30th July 2017 and subsequently, Rev. Dr. Ock Soo Park, the IYF Founder was hosted by Makerere University in 2019.
“In the same year, we piloted the Mind Education Programme at the School of Psychology with the Bachelor of Industrial and Organisational Psychology intake of 2019/2020… the feedback from these students revealed that indeed, there is a lot that changes in them as individuals when they go through these trainings” testified Assoc. Prof. Kibanja.
The staff have not been left out either. On 6th November 2020 Makerere University hosted a virtual Mind Education Workshop for staff, where the IYF Founder, Rev. Dr. Ock Soo Park delivered the keynote address. His concluding message then was, “leave behind your first level of thought and try to embrace deep thinking. If you go about life thinking deeply, you will live a blessed glorious life”
The proposed Mind Education Programme course has been passed by the School of Psychology Academic Board. A stakeholders workshop is being organised to receive feedback before the final curriculum is submitted for approval. The Mind Education Programme, it is envisaged, will be a crosscutting course tenable at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
General
Makerere University and Xiangtan University Advance Strategic Partnership in Chemical Engineering
Makerere University and Xiangtan University are set to update their close to 20-year academic partnership, with a new focus on launching a joint Master’s degree program in Chemical Engineering and expanding student and staff exchange initiatives.
The commitment was reaffirmed during a recent visit by a delegation from Xiangtan University to Makerere University headed by Professor Dingyu Ou, in the company of Mr. Tang Fei and Professor Gilbert Gumshabe, the Chinese and Ugandan Directors of the Confucius Institute at Makerere University respectively.
While addressing the delegation, Professor Nawangwe highlighted that this initiative is part of a broader strategy to diversify academic offerings and contribute to national development through training in Chemical Engineering. Through this new initiative, the University will better prepare graduates for the petrochemical industry and support the country’s industrial growth.
The Vice Chancellor appreciated that the proposed collaboration aims to address Uganda’s growing need for industrial expertise, particularly as the country develops its petroleum sector. The two universities here are working toward a 1+2 training model, which will enable Makerere students to gain practical experience and access advanced laboratory facilities at Xiangtan University.
Professor Nawangwe further reiterated that “our relationship with the people of China, not just for Makerere but also for a big part of Uganda, has been opened wider by the establishment of the Confucius Institute, considering that many other collaborations like one being discussed now have come through this collaboration.”
The head of the Xiangtan delegation, Professor Dingyu Ou, expressed appreciation for the meeting, and acknowledged the history between the institutions. “As mentioned, we have a very long relationship and a very stable friendship between our two universities.”
Professor Ou extended appreciation for the support provided to the Confucius Institute at Makerere, the care shown to his colleagues, and looked forward to the successful start of the Chemical Engineering collaboration.
Assuring the delegation of Makerere’s readiness for the collaboration, Ms. Hawa Ndagire Kajumba the Lead, Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagement, Makerere University Advancement Office, aligned with the Vice Chancellor’s emphasis of University goal to have both theory and practice imparted to the students.
She said “the curriculum of the university and Uganda as a whole is moving towards competence-based education training to ensure students are equipped to demonstrate those skills in the actual field, particularly regarding petroleum exploration.”
Ms. Ndagire Kajumba also emphasised a shift in strategy for the partnership office, saying, “we are moving away from just signing MOUs that collect dust, and moving towards those that are more collaborative to benefit our faculty and students, just like this one.”
Professor Gilbert Kumushabe aligned his remarks with those of the Vice Chancellor and Ms. Ndagire Kajumba, and described the method used at Xiangtan University as “actually competence-based teaching.”
Based on his recent visit, Prof. Gumoshabe shared that students in China are divided into groups with dedicated teachers to perform practical, hands-on work beyond the theoretical lecturers. He expressed gladness that the same was being adopted for the Ugandan context.
Both institutions are now working to finalise the specific agreements for the joint degree and exchange programs. Beyond academic training, the collaboration will advance cultural and professional exchange.
Makerere University on October 8, 2026 commemorated Nkrumah Day with a Public Lecture at the Yusuf Lule Central Teaching Facility Auditorium. The Lecture gathered students, academics, historians and distinguished guests to discuss Kwame Nkrumah’s contribution and its relevance to Africa.
Organised by Nkrumah Hall under the theme “Leadership, Self-Reliance and Transformation: Reimagining Nkrumah’s Vision for the 21st Century African Youth,” the lecture explored how Nkrumah’s ideals of Pan-Africanism, self-reliance and African unity can guide the continent beyond political independence.
Endorsing Nkrumah’s Vision of Investing in Africa
The First Deputy Prime Minister and Chancellor of Makerere University, Rt. Hon. Dr. Crispus Walter Kiyonga, was the chief guest.
In remarks delivered on his behalf by Dr. Charles Kahigiriza, Dr. Kiyonga said the day was a moment to reflect on Nkrumah’s views on Pan-Africanism and the lessons on self-reliance still held for Africa today and emphasised the importance of keeping Africa’s young talent at home (in Africa).
He then discussed ways of encouraging young people to achieve Nkrumah’s vision, pointing out that Africa is losing skilled people to brain drain as many go abroad to work.
He encouraged young Africans to stay and contribute to the continent’s growth, describing Africa’s potential as a promising asset.
Transformation Requires Discipline
The keynote address was delivered by Prof. Gerald Karyeija, a political analyst and Head of Quality Assurance at the Uganda Management Institute (UMI).
He discussed Nkrumah’s role in championing Pan-Africanism and the formation of the African Union. He acknowledged that “his legacy was also very complex” due to a number of challenges.
Regarding leadership, the professor argued, “leadership does not begin with the title. It begins with responsibility,” adding that “leadership is not only about power, privilege, entitlement, or status. It’s about service. It’s about stewardship.”
He encouraged attendees to emulate Nkrumah by using their knowledge and power for good.
“Don’t get the intellectual power from Makerere to become evil,” he cautioned, stressing that transformation requires discipline.
Universities Turn Knowledge into Action
Associate Professor Gorettie Nabanoga, the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration, represented Professor Barnabas Nawangwe, the Vice Chancellor of Makerere University.
She aligned herself with the previous speakers and urged participants to move beyond simply celebrating Kwame Nkrumah’s memory and begin implementing his vision.
She called for practical action, urging the mobilisation of Pan-Africanism beyond slogans. “Perhaps the Pan-Africanism of this generation must therefore move from solidarity to capacity, from rhetoric to institutions, from potential to production, and from aspirations to implementation,” she said.
On the role of universities, she reiterated that Makerere University is a hub for innovation rather than just a degree-granting institution.
“We are building for the future when we develop people who can think critically, when we generate knowledge, when we challenge perceived knowledge and wisdom, and when we innovate,” she said.
Addressing the students present, she said, “You are not simply the leaders of tomorrow; you are citizens of Africa today. The opportunity you enjoy at Makerere University comes with responsibility.”
Dr. Winifred Kabumbuli, the Dean of Students at Makerere University, set the tone at the 2026 Nkrumah Day Public Lecture.
She revealed that this lecture organised under Nkrumah Hall highlights its significance as a symbol of Makerere University‘s commitment to Pan-Africanism. “The name Nkrumah Hall has stood the test of time and sounds like a horn beautifully over the African continent and beyond,” she said.
She elaborated on the lecture’s theme of leadership, self-reliance and transformation, noting its alignment with the university’s mission to nurture future leaders.
Direction of Pan-Africanism
During a panel discussion, speakers questioned how far Africa has come. Associate Professor Zahara Napeewo, Deputy Dean of the School of Law at Makerere University, stated that the continent was still lagging behind the progress Nkrumah would have wanted.
She shared that while educational institutions provide knowledge, they must go further and encourage graduates to become problem-solvers who can create employment for themselves rather than wait to be employed.
Dr. Zaid Sekitto, a Lecturer in the Department of History, Archaeology and Heritage Studies at Makerere, added that the structures of colonialism that Nkrumah fought against were still in place. “They must be addressed”, he said, or Africa would remain trapped in colonialism and lose sight of Nkrumah’s vision.
The Youth and the Unfinished Struggle
The students also had an opportunity to share their perspectives on the unfinished struggle for Pan-Africanism.
Nkrumah Hall Chairperson Joseph Sekabira noted that the Africa Nkrumah fought for was not the Africa that exists today.
He urged young people to take up leadership now rather than wait until they were older.
Mark Kwikiriza, a final-year Bachelor of Arts in Music student and resident of Nkrumah Hall, said Nkrumah’s legacy remained relevant because the problems he faced in Ghana were similar to those society faces today.
He recommended that society could rejuvenate the spirit of “Osagyefo,” the title meaning “redeemer” by which Nkrumah was known.
Honouring 13 Years of Service
The event also recognised Mr. John Kamya for his 13 years of outstanding service as Warden of Nkrumah Hall, a position he held from 2007 to 2020.
He received an appreciation award presented by the Chief Guest’s representative in the presence of the Hall Chairperson and other dignitaries.
In his acceptance remarks, Mr. Kamya noted that the 2018 visit to the Hall by Kwame Nkrumah’s daughter, Ms. Samia Yaba Nkrumah, was one of the fondest memories of his time in office. He thanked Makerere for the opportunity to serve the University community and its stakeholders.
At the peak, the event concluded with tree planting and cake-cutting activity in front of Nkrumah Hall. The audience was left contemplating one message of Kwame Nkrumah’s vision of a united, self-reliant Africa, freed first in the mind, that remains unfinished and in the words of some speakers, has been handed to the current generation as a task to accomplish.
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