Front Row: DVCAA-Prof. Umar Kakumba (4th L), Director DRGT-Prof. Edward Bbaale (4th R), Academic Registrar-Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi (2nd R) and Prof. Julius Kikooma (R) with Early-Career fellows and participants at the SECA Project Final Dissemination Workshop on 12th January 2022, Makerere University.
SECA is an acronym for the Supporting Early-Career Academics Programme at Makerere University (2019-2022). SECA is the fifth “phase” of the Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY)’s support to Makerere, and follows in the steps of similar successful initiatives that date back to 1946 when the Corporation’s relations with Uganda started. On Thursday 12th January 2023, the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs) and SECA Chairman Project Implementation Committee (PIC), Prof. Umar Kakumba was joined by the Director, Directorate of Research and Graduate Training (DRGT), Prof. Edward Bbaale as well as Academic Registrar and SECA Project Coordinator, Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi to preside over the programme’s final dissemination workshop.
Held in the Telepresence Centre, Senate Building, the workshop accorded the opportunity to research teams to present and discuss their findings. SECA supported seventeen (17) Early-Career academics at Makerere University, eight (8) of whom were female and nine (9) male, to undertake postdoctoral research fellowships in their respective fields of specialty. Additionally, SECA supported professional skills enhancement courses, as well as tuition and research costs for seventeen (17) Masters students (7 female, 10 male) attached to the research teams.
Furthermore, SECA provided funds to fellows for writing and publication, supported mentorship and research team building, provided travel grants to international conferences, and supported fellows to disseminate their findings to academia, policy makers and the general public. To facilitate improvements in the university research environment, SECA provided access to a grant worth US$6,000 to each of the fellows’ host departments. Some of the activities undertaken using the grants included; conducting academic writing and dissemination workshops, holding symposia for PhD students and academic staff, development of academic programmes, renovating research infrastructure and acquiring equipment.
Front Row: Prof. Umar Kakumba (C), flanked by Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi (L) and Prof. Edward Mwavu (R) listen to proceedings during the SECA Final Dissemination Workshop.
Delivering his remarks, Prof. Umar Kakumba congratulated both Prof. Buyinza and Prof. Bbaale upon their new appointments as Academic Registrar and Director DRGT respectively, and thanked them for contributing to SECA’s success. In the same breath, he recognized and introduced members of the PIC namely; Prof. Jesca Nakavuma, Prof. Nicholas Kiggundu, Dr. Pamela Khanakwa, Prof. Julius Kikooma and Dr. Euzobia Baine Mugisha and thanked them for the rigorous work done in reviewing applications by fellows.
“I wish to congratulate you the fellows. As part of the monitoring team for SECA, we visited what you were involved in and I must say that Makerere has great potential. We received close to 102 proposals, and selecting seventeen (17) was a huge task because every proposition was bankable and attuned to the relevance of our country” Prof. Kakumba remarked.
The DVCAA noted that all projects undertaken by fellows had the potential to co-create knowledge with the communities and respective sectors beyond SECA funding. He therefore called upon them to continue providing research leadership in their departments and communities. On this note, he appreciated the fellows for each mentoring a graduate student.
Prof. Kakumba equally acknowledged CCNY for the generous support accorded to Makerere and continually entrusting the University with various opportunities to enhance the research capacities of her staff. In this regard, he thanked the Mentors, Heads of Department and the PIC for ensuring that the fellows continued to perform well and compile their progressive reports on time. This feat, he acknowledged, has led to Makerere University securing a successor grant in line with SECA.
Addressing the fellows and audience, Prof. Bbaale paid tribute to his predecessor, Prof. Buyinza for his visionary leadership of DRGT that gave rise to initiatives such as SECA. “It is gratifying and heartwarming to have events of this nature that are in line with the research-led agenda of the University.
The Deputy Director DRGT and the Workshop Moderator, Prof. Julius Kikooma contributes to the discussion.
“Postdoctoral research is high quality research, which can go a long way in informing policy for societal transformation. We greatly value each of the projects you have undertaken and we are confident that they have the potential to contribute to the national development agenda. Therefore, we must bring on board targeted dissemination beyond this general dissemination” said Prof. Bbaale.
He explained that targeted dissemination is the gateway to different institutions of Government that are either users or potential users of policy recommendations and different projects that need to be scaled up across the country. Beyond SECA, Prof. Bbaale urged the fellows to form a cluster of researchers as a platform for continued collaboration and a multidisciplinary entity to compete for research grants.
“The world over, postdoctoral research is an engine that must propel the university into a research-led direction… As DRGT, we are soon going to propose a policy on postdoctoral degrees that will pave the way for different units to admit many more postdoctoral fellows” added Prof. Bbaale.
“Makerere’s strategic thinking in terms of research is informed by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), National Vision 2040, African Charter 2063 and the Institutional Research Framework, which implies that we are running a coherent research agenda” said Prof. Buyinza as he commenced his remarks.
Dr. Kavuma Namirembe Susan from the Department of Policy and Development Economics, College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS) presents her findings on the evaluation of Spatial Connectivity and Firm Productivity.
The Academic Registrar added that the realization of these aspirations is dependent on grooming a crop of critical thinkers who can contribute to the knowledge economy. He therefore expressed his gratitude at being able to participate in a number of phases of CCCNY’s support to Makerere, aimed at achieving this objective.
“I have been privileged to participate in the Next Generation of African Academics I, Next Generation of African Academics II, Nurturing Emerging Research Leaders through Post-Doctoral Training (NERLP) and Supporting Early-Career Academics (SECA), which we are closing today, and the successor consolidating the Supporting Early-Career Academics (SECA) programme” he explained.
Turning to SECA, Prof. Buyinza noted that the project was designed to expand Makerere’s community of research leaders and doctoral supervisors through four (4) specific objectives. These included;
To consolidate the capacity of fellows to conduct quality research with appropriate mentorship at Makerere,
To strengthen the enabling environment to encourage the retention of fellows at Makerere,
To strengthen research management and research leadership capacity at Makerere, and
To increase the capacity for scientific communication of research outputs into publicly accessible writing.
“We believe that we have built an integrated, institutionalized, research mentorship culture at this University because of our model of delivery of this project. It is a three-tier model consisting of the Senior who is the Mentor, the PI (Principal Investigator) who is the Early-Career fellow and the Masters student” said Prof. Buyinza.
Dr. Andrew Tamale from the Department of Wildlife and Aquatic Animal Resources, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity (CoVAB) presents his findings on Management of Bacterial Diseases in Fish Hatcheries.
He added that this architecture enabled the SECA team to build synergies between the different levels of research development and in so doing, ensure sustainability by institutionalizing mentorship. Prof. Buyinza therefore encouraged the fellows to continue posting their successes on the SECA portal and holding the lunchtime seminars in their departments.
“I want to believe that your skills have been enhanced, your vision to research has been touched beyond publishing an article to looking at the wider spectra of events that form you as a regional research leader. We want you to form a regional network so that together you can write research grants, supervise graduate students and influence the research agenda in the different countries” concluded Prof. Buyinza.
Details of the fellows and their research projects may be viewed in the table below.
No.
Name
Unit
Project Title
1.
Dr. Dhabangi Aggrey
Child Health and Development Centre (CHDC), CHS.
Hemolytic Disease of the New-born in Uganda: Burden and Clinical Characteristics
2.
Dr. Edopu Nabuyungo Ritah
Department of Fine Art, MTSIFA, CEDAT.
Community Product Design Education for Improved Market Access.
3.
Dr. Kabagenyi Allen
Department of Population Studies, CoBAMS.
Adolescent Motherhood, pre and postnatal New-born care practices, perceptions and barriers in Eastern Uganda (AMNEP).
4.
Dr. Kambugu Robert
Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, CAES
Modeling of long-term development scenarios for plantation forestry and forest industries in Uganda.
5.
Dr. Kavuma Namirembe Susan
Department of Policy and Development Economics, CoBAMS
Empirical Evaluation of Spatial Connectivity, Urban structure, Density and Firm Productivity: Evidence from Kampala.
6.
Dr. Kindi Immanuel Fredrick
School of Women and Gender Studies, CHUSS.
Gender, Oil and Migration in the Albertine Graben Region, Uganda.
7.
Dr. Mayanja Nanziri Maureen
Department of Bio-security, Ecosystem and Veterinary Public Health, CoVAB.
Ethnoveterinary Medicinal Plant Technology Information Pathways and Prospective for Sustained Usage among Transhumant Pastrolists in Karamoja.
8.
Dr. Muhanguzi Denis
Department of Bio-molecular and Bio-Laboratory Sciences, CoVAB
Targeting hotspot villages to accelerate the eradication of Acute Sleeping Sickness (ASS) from Uganda.
9.
Dr. Mwesigye Rutabatiina Abraham
Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism, CAES.
Epidemiological survey of populations exposed to heavy metals and trace elements from Mining activites in Uganda. A case study of Kilembe copper mine catchment.
10.
Dr. Mwikirize Cosmas
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, School of Engineering, CEDAT.
Efficacy of Deep Learning-aided Platform for Diagnosis of Breast Cancer using Ultrasound Images in the Ugandan Population.
11.
Dr. Najjemba Harriet P.
Institute of Open Distance and E-learning, CEES.
Using Emerging Technologies to Capture and Disseminate Indigenous Agricultural Practices for Improved Food Production in Uganda: A case of Luweero District (INDIGRIC).
12.
Dr. Nambi Rebecca
Department of Humanities and Language Education, CEES.
Supporting refugee access and participation in higher education: A case of Makerere University.
13.
Dr. Nasirumbi B. Losira
School of Agricultural Sciences, CAES.
Intra-household gender dynamics and uptake of agricultural technologies for sustainable livelihoods in Uganda.
14.
Dr. Semujju Brian
Department of Journalism and Communication, CHUSS.
Evaluating Digital Literacy to Create a Policy for Digital Media use at Makerere University.
15.
Dr. Ssekuubwa Enock
Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism, CAES.
Enhancing the use of Farmer-Managed Natural Regeneration for mitigating climate change, conserving biodiversity and improving livelihoods in Uganda’s Cattle Corridor (FMNR).
16.
Dr. Tamale Andrew
Department of Wildlife and Aquatic Animal Resources, CoVAB.
Operationalization of Phages for Management of Bacterial Diseases in Fish Hatcheries
17.
Dr. Zawedde Aminah
Ministry of ICT and National Guidance. Formerly CoCIS.
QATE: A Public Participatory Approach for Quality Assessment of e-Government Services to Enable Sustainable Development.
SECA Project Postdoctoral Research Teams (2019-2022)
The Directorate of Graduate Training has completed a 9- day PhD crosscutting training course, inducting three groups of PhD students. The groups of students included those in Cohort 1, Cohort 2 and the Non Cohort PhD students. The number of PhD student participants were over 300 students learning via both face to face and online.
The training that started on Monday 2nd June 2025, took place in the New Library Building.
In his closing remarks, the Director of Graduate Training Prof. Julius Kikooma encouraged the PhD students to put up a spirited fight that would see them remain in the cohort up to the end of the three years of their doctoral studies.
“Get organized, show seriousness in your doctoral pursuit, stay together, make use of your supervisors as and when you need them. We will fully support you in your Doctoral academic journey.” Prof. Kikooma said.
Prof. Kikooma emphasized the need for PhD graduate training saying, “We need more research for the University and Country. This cannot be achieved without increasing the number of graduate students especially PhDs.”
At their different stages of PhD doctoral training, Prof. Kikooma encouraged the students to give feedback to the Directorate and the supervisors so that they are served seamlessly.
Prof. Kikooma further informed the students that going forward, they must cover all the three mandatory cross cutting courses meant to be taught under the three-year program of their doctoral studies.
“All three foundation courses including Scholarly Writing, Advanced Research Methods and Philosophy of Methods will be covered. Tighten your belts. We want to ensure that all these structured programs prepare you for the foundations you need for next two years of research. Success becomes easy when you undertake foundations.”
He challenged the students to use the program in guiding their research directions, making informed decision, improving their critical thinking and consumption of knowledge.
Dr. Dixon Knanakulya, one of the trainers of the doctoral students said, “At PhD level, it is no longer a normal research. It is at a level of knowledge production. The students must understand the main philosophical assumption behind the research methods they use and they must consider the ethical implications of their research. Philosophy of Methods enables them to go through that.”
“PhD students must be creative, innovative and start at the level of researching in the mind. This challenges them to think differently.” He added.
He further said that Philosophy of Methods helps in researches done at the different aspects of the national development plan. “Usually, the students question how the National plans are come up with and support improvement of government policies.”
Dr. Kanakulya added that the research output can be used by government for improvement because it is done by highly skilled researchers. Adding, “They come with very good insights which can be taken on to improve implementation of government programs such as Emyoga and Parish Development Model (PDM).”
He further said that policies are not enough without the social conditions and mindset of the people, saying that PhD scholars can help government know the social conditions and apply policies better.
The Cohort 1 PhD students’ president Mr. Wanyakoko Ebiru Moses said, “This training is extremely important for each student under taking doctoral studies and without it, they cannot acquire the fundamental skills they need to become independent researchers.”
He added that with the knowledge acquired in the Philosophy of Methods training, they will focus on research that aims to resolve societal and community problems.
Dr. Robert Kakuru, the President of Makerere University Academic Staff Association said that Philosophy of Methods is an important pillar in the doctoral journey of every PhD student.
“The Course, Philosophy of Method provides a critical foundation and Philosophical grounding for research methods that doctoral students use to undertake their respective studies. The course further underlines other critical issues that graduate students ought to know, integrate, adopt or adapt in their doctoral journeys.” He said.
Dr. Jim Spire Ssentongo, a senior lecturer and coordinator of the training said, “Philosophy of Methods builds a mass of critical researchers who are able to look at the world not from a narrow point of view but a holistic and broad based sense of understanding reality.”
He added, “Students understand how they can imagine the world to be. They take into account assumptions which inform the methods of research used, how they conduct themselves during research and how they approach respondents during the research process. Such assumptions are laid bear in this training and it helps participants to understand the things they have always held at the back of their minds without deliberately knowing that these are the assumptions they hold and this is how they affect and influence studies.”
Dr. Ssentongo further said that once PhD students are engaged in reality in its broadness with right assumptions, they are then better placed as researchers to investigate such realities and that whatever they investigate, be it related to the National Development Plan and National Development Initiatives like Emyoga and Parish Development Model. This training positions, them at a more critical level as researchers not only in terms of assumptions but also being thinkers.
The Philosophy of Methods training was supported by the ICARTA – Institutionalization of Advanced Research Training in Africa, a NORHED II Project at Makerere University.
Godwin Anywar, cohort 6, facilitated a brainstorming session on grant writing and application during the research planning and conceptualization workshop and exhibition from a cooperative research and exhibition project, ‘Traditional Medicine in Transition,’ at the Institute of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany (ISEB) and Botanical Garden, University of Zurich, from June 4 to 12, 2025.
Within the month, Godwin also joined the Rising Scholars as a mentor. Formerly known as AuthorAID, Rising Scholars is a global network offering free support, mentorship, training, and resources to researchers across the Global South.
Strengthening Research Capacity to Tackle Emerging Infectious Diseases in East Africa
Africa continues to shoulder over 80% of the global infectious disease burden, with emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases (EIDs and REIDs) like Ebola, COVID-19, tuberculosis, and Rift Valley fever posing serious threats to health systems, economies, and regional security. In biologically fragile regions like East Africa, home to dense populations, climate-sensitive ecosystems, and porous borders, multidisciplinary, cross-border responses are essential.
To tackle this, the Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases (TERID)Research Hub has been established under CARTA and is hosted at Makerere University. Led by CARTA graduate Charles Kato, TERID brings together a multidisciplinary team of researchers to fill critical gaps in disease surveillance, policy, prevention, and rapid response, strengthening regional capacity through high-impact, locally relevant science. Learn more