Health
From Working as a Houseboy to Being the Best in School: Ssembuusi’s Story of Overcoming Hardships & Achieving Success
Against all odds, Allan Ssembuusi-Mayengo rose from a house boy to a First-Class student. In this episode of Makerere University’s week-long 73rd graduation ceremony slated to run from February 13-17, 2023 we present to you a story of a determined young man who never let his circumstances define him, and how he achieved the impossible through hard work, perseverance and the power of prayer. He will graduating as a second best in his class at Makerere School of Public Health (MakSPH) with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.42.
With determination and a willingness to take on any job that came his way, Ssembuusi struggled through financial hardship to make a better life for himself. From selling water at the new taxi park to working as a phone repairman and even starting a mobile manicure and pedicure business, he used his entrepreneurial spirit to support himself through University, despite the challenges he faced he carved out a path to success, proving that with grit and perseverance, anything is possible.
Born on 15th February 1996 in Kyabiiri, Kibinge Subcounty, Bukomansimbi District in Greater Masaka to Wilson Mayengo and the late Sarah Nantongo, Ssembuusi is the 4th born in his family.
School life
For the better part of his childhood, Ssembuusi stayed with his step-mother Ms. Margret Namuddu in Kawanda, Wakiso District after a separation between his mother and father. His mother later passed away while he was in Senior four (S.4). With obstacles in his path he hopped from school to school sometimes to dodge school financial requirements.
As early as 2004, he had started school at Bituntu Church of Uganda Primary School in Masaka. He only completed his Primary One class before he was transferred back to Nalujja primary school in Kawempe in Kampala, where he had a short stint of two academic terms.
In 2005, his family shifted to Kawanda, a small town located north-west of Kampala, the Uganda’s capital town. While here, he completed his Primary Two (P.2) at Little Angels Primary School, a private school. The comfort was short lived as he would later relocate to Nakyessanja Church of Uganda Primary School from P.3 until he sat his Primary Leaving Examination -PLE in 2010.
“This was so hard for me, we didn’t even have lunch at school. In the morning, our step-mom would prepare for us tea with acoil bun (Mwana akaaba) bread of Shs. 100, and this would take us all day until our next meal in the evening. My stepmom always had dinner ready whenever we returned from school. It was hard being at school, seeing your colleagues going to the canteen to buy eats during break and lunch time when you are in class “eating shadows” but still I managed to perform well. I started being in the first position in class in P.3 up to when I finished P.7. All these challenges gave me determination and courage to work hard so that I get a better future,” recollects Ssembuusi.
While in P.3, Ssembuusi was top of his class in promotional examinations but he could not access his report card because his parents had failed to pay UShs 2,000 (approximately $0.54).
“While appearing at end of term School assembly, I was announced as being in the first position—the School administration used to announce the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place holders. We didn’t have that money at home so I didn’t pick my report. With this in mind however, I just reported to P.4 at the start of the next year. The headmaster however, came reading out names of those who didn’t pick their reports, and we were all taken back to P.3,” he says.
He recalls crying endlessly by this act but would only console himself knowing the situation back at home and that his father genuinely did not have the money; “We used to eat cassava flour with avocado. We had an Avocado tree at home and we would temporarily forget hunger in seasons the tree would, bear fruits. We would pick avocado and mash it as the sauce.”
As luck would have it, Ms. Grace Nakidde, his teacher provided him the required Ushs.2,000 that granted him access to his report, and then became officially promoted to the next class in 2006.
Ssembuusi, was frequently engaged in various household tasks, which caught the attention of a neighbor. At the age of 12, while in Primary Five, he went to work for this neighbor as a houseboy to earn money for school fees.
“At the time, we were paying around Ushs 10,000 (approximately $2.72), for remedial classes and Ushs 5,000 for lunch. I used to work day and night, but I stayed focused because I wanted to study. I would go to School barefooted. At P.7, I got 9 aggregates and this was the only first grade at my school.”
Ssembuusi’s excellent performance earned him a bursary to attend Central College Kawempe, a school owned by a relative of his employer. Despite this financial aid, he still had to pay for some school materials, which prompted him to continue working at home. “I would wash cars for our neighbor every day to buy books, but I still excelled and was the best in all three terms of S.1,” he said. However, due to the mistreatment he experienced as a houseboy, Ssembuusi confided in his parents, who then spoke to his employer. Unfortunately, this led to the loss of his bursary.
“Since my parents were unable to pay for my education at Central College Kawempe, they transferred me to Luteete Senior Secondary School in Luweero. I am grateful to Mrs. Kiwanuka who, through our shared faith at Elim Pentecostal church in Kawanda, connected me to Luteete where I was able to obtain a half bursary. This required me to raise Ushs 150,000 (approximately $40.82) on my own. Despite this, things were still difficult for me, as I often only had Ushs 20,000 (approximately $5.44) to last me through the entire term.”
Ssembuusi states that the school’s provision of lunch and supper helped him stay focused. He adds, “Sometimes I sold my lunch to afford necessities like books and pens, but I still excelled and remained the best throughout my stay, up to S.4. I scored 13 out of 8 aggregates, the best performance in the school’s 60-year history. I achieved it through hard work and prayer, even fasting dry for 3 days.”
After getting his Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) results, Ssembusi moved to Wampeewo Ntakke Senior Secondary School along Gayaza Road with the help of his former head teacher Mr. Mike Ssekaggo. He says, “I scored 12 points in BCM/ICT and I remember getting a D1 in Biology Paper 3. I was also the founder and pioneer of the school’s Science Club.” After finishing S.6, he found a job as a porter at a construction site near his school. He adds, “Although students saw me working there, I was determined to survive. Later, my former head teacher helped me get a job as a canteen attendant at his school, where I stayed for 1 and a half years.”
Failing to join University and Resorting to Barber and Taxi Tout
Ssembuusi had always dreamed of going to university, but his journey was not an easy one., Despite sitting for his Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) in 2016 with hope to join a university in 2017, he was not admitted to any of the institutions he applied to on his application forms. He lost that year of 2017 and decided to try again in 2018. “I had understood my points, and weights better and thought by trying on a Diploma, I would get admission. I applied for a diploma in Education at National Teachers College NTC Kaliro, but was not admitted once again”
Feeling defeated, Ssembuusi left his job as a canteen attendant and returned home, but struggled to find any opportunities. However, things still weren’t working out and he found himself living with his uncle who was a barber and taught him the trade. He also started working as a conductor on a taxi route from Jinja road-Kawanda-Matugga, where he used to meet his old teachers and colleagues. He felt like a failure, but still held on to hope for better opportunities.
“We used to ply the Jinja road route. I grew up on this route and so I had mastered it. While in this trade, I would meet my teachers, my former colleagues, the students I used to discuss for. For once, I felt like I was a total failure,” says Ssembuusi.
One day while operating as a taxi tout in Wandegeya, he bumped into an old friend, Jackline Nankya, who in 2020 graduated from MakSPH. They had studied together at Wampeewo Ntakke Senior Secondary School. Concerned about him she asked for his contact to check on him. Ssembuusi explained his situation and Jackline told him about the Government Loan Scheme program, a fund that awards study loans to Ugandan students seeking to pursue Higher Education but are financially constrained. She helped him apply for a course in Environmental Health Science, which he made his first choice, and also helped him apply for the Government Loan Scheme.
Ssembuusi was in a dilemma, he had even prepared to go to the United Arab Emirates to do “Kyeeyo” (cheap employment for immigrants to the developed world) with some sisters that were already there. His parents were excited about the prospect of him making money. “I didn’t tell them [parents] when I applied. I told them when I was admitted. I was in a dilemma and in fear of how my parents would react to me leaving an opportunity to work and provide for them.”
He sought advice from a few people, including his boss in the taxi business, before ultimately telling his parents. To his surprise, they were overjoyed when he finally shared his plans with them. They had the assumption that Makerere University was the only university in Uganda.
Life at MakSPH
Determined to succeed, Ssembuusi used all the money he made working in the taxi to buy the requirements needed for his first year. He was so passionate about his studies that he even joined a week before his colleagues and was voted unopposed as class representative. “This is where my journey to perform well started,” he says.
Adding that; “After our first lecture with Ms. Ruth Mubeezi, I felt deeply inspired. I approached her after class and shared my struggles with her. Her words of encouragement and assurance that I would be able to manage school, gave me the courage and determination to push forward. And that’s how I embarked on my journey towards achieving a first-class degree, starting off with a strong 4.6 GPA in my first semester.”
He commuted to school in his first semester, but during a brief holiday before the second semester, he decided to stop commuting and go back to his taxi business in the Old Taxi Park to earn money for accommodation. He was able to get some money and temporarily moved into Nkrumah Hall, one of the halls of residence for male students admitted to Makerere University, named after the great pan Africanist Nkwame Nkrumah of Ghana with a friend Kelvin Langat.
“I wanted to go back to work as a conductor to earn money for accommodation but it was the festive season so things didn’t work out. I decide to sell sugarcanes in Old Taxi Park because most people there, knew me. I used to contribute something and stay with him on the same bed before COVID came in and we had to leave campus,” a teary Ssembuusi recalls.
COVID-19 and Ssembuusi’s campus nail business
As the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world, it brought with it a host of challenges for students like Ssembuusi. With lockdowns in place and classes conducted online, Ssembuusi was forced to find ways to make ends meet. Like many students, Ssembuusi found himself struggling to afford the costs of accommodation, and everyday living expenses.
“I went to New Taxi Park (the old one was closed for renovation at this time) and sold water there. It was a tough moment, because I found so many classmates there boarding taxis to go about their business. I wanted to quit, but I also still wanted to survive,” he says.
The Student Loan Scheme is a cost sharing initiative. The Loan strictly covers the academic component, i.e., Tuition fees, Functional fees, Research fees, Aids and Appliances for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). For Ssembusi’s case, the loan covered Ushs1.8m fees inclusive of functional fees and he is indebted to the loan scheme; “I am thankful for the Student Loan Scheme for enabling me to continue my education, however, they have not yet paid for my last three semesters, preventing me from accessing my transcript until the debt is fully cleared. Despite the delay in payments, they would still allow us to sit for exams with the assurance that they would pay later.”
It was during this time that Ssembuusi stumbled upon an unexpected opportunity. At a friend’s home, he discovered a salon offering manicures and pedicures. Intrigued, he asked the owner to teach him the trade, and soon found himself learning the skills needed to set up his own mobile manicure and pedicure business.
With the support of his classmates, Ssembuusi’s business quickly took off. Working on almost all of his female classmates, Ssembuusi found himself juggling the demands of her coursework and his business. But he was committed to making it work, and with the help of a loan from a friend, he was able to purchase the equipment he needed to keep his business running.
“I have been doing pedicure and manicure, and all my clients have been my colleagues. I was charging 10,000 to 30,000 Ushs for gel nails. People perceive it as a “low-key job”, and I am sure it’s hard for most campusers to do this kind of work especially on their classmates. I know some people come from advantaged families, but for those of us who have been disadvantaged, please don’t look down on any opportunities or jobs that will help you raise some money to sustain you,” he says.
“I think I have worked on almost all my female classmates. The business boomed, I started getting recommendations but it was a challenge on my side to attend lectures and also attend to clients. My course is a full day course, and being a course representative, I had to be around. I managed to schedule my clients in the evenings and over the weekends when I worked all day.
Ssembuusi has throughout his school life struggled with self-doubt and imposter syndrome, but along the way found ways to overcome it through self-improvement and taking advantage of opportunities. He was active in the school community, serving as a class representative and holding leadership positions in Makerere University Environmental Health Students Association (MUEHSA).
He found success in extracurricular activities, such as participating in medical camps and running events. After finishing his course, Ssembuusi sought guidance from his mentors and ultimately landed a volunteer position under the mentorship of Dr. David Musoke, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Disease Control and Environmental Health at Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH). His future goal is to pursue a Masters and eventually a PHD in academia and research. He encourages others to take advantage of opportunities in order to be successful.
To achieve a first class, one must put in hard work and strive to do their best. “I didn’t set out to achieve a first class, but I now understand its value. A lecturer once told us, ‘Don’t listen to those who say a first class isn’t worth it – if you can earn one, go for it.’ That’s my advice to my peers – aim for the best and don’t be discouraged. I didn’t actively pursue a first class, but my efforts paid off in the form of this distinction,” says Ssembuusi.
He adds; “Mr. Frederick Oporia, who taught me inspection, court etiquettes, and environmental health legislation, is my standout lecturer and role model. Currently the Head of Trauma, Injury, & Disability (TRIAD) unit, he continues to inspire me. Additionally, Dr. David Musoke, who is my mentor, is someone I look up to and strive to emulate in my work.”
A new study by Dr. Linda Kyomuhendo Jovia, a medical doctor and graduate of the Master of Public Health programme at Makerere University School of Public Health, has found high levels of psychological distress among minibus taxi drivers operating in Kampala’s major taxi parks. In a cross-sectional survey of 422 drivers across Old, New, Kisenyi, Usafi, Namirembe, Nakawa, and Nateete parks, nearly two-thirds screened positive for symptoms of depression (65.6%), while anxiety affected more than 70%, and stress an estimated 82%. The findings point to a largely overlooked occupational health concern within the city’s informal transport sector, where long working hours, economic pressure, poor sleep, and prior road accidents were associated with higher levels of mental strain.
Before sunrise settles over Kampala, Old Taxi Park is already awake. White minibuses marked with the blue stripe of Uganda’s public service taxis sit jammed bumper to bumper, their noses pointed toward narrow exits that will soon release them into the city’s traffic. Dust clings to the windows. Torn seats peek through sliding doors. Diesel hangs low in the air. Conductors slap the metal sides of vans and shout destinations into the morning.
“Kireka! Banda! Bweyogerere!” The calls overlap until they become a steady roar.
Passengers squeeze through narrow corridors between vehicles where there was never meant to be walking space. Hawkers weave through the crowd with trays of roasted maize and boiled eggs. Somewhere, a small radio crackles. Nearby, two conductors argue over whose turn it is to load passengers. This scene is how Kampala wakes, in diesel fumes, shouted destinations, and the quiet urgency of people trying to earn a living before the traffic tightens its grip on the day.
Handwritten route boards fixed to the taxis signal their destinations: Masaka “A” Stage, Kaguta Road, Nakawa, Namirembe, Ntinda, Gayaza, Nansana, and Entebbe, guiding passengers through the organised chaos of the park. Behind every steering wheel sits someone doing the arithmetic of survival. Drivers wake before dawn to secure a place in the queue. For many, sleep is short, interrupted, and rarely restorative. The day stretches across long hours of traffic, uncertain earnings, rent, school fees, and taxi levies, including annual payments of about UGX 720,000. Passengers today mean dinner tonight. Yet inside the noise of the taxi parks, another story has remained largely invisible.
Across Uganda, an estimated 400,000 taxis move millions of passengers every day, forming the backbone of the country’s informal transport system. But almost nothing is known about the psychological toll on the drivers who keep it running.
That gap is what drew Dr. Kyomuhendo into Kampala’s taxi parks. What she uncovered were levels of depression, anxiety, and stress far higher than many had imagined.
A Medical Doctor Turning Toward Public Health
Born on 23 July 1994 to Mr. Muhigwa Lawrence and Ms. Kataito Jacqueline, Dr. Kyomuhendo grew up in Hoima District in western Uganda. Her early education took her from St. Christina Nursery School to Budo Junior School before she continued to Trinity College Nabbingo and later Mount Saint Mary’s College Namagunga for Advanced Level, where she studied Biology, Chemistry, and Mathematics.
In 2014, she earned a government scholarship through the Public Universities Joint Admissions Board and enrolled for a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at Busitema University, graduating in 2019.
During her medical internship at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital, she began noticing a troubling pattern in the cases arriving at the wards: road traffic injuries, complications of chronic diseases, severe malaria in children, and obstetric emergencies that might have been prevented with earlier intervention. Many of the crises doctors were treating, she realized, had begun long before patients reached the hospital. “They were symptoms of deeper problems,” she recalls.
Public health offered a way to investigate those underlying causes. In 2022, she enrolled in the Master of Public Health Distance programme at Makerere University School of Public Health, where students are trained to examine health problems not only at the bedside but across entire populations. Guided by Associate Professor Lynn Atuyambe, a respected scholar in Community Health and Behavioural Sciences at MakSPH, and Dr Juliet Kiguli, Senior Lecturer and public health anthropologist, the student’s work benefited from strong academic stewardship.
Uganda’s road transport system is dominated by motorcycles and 14-seater minibus taxis. About 15,000 operate in the Kampala Metropolitan Area alone.
These drivers navigate congested roads, pollution, erratic traffic patterns, and long working hours. Their workday often begins before dawn and stretches deep into the evening.
“They are important in Uganda’s transport industry,” Kyomuhendo said. “Yet they seem to be overlooked in our society.”
While commuting through Kampala during her studies, she began to notice the lives of taxi drivers. Arguments between passengers and conductors were common. When tensions rose, someone would eventually mutter the same question in Luganda.
“Oba abasajja ba takisi baabaki?” loosely to mean, ‘What is wrong with taxi men?’
The question lingered, and in June 2024, social media campaigns marking Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month pushed her to think about the issue differently. What if the behaviour many passengers dismissed as impatience or aggression was linked to something deeper? To her, taxi drivers seemed an unlikely but revealing group to study.
“They carry the responsibility for passengers’ lives every day,” she says. “Yet very little attention is paid to their own well-being.”
For instance, Kampala City Authority (KCCA) documents that between 2019 and 2024, geolocated crash data reveal a dangerous road environment in which Kampala’s taxi drivers operate daily. A total of 1,878 vulnerable road users, including pedestrians, motorcyclists, and cyclists, were killed in crashes involving motor vehicles, with buses and minibuses linked to 281 deaths, most of them pedestrians (147) and motorcycle occupants (131). Fatalities were heavily concentrated along major corridors such as Jinja Road, Kibuye–Natete Road, Bombo Road, and Ggaba Road, while for pedestrians, the most dangerous segments included Gayaza Roundabout (Kalerwe) and Kyebando Police Post along the Northern Bypass and Entebbe Road, where fatality densities reached 27–28 deaths per kilometer. These patterns highlight the high-risk traffic environments in which taxi drivers work, specifically busy arterial roads and bypass intersections where pedestrians, boda bodas, and public transport vehicles compete for space. These conditions contribute to the broader pressures that shape drivers’ safety, well-being, and mental health.
Research in the taxi parks
Her dissertation set out to answer two questions: how common are depression, anxiety, and stress among taxi drivers in Kampala, and what factors contribute to them? The study surveyed 422 male drivers across seven major taxi parks: Old, New, Kisenyi, Usafi, Namirembe, Nakawa, and Nateete, using a multistage sampling approach designed to ensure representation across the city’s transport hubs.
Participants completed structured interviews on socio-demographic, occupational, lifestyle, use of habit-forming substances, medical, and environmental factors. Mental well-being was assessed using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), a widely used screening tool in mental health research.
The data were analysed using statistical models that allowed Kyomuhendo to examine how occupational conditions, lifestyle factors, and health status interacted to shape mental well-being.
The study reflected the epidemiological training embedded in MakSPH’s Master of Public Health programmes, where students are encouraged to investigate real-world health challenges through evidence-based research.
Conducting interviews inside the taxi parks meant stepping into one of the most unpredictable environments in the city. “The atmosphere was survival for the fittest,” Kyomuhendo recalls.
Stories behind the statistics
The fieldwork brought moments that stayed with her long after the questionnaires were completed. One driver laughed when asked how he coped with stress. “I don’t drink or smoke,” he said, suggesting that multiple relationships were his way of managing the emotional strain of the job.
The answer was not in the questionnaire, and they both laughed. Yet the moment captured something deeper about life in the taxi parks: humour often hides exhaustion.
Another driver told her he had spent years buying herbal medicine for a hernia that never healed. Every month, he spent close to 100,000 shillings, hoping the treatment would eventually work. She advised him to seek hospital care, a conversation that stayed with her.
“Sometimes people spend far more trying to manage a problem than it would cost to treat it properly,” she explains.
When the data were analysed, nearly two-thirds of the drivers screened positive for symptoms of depression. More than 70 percent had symptoms of anxiety, and over 80 percent reported levels of stress. The psychological burden was far heavier than most people had assumed.
Several factors stood out. Drivers who had experienced road accidents in the previous year were significantly more likely to report depression. Chronic medical conditions and a family history of mental illness also increased the risk.
Sleep deprivation emerged as one of the most important predictors. Drivers who consistently slept fewer than seven hours per night were far more likely to report anxiety and stress. Also, economic security mattered. Drivers who owned their vehicles were substantially less likely to experience anxiety compared to those who rented taxis or paid daily remittance fees to vehicle owners. In other words, psychological distress followed the same lines as economic pressure.
More than a transport problem, and the silence around men’s mental health
The implications extend beyond the drivers themselves, she observed. Mental health affects concentration, reaction time, and decision-making. All abilities that are critical for safe driving in a city known for congestion, unpredictable traffic, and frequent road hazards, including flooding, among others.
“If drivers are anxious or sleep-deprived,” Kyomuhendo explains, “there is a risk they may struggle to follow traffic rules or respond quickly to hazards.”
In a transport system that carries millions of passengers daily, the well-being of drivers becomes a matter of public safety. The findings suggest that mental health among taxi drivers should be treated as both an occupational health issue and a transport policy concern.
During interviews, Kyomuhendo noticed another pattern. Few drivers openly described themselves as depressed or anxious. Instead, stress appeared through jokes, casual references to alcohol or relationships, or long pauses followed by silence.
Men’s mental health remains a difficult subject in many communities. “Men’s mental health is a serious public health issue that should not be ignored,” she says.
Breaking the stigma will require awareness campaigns, stronger occupational protections, and greater attention from both health authorities and transport regulators, she proposes.
A different way of seeing the city?
This research also changed how Kyomuhendo sees Kampala. Where passengers notice congestion or impatience, she now sees the pressures shaping the people behind the wheel. “It made me appreciate the men who show up every day and work hard despite their struggles,” she says.
One driver confided in her about the pressures of the job. “People will not help you unless they know the problems you are facing,” he said.
The city and its drivers
By late afternoon, the taxi parks are as crowded as they were in the morning. Conductors still shout destinations into the traffic. Engines idle in long rows of white vans waiting for passengers. Drivers lean against steering wheels, hoping the next arrival will finally fill the vehicle.
The city keeps moving because they do. Most passengers step into these taxis thinking only about where they are going—work, home, school, or the market. Few stop to consider the pressures carried by the people behind the wheel.
Yet Kyomuhendo’s research suggests that beneath the noise of the taxi parks and those car hoots on the streets lies something far quieter and far less visible: a level of stress, anxiety, and depression that touches not only the drivers themselves but also the safety of the passengers they carry and the communities they serve.
Each morning, the vans will still line up bumper-to-bumper. Conductors will still shout destinations into the traffic. Kampala will still climb inside and move.
If nearly half a million taxis keep Uganda moving every day, who is protecting the minds of the people behind the wheel?
KAMPALA, 25 February 2026 — Higher education must move beyond awarding degrees to producing solutions for national and global crises, speakers said on Wednesday as Makerere University continued its 76th Graduation Ceremony, positioning universities as central actors in strengthening Africa’s public health capacity.
Addressing graduands on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at Freedom Square, national leaders and university officials framed graduation not as a ceremonial endpoint but as an investment in workforce readiness, research leadership, and evidence-driven governance, particularly at a time when health systems across the continent face growing pressure from pandemics, demographic change, and climate-related risks.
The message resonated strongly through presentations from Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH) and Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS), whose graduates enter professional service amid renewed global attention to health system resilience, scientific leadership, and locally generated research.
Delivering the commencement address on Day Two of Makerere University’s 76th Graduation Ceremony, Dr. Margaret Blick Kigozi, Board Chairperson of the Makerere University Endowment Fund, reflected on her graduation in 1976 during a period of national uncertainty under then-Chancellor President Idi Amin. She recalled leaving Uganda soon after with her young family, carrying “little more than education, values, and hope,” an experience she used to frame lessons on resilience, purpose, and responsibility in uncertain times.
Challenging graduates to rethink professional success, she reminded those entering health and life sciences that their training carries extraordinary influence.
“Power does not make you important; it makes you responsible,” she said. “You will decide who is listened to and who is dismissed, who waits and who is rushed through, who feels safe and who feels small. Your education has trained you to ask better questions, but your humanity must guide the answers. Behind every chart, every case, every experiment, there is life, and life deserves care, patience, and dignity.”
Throughout the ceremony, speakers returned to a common refrain: societies increasingly depend on evidence, and universities must produce professionals capable of translating knowledge into policy, practice, and community impact.
Across the four-day congregation, the University will award 9,295 degrees and diplomas, including 2,503 Master’s degrees, 6,343 Bachelor’s degrees, 206 Postgraduate Diplomas, and 30 Diplomas. But beyond the numbers, speakers repeatedly returned to a central question on how higher education can translate academic growth into national development and health security.
On day two, graduands were presented from the College of Natural Sciences, the College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, the College of Health Sciences, and the MakSPH, the latter positioned squarely within Africa’s ongoing struggle to expand its pool of trained epidemiologists, health systems researchers, and policy leaders.
Vice Chancellor Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe noted that Africa averages just 80 researchers per million people, compared to a global average of 1,081, warning that the human resource gap remains substantial.
“Today the School of Public Health presents graduands joining the field at a time when Africa faces a critical shortage of highly trained public health leaders,” he said.
The School of Public Health presented seven PhD candidates: Aber Harriet Odonga, Komakech Henry, Lubogo David, Nakisita Olivia, Namukose Samalie, Ntaro Moses, and Osuret Jimmy. It also graduated 195 Master’s students and 29 Bachelor of Environmental Health Science graduates, including four first-class honours recipients led by Phillip Acaye with a CGPA of 4.63.
Their research spans maternal and child health, epidemic preparedness, sanitation behaviour change, nutrition systems integration, and injury prevention, areas increasingly recognised as foundational to national development rather than peripheral health concerns.
University Chancellor Dr. Crispus Kiyonga emphasized that research must move beyond academic publication into policy and implementation.
“Research plays a very vital role in the development of any community,” he said, linking university scholarship directly to Uganda’s national development agenda.
For public health education, that responsibility carries particular urgency. The COVID-19 pandemic, recurring disease outbreaks, and climate-linked health risks have exposed how deeply national stability depends on scientific capacity.
The chancellor hailed the Government of Uganda for committing UGX 30 billion through the Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (MakRIF).
Mak Urged on More PhDs
Representing the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, State Minister Dr. Joyce Kaducu Moriku described doctoral training as central to Uganda’s research ambitions, noting government efforts to expand funding and modernize higher education systems.
“Universities must produce more PhDs to strengthen the national research agenda,” she said, adding that competence-based reforms aim to align training more closely with societal needs.
“More PhDs also mean the university is growing in academic leadership and an increase in research. So, keep the numbers growing, especially in Science, Technology, and Engineering,” she added.
The 213 PhDs conferred this year, a record, signal more than institutional expansion but a response to structural deficits.
Africa bears approximately 25% of the global disease burden but produces a disproportionately small share of global health research. The continent’s research density remains far below global averages. In this context, each doctoral graduate becomes not merely an academic achievement but a strategic asset.
A University Responding to Its Moment
For the School of Public Health, the graduation reflects a broader evolution in how public health training is conceived. Rather than focusing solely on the treatment of disease, the field increasingly addresses systems, sanitation, nutrition, behavioural change, surveillance, prevention, and climate change, areas where research directly shapes everyday life.
Recent MakSPH-led initiatives, including national HIV impact surveys and digital health system expansion, demonstrate how academic institutions increasingly function as implementation partners to the government rather than observers.
Over the past five years, MakSPH has supported the national scale-up of electronic medical records through the CDC-funded Monitoring and Evaluation Technical Support (MakSPH-METs) programme, and led the Third Uganda Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment (UPHIA 2024–2025), the first fully Ugandan-implemented national survey of its kind.
Launched in 2020, the METs program has supported the nationwide scale-up of UgandaEMR+, transitioning thousands of facilities to secure electronic medical records and deploying critical ICT infrastructure. In March 2026, these systems will be formally transitioned to the Ministry of Health, reflecting sustainable national ownership.
KAMPALA—Three faculty members from Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH) have been recognised at the Makerere University Vice-Chancellor’s Research Excellence Awards 2026, highlighting the School’s expanding contribution to research leadership, scientific productivity, and policy-relevant scholarship across Africa.
Associate Professor Peter Kyobe Waiswa, Associate Professor David Musoke, and Juliana Namutundu received honours during the University’s 76th Graduation Ceremony at Freedom Square, where Makerere celebrated scholars whose work has demonstrated exceptional research achievement and impact beyond academia.
The annual awards, coordinated by the Directorate of Research, Innovation and Partnerships (DRIP), recognise faculty and staff whose scholarly output and leadership advance Makerere University’s ambition to become a research-led institution.
“This recognition celebrates sustained excellence in research productivity and contributions to knowledge that advance both national and global discourse,” Vice-Chancellor Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe said. “We are strengthening a culture where research does not remain confined to journals but translates into solutions for society.”
Among the university’s top researchers was Assoc. Prof. Peter Kyobe Waiswa, a health systems scientist whose work focuses on maternal, newborn, and child health. Waiswa ranked among Makerere’s overall top researchers after publishing 43 peer-reviewed papers in 2025, tying with three-time award winner Prof. Moses Kamya of the School of Medicine in the College of Health Sciences.
His research examines how health systems function at their most fragile moments, including childbirth, early life, and community-level care, addressing questions of equity, service delivery, and health system performance across Africa.
Also recognised was Dr. David Musoke, an Associate Professor of Disease Control, whose 25 publications earned distinction among senior career researchers. His work spans environmental health, community health systems, and implementation research, areas increasingly viewed as critical to preventing disease before it reaches hospitals.
In the early-career category, Juliana Namutundu received recognition for emerging research leadership, reflecting Makerere’s effort to nurture the next generation of African scholars.
Together, the awards underscored MakSPH’s growing influence within Makerere’s research ecosystem, particularly in fields linking science directly to population wellbeing.
The Research Excellence Awards were established to encourage publication in high-impact journals while reinforcing Makerere’s ambition to become a globally competitive research university. Nominations are reviewed by the Board of Research and Graduate Training, chaired by Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Affairs) Prof. Sarah Ssali.
Awardees were honoured during a graduation luncheon organised by the Makerere University Convocation, the institution’s alumni and staff association, which described the event as a celebration of “excellence and inspiring impact.”
The ceremony also recognised forms of scholarship extending beyond traditional academic publishing.
Dr. Geofrey Musinguzi, a research associate at the School of Public Health, was honoured for his book My Journey with Rectal Cancer, an account of diagnosis, treatment, and recovery that blends personal testimony with public health advocacy.
Diagnosed at age 44 while a visiting scholar at the University of Antwerp in Belgium, Musinguzi sought medical care after experiencing persistent symptoms, including rectal bleeding and back pain. His treatment involved surgeries, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and a year living with a colostomy bag.
Rather than keeping the experience private, he documented it publicly to challenge cancer stigma and encourage early screening. The book, launched at the School of Public Health in August 2024, highlights how lived experience can shape public health awareness alongside scientific research.
The recognition reflects a broader understanding of research impact, one that includes scholarship capable of influencing behaviour as well as policy.
Makerere’s emphasis on research excellence comes as African universities face increasing pressure to produce locally grounded evidence while competing globally for visibility and funding. For MakSPH, whose work spans disease surveillance, environmental health, and health systems research, publication output increasingly serves as both academic currency and development infrastructure.
“These awards are part of our broader effort to position Makerere as a truly research-led institution,” Nawangwe said, adding that scholarship must remain aligned with national and regional priorities.
-
General1 week agoCall for Applications: Diploma Holders under Government Sponsorship 2026/2027
-
General1 week agoAdvert: Admissions for Diploma/Degree Holders under Private Sponsorship 2026/27
-
General1 week agoExtension of Application Deadline for Diploma/Degree Holders 2026/2027
-
General2 weeks agoMakerere University commemorates 13 transformative years of partnership with Mastercard Foundation
-
General1 week agoMakerere University and World Bank Sign Partnership to Strengthen Environmental and Social Sustainability Capacity