The College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS) at Makerere University has been awarded a highly competitive research grant worth CAD 0.8 million to implement the “NutriFishPLUS” project, which aims to scale up innovative fish processing technologies, improve market access, and empower women in Uganda’s fishing communities to boost incomes and livelihoods.

This project builds on the significant achievements of the previous ground-breaking NutriFish project (2019–2023), funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) through the Cultivate Africa’s Future Fund Phase (CultiAF2). The achievements included: 1) establishing group savings schemes to improve access to capital by women and youth; 2) piloting solar tent dryers for processing silverfish (mukene), resulting in doubling of women’s incomes and tripling of the shelf-life to almost five months; 3) developing and test-marketing certified, nutrient enriched fish products, including baby food, sauce and fortified maize meal; 4) conducting comprehensive social and behavioural change interventions, leading to increased women’s participation in profitable ventures and 30% reduction in domestic violence in intervention areas. Despite these achievements, gaps still remain with regard to increasing production of high-quality Small Pelagic Fishes (SPFs) through adoption of solar tent dryers and raised drying racks; enhancing capacity of men, women and the youth in processing, packaging, branding and marketing; improving access to capital and lucrative markets for fish and fish products; and empowering women, youth and other marginalized groups in the small fish value chain; and strengthening resilience of fishing communities through diversified income streams.

NutriFishPLUS will be implemented by the Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, CoNAS, in collaboration with two private companies (Kati Farms and Nutreal) through a public-private partnership. The Principal Investigator is Dr. Jackson Efitre and his team will focus on scaling-up the use of improved, sustainable fish processing technologies such as the solar Tent dryers and raised racks to new communities across Uganda; enhancing market access and supply chain linkages for high-quality fish and fish products; as well as deepening women’s empowerment and strengthening the resilience of fishing communities through diversified income streams. The project is expected to run for September 2025- March 2028. The expected outcomes include: enhanced incomes and livelihoods for marginalized fishing groups, particularly women and youth; improved health and nutrition for vulnerable groups through diversification of fish products that are embedded in the market with strong supply chain linkages; sustainable fish processing and marketing models that can be scaled across Uganda and the East African region; improved women and youth participation in decision making and control of benefits in the SPF value chains; and improved socioeconomic conditions and ecosystem health through participatory, scalable approaches.

“Winning this competitive grant is an incredible opportunity for the team to solidify the achievements of the first phase as the funding enables us to move beyond research to embed these nutritional and technological solutions into the livelihoods of local communities,” said Dr. Efitre. “I am privileged to lead this impactful work on behalf of Makerere University. Scaling up these tested, climate-responsive technologies as well as empowering the women and youth will secure better nutrition and more sustainable livelihoods across fishing communities in Uganda.”

The project is set to be launched tomorrow, Tuesday, 28^th October 2025 by the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor, Finance and Administration and Principal, CoNAS, Prof. Winston Tumps Ireeta.

Please see below for details on the project.

Details on the previous project: https://news.mak.ac.ug/2023/03/nutrifish-project-registers-significant-achievements/

View on CoNAS

_{By Arinaitwe Deo Rugyendo, William Tayeebwa, Adolf Mbaine, & Gilbert Gumoshabe}

ABSTRACT

In this article, we historicize the emergence and adoption of electronic newspapers (ePapers) in Uganda’s mediascape over the last three decades. Despite the extensive literature on Uganda’s media and its political economy entanglements, it is puzzling that little attention has been paid to the rise of ePapers—a surprising omission given the growing relevance of digital journalism, especially in the Global South. Adopting a Historical Political Economy perspective, we employ a qualitative approach involving key informant interviews to explore how economic pressures, political constraints, and technological change have steered Uganda’s transition to digital newspapers. We identify key institutional shifts and strategic innovations that have shaped the electronic adaptation of the ePaper model by Uganda’s print media. The findings present a media ecosystem undergoing political economy changes and socio-techno-structural transformations involving neoliberal economic reforms under Structural Adjustment Programmes, a de-regulated policy environment that allowed emergency of private media; the spread of the internet and mobile telephony during the 1990s; the rise of social media and digital accelerations in the 2000s; alternative revenue motivation due to declining print circulations; and the COVID-19 pandemic that hastened digital-first strategies. Beyond this historical narrative, we highlight multiple implications of this transition for press freedom, media sustainability and preservation, and mediated public discourse. We further offer pathways for further research across Africa and beyond.

View article

Background

As a result of the challenges posed by climate change issues, developing an evidence-based, sustainable and resilient food system is urgently needed. However, the entire Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) produces only about 3% of the global research on food systems, a very minimal contribution compared to the Global North (e.g., UK 10%, Italy 6%). According to the National Research Outlook Report of Uganda, “Global challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, water contamination, food insecurity, global health, poverty, and the refugee influx, amongst others, cannot be tackled without international research collaboration.” A research capacity gap currently exists in interdisciplinary topics such as Sustainable Food Systems in Uganda, despite the urgent need to address food security challenges. We are motivated by these factors to work with ECR from Uganda. While they are the future of research and innovation, they are underrepresented in social science research in the fields of sustainable food systems and consumer behaviours. Upon completion of their graduate studies, fresh PhD graduates normally lack mentors and hence the requisite mentorship to usher them into the world of research and project development. This call for a writing workshop specifically targets ECRs in the field of sustainable food systems and consumer behaviour.

Workshop objectives

1. Develop the writing, publication, and grant application writing skills among ECRs
2. Develop a network of ECRs to facilitate peer support and mentorship in publications and grant
3. To foster interdisciplinary research networks and collaborations among scholars
4. Develop a positive and holistic research culture to cope with the “publish or perish” culture

Who can apply for the workshop?

1. Final year PhD students or have finished their PhD within the last eight years.
2. Be working in the areas of Sustainable Food Systems (e.g., consumer behaviour, food science, food security, food waste and nutrition, economics).
3. Must commit to full attendance of the in-person workshop and virtual seminars in 2026.
4. Provide a letter of support from their institution, stating they will be released to participate in the in-person workshop if selected.
5. Be resident and or working in Uganda.

Logistics: The writing workshop shall be fully residential, with accommodation and meals provided for all participants. A transport refund, based on public rates shall be given to each participant based on the distance to the venue.

Date of workshop: The writing workshop shall be held for 4 days, January 6-9, 2026. Participants shall be expected to report on January 5, and depart on January 10, 2026

Residential location of workshop: The workshop shall take Place at the Lake Victoria Golf Resort Hotel, Kigo, Entebbe (Uganda).

Participation costs
Costs associated with the in-person workshop, including travel to and from Kampala, accommodation and food, will be fully covered by the project. Participants shall be expected to come with their own laptop computers and personal effects during the workshop.

Deadline: 31 October 11:59 pm EAT

View on RUFORUM