General
Julius Nyerere Youth Festival 2025: A Call to Action for Africa’s Next Generation of Change Makers
On April 15th and 16th, 2025, the Julius Nyerere Leadership Centre (JNLC) at Makerere University hosted the Julius Nyerere Youth Festival 2025—a powerful and transformative gathering that moved beyond a simple celebration of Mwalimu Nyerere’s legacy to issue a bold call to action for Africa’s emerging generation of leaders and visionaries.
Held under the theme “Our Heritage, Our Voice: Culture, Innovation, and Servant Leadership,” the festival became a dynamic platform where young people were empowered to reimagine leadership, embrace civic responsibility, and commit to sustainable development. Grounded in the enduring ideals of Mwalimu Julius Nyerere—whose birthday, April 13th, is remembered across the continent as a symbol of Pan-African unity and ethical leadership—the event revived his vision, bringing it into conversation with the urgent challenges and opportunities facing African youth today.
One of the Festival’s most memorable highlights was the evocative evening event titled “Voices in the Night,” hosted at the JNLC. Set around a fireside, this intimate session combined poetry, spoken word, and honest conversation. It brought together an intergenerational mix of participants—including student leaders, poets, scholars, and even members of Mwalimu Nyerere’s family—creating a space where ideas, memories, and aspirations could be shared in the spirit of reflection and solidarity.
During this gathering, Dr. Nansozi Muwanga, Executive Director of JNLC, reminded the audience that servant leadership is not just a nostalgic ideal—it is a living, evolving practice that must respond to the demands of today’s world. She underscored the Centre’s commitment to integrating culture and innovation into its work, noting:
“While servant leadership and culture are very central to what we do, we have also come to realize the need to bridge these values with innovation.”
She emphasized that innovation is essential for keeping Africa’s heritage alive and relevant—especially in a rapidly changing world. Celebrating the diverse youth-led enterprises showcased at the festival—from local coffee brands to handmade art pieces—Dr. Muwanga commended the spirit of creativity. However, she challenged participants to further explore the digital space, expressing hope that future festivals would highlight youth-led tech innovations as well.
In closing, she issued a heartfelt appeal to young people across the continent: to honour Africa’s heritage, but also to dare to reimagine its future—through bold ideas, digital tools, and servant leadership rooted in humility, empathy and action.
She called for leadership grounded in cultural understanding and community-based solutions. While acknowledging the impact of affirmative action in enabling more female students to access higher education, she also advocated for a more nuanced and balanced approach—one that responds to the evolving needs of both girls and boys in today’s society.
Ms. Butiku Sangu, Head of the Languages and Culture Department at the National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi, anchored her message in the philosophy of Ujamaa and the essence of Africanness. She urged young people to critically re-examine their cultural foundations in the face of increasing global homogenization. True African leadership, she emphasized, must be deeply rooted in indigenous values—values that have sustained communities for generations.
Challenging the common assertion that socialism and African ideologies have failed, Ms. Sangu reframed Ujamaa not as a rigid political doctrine, but as a cultural and moral compass.
“The fact that socialism backfired in Europe was their problem,” she said. “Here in Africa, Ujamaa is a way of life.”
Rejecting intellectual colonialism, she encouraged youth to embrace unity and self-reliance as essential tenets of Nyerere’s vision. She went further to link culture with innovation, identifying mindset change as the most radical and necessary form of innovation.
At NALI, she explained, education is not about political indoctrination, but about decolonizing the mind—instilling pride in African history, language, and lived experiences.
“We teach Fikra—African thought,” she noted, warning that teaching young people that Africanness has failed only plants seeds of defeat and self-doubt.
She concluded with a powerful affirmation: authentic leadership begins with cultural clarity and confidence. Reclaiming African identity, she argued, is the foundation for building an innovative and self-determined future—crafted in Africa’s own image, not in the shadow of others.
The evening was further enriched by the presence of Dr. Susan Kiguli, a celebrated poet and literary scholar at Makerere University. During the “Voices in the Night” session, she spoke eloquently about the power of the spoken word, urging youth to embrace their authentic voices.
“Writing and performing is communication,” she declared. “And there is nothing stronger than the Word.”
Even when it seems no one is listening, she encouraged the audience, “Some of the words may just ring—sometime, somewhere.”
Dr. Kiguli paid tribute to Mwalimu Julius Nyerere not only as a historic leader, but as a lasting teacher.
“Julius Nyerere was named by the people who saw his work. We call him Mwalimu, and it means teacher. Even when he’s not here, he’s still teaching.”
She shared a poignant moment from 1999, recalling how she was asked by the then Deputy Vice Chancellor of Makerere University, Prof. Epelu Opio, to write a poem in honor of Nyerere shortly after his passing. The piece, written in under a day and titled “Mwalimu Nyerere in Memoriam,” was later sent to his family and the people of Tanzania.
In the poem, Dr. Kiguli honors Nyerere as a Pan-African beacon whose influence transcends borders and generations. She describes him as “a walking stick for Africa,” “a trailblazer of African unity,” and “a champion of justice.” She links him with fellow visionaries like Kwame Nkrumah and Patrice Lumumba, framing him as a “framer of our regard” whose light touched Uganda, South Africa, Burundi, and beyond.
As night deepened, Mr. Kagayi Ngobi, one of Uganda’s most dynamic spoken word poets, electrified the audience with his powerful poem, “But why am I telling you this in English?” Delivered with raw energy and emotional depth, his performance tackled the pain of post-colonial identity, the failures of African governance, and the struggle for cultural reclamation.
“A poem is like a person—it never ages,” he mused.
With scathing yet loving critique, Kagayi challenged the erasure of African languages and condemned the education systems that alienate children from their roots. Lines like “Sadness is me, not knowing what I need to know to know who I am” resonated deeply, reflecting the wounds of historical disconnection. Yet his poem also celebrated small acts of resistance—like eating a roadside Rolex—as symbols of enduring cultural pride.
In a moving poetic interlude, Grace Deborah Mirembe, a Bachelor of Arts in Education student majoring in Literature and English at Makerere University, performed her original poem, “When Africa Rises.” Her verses envisioned a Pan-African renaissance rooted in solidarity and identity. She painted a vibrant picture of a united Africa—linked across cities and diasporas, from Kingston to Kinshasa, Harlem to Harare.
“We are not lost… we are flowering… we are kin,” she declared.
Her work invoked the spirits of Nkrumah, Sankara, Lumumba, and Nyerere—not as relics, but as guides lighting Africa’s path forward. Her final words captured the heartbeat of the Festival:
“Africa is yesterday’s story, today’s voice, tomorrow’s promise… One people, One pulse, One power.”
This message was echoed by Ms. Faith Martha Atieno, a fellow Literature and English student at Makerere University, in her compelling poem, “A Letter to My African Friend.” Her piece radiated ancestral pride and resilience, reminding the audience of the unbreakable strength woven into African identity.
“Women were fearless warriors,” she declared, uplifting the often-forgotten heroines of history.
Ms. Atieno offered a defiant stand against identity erasure, proclaiming with resolve:
“It’s not breaking any time soon.”
The fireside evening closed on a powerful note with Ms. Aisha Nyerere, Mwalimu Nyerere’s great-granddaughter based in Canada, who recited her poem “Ode to Kanga.” Through this evocative tribute to the traditional East African fabric, she wove together memory, identity, and belonging. The Kanga, she said, was not just cloth—it was a quiet matriarch, a keeper of history and love.
It clothed brides, absorbed tears, cradled infants, and stood silently through generations.
Even folded away in distant lands, the Kanga waited—to reconnect, to remind, to reclaim. Through it, Ms. Aisha Nyerere affirmed her place in the lineage of African heritage, showing that distance could not unravel the threads of identity.
As twilight descended on the Julius Nyerere Leadership Centre, Dr. Nansozi Muwanga rose with quiet grace and gratitude. She thanked the participants for their presence, for sharing in a day woven with dialogue, poetry, and purpose.
“Thank you so much for being with us today—for giving us your time,” she said. “I hope you are going home with something meaningful to carry forward.”
Bringing the Festival to a close, Dr. S. Kasozi-Mulindwa, Chairperson of the JNLC Board of Directors, delivered final remarks rich in reflection and encouragement. He spoke of the profound inspiration drawn from the energy, creativity, and courage of young people—affirming that their engagement breathes fresh life into the enduring legacy of Mwalimu Nyerere.
He extended heartfelt thanks to the JNLC team, especially Dr. Muwanga, whose visionary leadership made the Festival possible. He also acknowledged the contributions of sponsors, partners, and innovators who participated in the exhibition, whose collective efforts helped shape a space of learning, growth, and unity.
“This festival,” he concluded, “has not only remembered Mwalimu—it has reawakened him in each of us.”
Today 8th October 2026, Makerere University has hosted the EU Uganda Research and Study Fair 2026, bringing together government officials, European Union representatives, researchers, academics, students, and young professionals to explore opportunities in education, research, innovation, and international collaboration.
The fair also marked 50 years of partnership between Uganda and the European Union, providing a platform for participants to learn about scholarships, research funding, exchange programmes, fellowships and opportunities for collaboration with European institutions.
Officially opening the fair, Acting Minister of Education and Sports Hon. Dr. John Chrysostom Muyingo commended the European Union, its member states, Makerere University and other partners for organising the event, describing international cooperation as important to Uganda’s education and research agenda.
The Minister said Uganda’s young population presents a significant opportunity for national development if supported with the right investments in education, skills, creativity, research, innovation and entrepreneurship.
He encouraged universities and research institutions to strengthen links between education, research, innovation and the world of work, noting that research should not only generate academic knowledge but also contribute to policies, technologies and practical solutions to national challenges.
Dr. Muyingo also encouraged students and young professionals to engage with the European Union, its member states and alumni to understand the opportunities available and prepare themselves for future applications.
Makerere highlights value of partnership
Prof. Sarah Ssali, Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs), Makerere University, who represented the University at the event, said the fair provided an important platform for bringing education, research, innovation and international cooperation together.
She noted that the event was particularly significant as Uganda and the European Union celebrate five decades of partnership, with Makerere’s relationships with some European institutions extending even beyond 50 years.
Prof. Ssali said the partnerships have supported education, research, skills development, innovation, institutional strengthening and human capital development, creating opportunities for Ugandans to acquire knowledge and skills, conduct research and establish international networks.
She called for the next chapter of the partnership to place knowledge, research, innovation, technology and young people at the centre.
“Research needs to move beyond publication of research, to influence policy, improve practice, create products and services, strengthen communities and contribute to the economic development of our country,” she said.
Prof. Ssali also encouraged participants to explore opportunities for scholarships, research, exchange programmes, doctoral studies, joint research and fellowships available through European partnerships.
She said the ultimate value of international education and research partnerships lies in how knowledge, skills, networks and technologies acquired through such opportunities contribute to Uganda’s development.
Human Response programme strengthens partnerships
The fair also showcased Makerere’s partnerships through programmes such as the Human Response, Health and Displacement Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Programme.
Dr. Justus Twesigye, Dean of Students, School of Social Sciences, Makerere University and Co Principal of the Human Response Programme, explained that the programme has created partnerships between Makerere and universities in Europe and Africa.
These include the University Institute of Lisbon in Portugal, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, University of Athens in Greece, University of Cape Verde and University of Rovuma in Mozambique, alongside associate partners including the Uganda Red Cross Society, Allied Uganda, Refugee Led Organisation Network and the Ministry of Water and Environment.
Twesigye said the partnerships have introduced new approaches to teaching and learning by involving practitioners directly in training and giving students opportunities for concurrent field practice.
He noted that organisations such as the Uganda Red Cross Society have participated in delivering classes, while students also gain practical experience in the field before returning to class for reflective learning.
The programme is also promoting joint research between academics and practitioners, moving away from approaches where researchers and practitioners work separately.
CEES project supports competence based education
The College of Education and External Studies (CEES) also presented an EU supported project aimed at helping higher education institutions and regulators transition to competence based education.
Assoc. Prof. Josephine Esaete, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Science, Technology and Vocational Education, said the project brings together nine partners from Uganda, West Africa and Europe.
She explained that the project seeks to strengthen the capacity of universities and higher education regulators in designing competence based curricula, teaching, assessment, monitoring and evaluation.
Makerere University is coordinating the four year project, with Mountains of the Moon University among the Ugandan partners.
Assoc. Prof. Esaete said the project is timely as universities work towards transitioning their programmes and curricula to competence-based education.
The project also seeks to strengthen collaboration between higher education institutions and industry so that students can acquire skills relevant to the world of work.
Fair creates opportunities for students and researchers
The exhibition brought together different EU supported research projects, academic programmes and institutional partnerships, allowing students, researchers and other participants to interact directly with project teams and representatives of European institutions.
The fair also provided opportunities for participants to learn from Makerere alumni who have benefited from international study and research opportunities.
Prof. Ssali urged participants to use the opportunity to “engage, explore, connect, and discover” new possibilities while encouraging young people to dream boldly, seek knowledge, build networks and use what they learn to contribute to Uganda’s transformation.
The fair reaffirmed Makerere University’s commitment to strengthening international partnerships that support research, innovation, human capital development and national transformation.
Before becoming an optometrist, researcher, programmer, and eye health entrepreneur, Timothy Khabusi walked barefoot to school along rough roads in Manafwa District, Eastern Uganda. For most of his primary school years, Timothy walked more than nine kilometres each day from his home to Bubulo Mixed Primary School in Manafwa District.
He would leave home at about 6:00 a.m., walk to the highway, and join other children on their way to school. On the murram road, sharp stones pressed into his feet. When the rains came, he sometimes arrived at school completely drenched. Occasionally, a truck carrying market vendors would stop and offer them a lift. “Those were few lucky days,” Timothy recalls.
At the time, however, Timothy did not see his life as unusual. It was simply how life was for many children in his village. What he did not yet know was that those long walks were helping shape a determination that would eventually take him from rural Manafwa to Makerere University and, later, the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.
Timothy Khabusi is the sixth of eight children (5 boys and 3 girls). His father, 68, a retired primary school teacher, and his mother, 60, a small retail shop owner, had limited resources but were determined to give their eight children opportunities they had not enjoyed themselves.
The family tried several ways to make ends meet. His mother ran a small local brew joint, selling malwa, a traditional fermented cereal drink. When Timothy was about ten, the family closed the malwa joint and moved on, first trying farming and later, in 2009, opening a small retail kiosk with money earned from selling a small coffee harvest.
The family kiosk changed things. Timothy started taking snacks to school and also began developing an interest in business. He sold sugarcane and later teamed up with his younger brother, Mark, to make mandazi, a popular delicacy among schoolchildren.
Behind these modest ventures were sacrifices his parents made for their children’s education and health. His father took loans to support the family through school, while both parents repeatedly emphasised the importance of education.
Timothy’s own academic journey was far from perfect.
At rural Bubulo Primary School, Timothy performed very well and earned a place at one of the best secondary schools in Eastern Uganda, Mbale Senior Secondary School, in Mbale city.
At Mbale Secondary School, he became a strong academic performer and earned a renewable merit-based bursary that covered most of his school fees. Mr Mabaku, his Mathematics teacher, taught him to connect classroom concepts to real-life problems—a way of thinking that would later shape his interest in technology and programming.
Then came a setback.
Timothy’s A-level results (15 points in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics) were far lower than he had expected. For someone who had always seen himself as a top student, the outcome was deeply disappointing, and he missed out on the much-coveted government scholarship. He even wondered whether university was still possible. He considered repeating his A-levels but instead applied to Makerere University on private sponsorship. He was admitted to study Optometry, although he had initially wanted to pursue Medicine and Surgery.
Then came the opportunity that changed everything.
In 2017, Timothy became a Mastercard Foundation Scholar at Makerere University, receiving support that enabled him to continue his university education. The financial uncertainty that had threatened his university education was resolved. What initially felt like failure became an opportunity that redirected him towards a field he had not planned to enter. Through optometry, he discovered a profession that linked clinical care with science, technology, research and public health.
His career journey after graduation.
After graduating from Makerere University in January 2022, Timothy set out to fulfil his ambitious mission to improve eye health in Uganda. His career began far from his village home in Manafwa: he started at a private clinic in Arua town, West Nile, hundreds of kilometres from Manafwa in Eastern Uganda. Asked why he didn’t find a job in Kampala, as most of his peers did, Timothy quickly explained that his mission is to provide the best eye health care to communities with limited access to these services.
After working for one year in Arua, he returned to Kampala. He first worked at Dr. Agarwal’s Eye Hospital from 2023 to 2025, then moved to Med-Optics, another popular eye clinic in Kampala. In February 2026, he opened his own eye clinic, Khabusi Vision Care Centre, a modern optometry centre dedicated to providing eye care services at subsidised rates to individuals and families who may face financial barriers to accessing these services.
His leadership journey
For Timothy, leadership is not about collecting titles. At Mbale Senior Secondary School, he led the Science Club, organising seminars and holiday revision programmes. At Makerere, he served as a minister at the College of Health Sciences and as a leader in the Optometry Students’ Association. Those experiences shaped a simple philosophy: leadership means seeing what needs improvement, taking responsibility, and bringing others along.
That philosophy now drives his ambitions for Khabusi Vision Care. In the coming years, he aims to strengthen the organisation’s clinical, public health, digital and research work. His longer-term vision is to build a major Ugandan eye health organisation with branches across the country, comprehensive services, research programmes and locally developed diagnostic and ophthalmic technologies.
Impact in the community
Asked about his impact in the community, Timothy quickly pointed to the number of patients whose sight he has helped restore at a modest cost they otherwise couldn’t have afforded.
“I am proud to have treated more than 10,000 patients and enabled them to see better since I began my optometry practice in 2022. Among the patients, I vividly remember a police woman who was on the verge of going completely blind due to a misdiagnosis she had received at different facilities she had visited in Kampala, until she came to Khabusi Vision Care Centre in Kyanja, where I was able to help correct the optical issue she was grappling with.” Timothy proudly states.
Timothy further enumerates the number of young people he has mentored and continues to mentor in optometry. He also offers graduate internships at his clinic and employs five young people as permanent staff. He also conducts regular community outreach activities, offering free eye check-ups in the community and subsidised treatment for those who need it.
A word to the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Community
Timothy expressed his gratitude to the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program and Makerere University for giving him the opportunity to pursue a quality university education at a time when he had lost hope of attending university after failing to secure a government scholarship.
“I am forever grateful to Mastercard Foundation and Makerere University for giving me a scholarship that changed my whole life; without the scholarship, I would not have been able to afford the university fees; therefore, I wouldn’t have become what I am today,” Timothy points out.
Asked what advice he would give to current Mastercard Foundation Scholars, Timothy urges them to take advantage of the additional skilling and development programmes the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program offers.
“I urge my young brothers and sisters on the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program currently to take the capacity-building training the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program offers; it is what will give you an advantage over others in the job market,” Timothy advises.
Looking ahead
Beyond healthcare, Timothy is a writer, programmer, and researcher. He has published “From the Slopes of Mount Elgon”, a novel about a young girl who confronts poverty and betrayal while pursuing education and dignity. Timothy’s story is not a straightforward journey from challenge to success. It is about unexpected turns: the barefoot walks, the disappointing A-level results, the unexpected scholarship, and the career he never originally intended to pursue. His advice to young people comes from that experience: one disappointing result or difficult season need not decide the rest of your life. Sometimes, you have to keep walking.
“Keep learning, keep improving, and when opportunity comes, use it—not only to change your own life, but to create opportunities for others,” Timothy advises.
Timothy is now pursuing a Master’s degree in Patient Safety and Clinical Human Factors at the University of Edinburgh. The programme has reshaped his approach to healthcare. Rather than focusing solely on individual mistakes, he examines the systems that allow failures to occur and how to redesign them to improve patient safety.
On October 5, 2026, Makerere University welcomed Mrs. Anne Twinomugisha Muhairwe, the Deputy Inspector General of Government (DIGG) and her delegation for a courtesy visit ahead of the International Ombuds Day 2026 commemoration under the theme “Ombuds: Office of Options”.
The delegation was received by Professor Barnabas Nawangwe the Vice Chancellor of Makerere University in his office where they discussed the Ombuds Day theme, the university’s successful reconciliation-based conflict resolution, ongoing infrastructure projects, and a renewed commitment to institutional partnership.
Mrs. Twinomugisha Muhairwe, who also spoke as the President of the African Ombudsman and Mediators Association (AOMA), emphasised that her office aims to be a partner in building and strengthening public institutions rather than merely a critic. Therefore, this visit marked a big step in the evolving relationship between public institutions and the Office of the Ombudsman at the Inspectorate of Government, where it is headed by Director Kakooza Savio Ntensibe, who was also part of the delegation.
The DIGG shared that the office provides essential options for resolving grievances such as administrative injustice, where people feel victimised, and unheard.
Reconciliation Underscored
While addressing the delegation, Professor Nawangwe, framed the visit as a turning point in the institution’s relationship with oversight bodies. He welcomed the DIGG, an alumna of Makerere, and commended the Ombuds methodology that prioritizes reconciliation as initiated by neutral persons or bodies to resolve disputes.
“The style of reconciliation has worked very well for us as well, ever since we started talking to the students, it has kept peace in the university,” the Vice Chancellor remarked.
“We started talking to the students and… eventually, they started to understand. Today, if you come and begin talking of strike, fellow students will tell you, ‘We came here to study’”, added the Vice Chancellor.
The engagement also discussed the practical realities of student welfare. Mrs. Twinomugisha Muhairwe, with specific interest, probed the Vice Chancellor on the status of hall renovations. In response, the Vice Chancellor explained the phased approach to renovations, noting that the university is systematically upgrading facilities to improve the living conditions.
The Vice Chancellor thereafter invited Mrs. Twinomugisha Muhairwe and her team to visit the university museum, as a gesture to underscore the spirit of the day where the Ombudsman and the university stand together.
About Ombuds Day
Ombuds Day is an international observance held annually on the second Thursday of October to raise public awareness of the ombuds profession.
According to the International Ombuds Association, an ombuds is an independent, neutral, and confidential professional who helps resolve disputes, investigate complaints, and address systemic issues within an organization, government agency, or institution.
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