Category Archives: News

Patience Ankunda holding her first class award from Uganda Christian University on graduation day.

‘I was mocked for abandoning architecture to pursue my other dream’

Faculty of Engineering, Design & Technology, News, Students, UCU Alumni


Patience Ankunda holding her first class award from Uganda Christian University on graduation day.
Patience Ankunda holding her first class award from Uganda Christian University on graduation day.

By Kefa Senoga
Architecture had long been a career dream for Patience Ankunda. 

Thus, when she joined Gayaza High School in central Uganda for Senior One more than 10 years ago, Ankunda’s work was cut out for her. She focused on technical drawing because she believed it would prepare the groundwork for her to become an architect. By the end of Senior Six, she had performed so well that she earned a government scholarship to study a degree in architecture at Uganda’s Makerere University. 

However, that is not the course Ankunda graduated in on October 22 last year. Makerere is also not the institution she graduated from. So, what happened?

Patience Ankunda with Uganda’s Minister of Lands, Judith Nabakooba
Patience Ankunda with Uganda’s Minister of Lands, Judith Nabakooba

A few months into the course at Makerere, Ankunda says she stopped feeling a passion for architecture. But she soldiered on with the course. After two years, she called it quits – not only walking away from a childhood dream but also abandoning government sponsorship and possible disappointment of her godfather who is a successful civil engineer.

She opted to study a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science under self-sponsorship at Uganda Christian University (UCU).. On October 22, 2021, Ankunda was among 95 UCU students who graduated with First Class degrees. 

“I saw Computer science creating different opportunities for me in the future, which it is already doing now,” Ankunda says.  

But the change in course and university did not come easy for Ankunda. She said many people branded her a failure because they thought she was switching from a more prestigious course. And many more people prophesied that she would not go far in life with a career in computer science. 

Patience Ankunda narrating her education and business experience to an audience at the Ted talks

She says she often had to make the time to answer the question: Why did you change? Her answer always was a question of why not. She has written an article on her blog, explaining the reason behind her change in career. 

Ankunda showing off some of the fitness products that her business sells
Ankunda showing off some of the fitness products that her business sells

As an individual, Ankunda had her own fears about the change of course. For instance, as a first-year student of computer science, she was to study with people who had been two years below her at secondary school. She believes that earlier, more proper career guidance would have saved her from all the challenges that her decision caused. She had to put challenges behind her. Engagement in out-of-class activities helped. 

“After joining UCU, I got enough free time to engage in other activities, which I could not, while pursuing architecture at Makerere,” she said. 

One such activity was an online business using the knowledge she had acquired from the classroom. In her first year, she set up a website development business. During the 2021 lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Ankunda saw an opportunity to initiate an online fitness business to help people do exercises from their homes. Afrocanfit focuses on providing workout programs at home and selling fitness products. 

“I use Afrocanfit to inspire individuals into living a healthy lifestyle,” she said.. “I also use the platform to grow a community of passionate individuals who are ready to make the necessary changes for the betterment of their health.”

She says to take her work more professionally that she had to get a certification in health and nutrition life coaching. With skills like those, Ankunda says she is better placed to expand her online business to the region and, eventually, to the continent.

Some of the products that Ankunda has developed are specifically designed for people at home with no fitness equipment.

Now that she has graduated from her course, her former department has retained her as a tutor in the department of ICT. From an achiever’s point of view, Ankunda has counsel for those who intend to attain First Class degrees. Many students do not put effort in take-home assignments, hoping to read hard and excel in the exams to compensate, but Ankunda advises against such a method of operation. 

“Coursework contributes to the final mark, yet it is easier to pass than the examinations,” she said..

For now, as she juggles running her business and sharing knowledge as a UCU tutor, Ankunda is keeping an eye on studying more practical courses in technology and ICT to empower her to be able to grow more in digital entrepreneurship. 

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

UCU team celebrates their victory.

UCU top inter-university exhibition for the fourth time

News, Students, UCU Alumni


UCU team celebrates their victory.
UCU team celebrates their victory.

By Irene Best Nyapendi
Uganda Christian University (UCU) has emerged the best exhibitor at Uganda’s National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) 2022 Inter-University education fair.

The exhibition that took place from September 22-24 in Kampala ran under the theme: “Enhancement of Teaching, Learning and Assessment with Online and Distance e-learning, (ODeL) in Higher Education.”

It was the fourth consecutive time that UCU was being announced best exhibitor. Uganda Martyrs University and the International Science, Business and Technology University (ISBAT) were second and third, respectively. 

Team UCU celebrates victory upon receiving their plaque

The more than 60 public and private institutions of learning that participated in the fair displayed technological innovations that they have employed to facilitate teaching, learning and assessment in the post-Covid era. When Covid-19 struck in Uganda in 2020, the Government instituted a lockdown on all activities, including education. This affected students, who lost time. However, later, higher institutions of learning were given the liberty to continue with teaching albeit online, until when the coronavirus infection rate significantly reduced. 

At the September exhibition, the judges were looking out for the alignment of an institution’s stall with reference to the theme of the exhibition. “We specifically highlighted the evidence of the existence of e-learning platforms in the various stalls and institutions, the usage of the e-learning platform, level of innovation and subject of display from the stalls, specifically looking at the level of effort and thought,” Prof. George Kirya, the lead judge, said. Kirya added that they also considered the level of funding because the exhibition required money for an institution to be successful. 

Justifying the reason for awarding UCU the top accolade, the judges said the university showcased many e-services that corresponded with the year’s theme. “UCU has integrated their whole system right from admission, teaching and assessment,” Prof. Kirya said. 

“The victory validates a lot about what happens at the university and demonstrates to the public that we are achieving our vision of being A Center of Excellence in the Heart of Africa,” Christa K. Oluka, UCU’s Director of Admissions and Student Records, said.

“Honestly, we had a feeling that the trophy for the overall best exhibitor would slip out of our hands this time round, due to some of the challenges we faced,” Jimmy Siyasa, the acting Head of Communications and Public Relations at UCU, said. The announcement of UCU as the overall best exhibitor, therefore, sent the intuition’s team at the exhibition tent into wild celebration, singing praises for the Lord.

UCU Vice Chancellor Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi congratulated the institution upon the milestone for the fourth consecutive time. “Congratulations to Team UCU on winning the 13th higher education exhibition, well done,” Mushengyezi said.

“The exhibitions are an opportunity for institutions to showcase what they have been able to do, to remain operational,” Mushengyezi explained, adding: “Some of the innovations that birthed UCU’s win were the learning management system (e-learning), the online voting platform (eChagua), online internship and many more.”

Deputy Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament, Thomas Tayebwa, who was the chief guest, urged institutions of higher learning to prioritize research to get tailor-made solutions to local challenges. He commended UCU for leading in this area. Different UCU Schools and Faculties exhibited unique ideas – the Faculty of Agricultural Science and Entrepreneurship exhibited how the lecturers and students use online platforms (Moodle) to enhance learning.

The School of Journalism, Media and Communication showcased the students’ online television, the UCU Focus TV, the UCU online radio and The Standard newspaper.

NCHE Executive Director Prof. Mary Okwakol explained that exhibitions bring together relevant stakeholders to showcase responses to challenges faced by higher education institutions, with special attention to the global disruptions caused by COVID-19.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

The Rev. Assoc. Prof. John Kitayimbwa, the UCU Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs, preaching at All Saints Cathedral, Nakasero during UCU Sunday.

UCU Sunday: Christians asked to donate to “build walls’

Bishop Tucker School of Divinity and Theology, News, Students


The Rev. Assoc. Prof. John Kitayimbwa, the UCU Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs, preaching at All Saints Cathedral, Nakasero during UCU Sunday.
The Rev. Assoc. Prof. John Kitayimbwa, the UCU Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic Affairs, preaching at All Saints Cathedral, Nakasero during UCU Sunday.

By Kefa Senoga
The Anglican Church in Uganda recently marked Sunday September 25 with a common theme throughout the province – “Arise, let us build the walls” (Nehemiah 2:18). And the call throughout the province was to rally Christians to contribute towards helping Uganda Christian University (UCU) build a special project for a special category of students, the ordinands.

The Ordinands Apartment, a project that the university is currently undertaking, seeks to build a residential block for UCU students who are training to be priests or church ministers.  Currently, such students are residing in the same halls of residence with other students, which, according to the Rev. Richard Mulindwa, the Acting Manager of the Church Relations Office at UCU, is not ideal for their concentration. The apartments are expected to house more than 50 ordinands. 

The Rev. Lydia Nsaale Kitayimbwa preaching at St Paul’s Cathedral Namirembe.
The Rev. Lydia Nsaale Kitayimbwa preaching at St Paul’s Cathedral Namirembe.

September 25 was the last Sunday of September, a day set aside by the House of Bishops of the Church of Uganda, for the province to hold prayers for UCU, a church-founded institution. On the day, named UCU Sunday from its start in 2017, representatives of the university spread the word about UCU in all services.

The intention of the day is three-fold – to solicit prayers for the university, to increase awareness about university programs and to raise money to support the university.

Preaching at All Saints Cathedral Nakasero, UCU Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic Affairs, the Rev. Assoc. Prof. John Kitayimbwa, urged the congregation to donate to help the church and its ministers. 

“Many of the ministers in the church have children, but cannot afford to offer them a good quality education,” he said. “Therefore, what you offer during UCU Sunday will help us, as UCU, to try to bridge that gap.”

The Rev. Assoc. Prof. John Kitayimbwa  explains the purpose of the UCU Sunday

Kitayimbwa, who preached at all the three services at All Saints Cathedral Nakasero that Sunday, said UCU is one of the greatest tools that the Church of Uganda can use to spread the gospel. The choral voices that pierced through the cathedral’s rooftop at all the three services were of the UCU choir. 

A screengrab of the Rev. Canon Dr. John Senyonyi preaching at Makerere University’s St. Francis Chapel.
A screengrab of the Rev. Canon Dr. John Senyonyi preaching at Makerere University’s St. Francis Chapel.

At Makerere University’s St. Francis Chapel, the Rev. Canon Dr. John Senyonyi, UCU’s former Vice Chancellor, centered his preaching on the topic: “Let My People Go.” Senyonyi reminded the congregation that God’s intention was to entrust man with the responsibility of looking after the world, emphasizing that when one chooses to serve God, He blesses them abundantly.

The Rev. Dr. Elly Kansiime, UCU’s Chaplain, spent the Sunday preaching during services held at Sts. Philip’s and Andrew’s Cathedral Mukono, while the Rev. Lydia Nsaale Kitayimbwa, the Assistant Chaplain at UCU, preached at St. Paul’s Cathedral Namirembe.

Urging people to donate generously for UCU’s cause, the Rev. Lydia Nsaale Kitayimbwa tipped the congregation on how to make long-lasting impact on the world. 

“If you want to make a difference in the world for a year, plant rice; if you want to make a difference for 10 years, plant trees; and if you want to make a difference for a hundred years, educate children,” she told the St. Paul’s congregation. 

The Rev. Mulindwa says as people move out of the Covid-19 pandemic, many have lost hope, businesses and family members, and, therefore, the theme of building walls as enshrined in Nehemiah 2:18 is not just about the physical walls, but also rebuilding people’s souls, to give them hope. 

According to the Vice Chairperson of the UCU University Council, James Abola, the institution has so far used collections made in the past UCU Sundays to support 52 students to graduation level.

UCU Vice Chancellor Assoc. Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi recently said sh400m (about $113,000) had already been secured for the apartments project that is estimated to cost sh8.5b (over $2.2m).

Collections for the past UCU Sunday events have been used to implement a number of projects at the institution. For instance, the sh300million ($78,148) that was collected for the UCU Sunday of 2018 was invested in building the UCU School of Medicine at Mengo Hospital in Kampala. 

American donations can be made through the Uganda Partners Web donation button at https://www.ugandapartners.org/donate/. Put “UCU Sunday”  in the comment box.  

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Chancellor of UCU Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu launching the campaign.

UCU seeks aid to support disadvantaged students

News, Students, UCU Alumni


Chancellor of UCU Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu launching the campaign.
Chancellor of UCU Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu launching the campaign.

By Kefa Senoga
In 2018, when Shadrack Eunyu informed his family about his admission to pursue a Bachelor of Electronic and Communication Science at Uganda Christian University, the members were elated. Eunyu’s father, a member of the clergy, gave him the greenlight to pursue the course because he was in position to meet his son’s tuition requirements. 

However, slightly over a year into Eunyu’s studies, his father died of Covid-19. Eunyu had to quickly look for solutions of raising money in order not to drop out of school.

Dorothy Tushemereirwe, the coordinator of the campaign.
Dorothy Tushemereirwe, the coordinator of the campaign.

“I got involved in some activities at the UCU chaplaincy and the Financial Aid Office in order to raise money for tuition,” Eunyu narrates. Soon, the chaplaincy and the UCU Church Relations Department took over the role of paying his school fees. 

Eunyu continued to look for money-making opportunities because, in addition to tuition, he had other requirements that necessitated money. All this hustle is now past Eunyu as he looks forward to graduating soon. He has completed his course and is currently undertaking an internship. 

UCU Vice Chancellor Assoc. Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi says cases like Eunyu’s are many at the institution. He says he feels sad whenever UCU receives the news of students who have lost their parents or guardians, especially for those in their last year of study, with no one to support them. 

Vice Chancellor articulating the reason behind the Just for 10k campaign

As a result of the pandemic, Mushengyezi said, many of the church workers were affected due to the prolonged lockdowns that saw places of worship closed, hence making it possible to meet some of their financial obligations. The fate of a few others was sealed in the same way like Eunyu’s father.

“I keep receiving children of the clergy who have been struggling because of such effects,” Mushengyezi said as he announced a university campaign that UCU hopes will lighten the burdens of such needs.

“Not all of us are endowed with all that we need to succeed in life,” Mushengyenzi said during a recent community worship session at the UCU Mukono campus. “Some of our students have needs and struggle with their tuition, and other needs.” 

The “For Just 10k” campaign is intended to raise sh1billion (about $270,000), that, according to Mushengyezi, will be used to support needy students. The campaign was launched on June 15 at the university main campus in Mukono by the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, who is also the UCU Chancellor, the Most Rev. Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu.

Dorothy Tushemereirwe, a fundraising consultant who is coordinating the project, says people can contribute as little as sh10,000 (about $2.6). The project runs from June this year to the same month next year. Should the target be realized, more than 300 UCU students will be able to receive tuition support. 

According to Tushemereirwe, since the campaign was launched in June, sh22m (about $5,945) has been realized. She cites Worship Harvest Church, which has already offered a cheque of sh10m ($2,618) towards the cause. 

How to donate

For direct deposits: +256774530810 in names of Dorothy Tushemereirwe or +13344240964 in the names of Mark Bartels (Reason for giving should  be “for just 10k fundraiser”)

Online donations: Use GoFundMe (https://www.gofundme.com/f/needy-university-students) 

Direct cash deposits on Stanbic bank: Account name: Uganda Christian University. Account Number: 9030005916673.   

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Left to right: The Chaplain of UCU, the Rev. Canon Eng. Paul Wasswa; Robert Buga D’Jalo, a teacher at Kampala International School; the Director of the Facilities and Capital Projects, Eng. David Kivumbi; the Rev. Stanley Wareba; the Director of the Research, Partnerships and Innovations, Prof. Elizabeth Kizito; and Dr. Angela Napakol, head of research and partnerships, at Nkoyoyo Hall during the seminar.

‘We seem to ask Google more than we ask God’

News, SRPGS, Students


Left to right: The Chaplain of UCU, the Rev. Canon Eng. Paul Wasswa; Robert Buga D’Jalo, a teacher at Kampala International School; the Director of the Facilities and Capital Projects, Eng. David Kivumbi; the Rev. Stanley Wareba; the Director of the Research, Partnerships and Innovations, Prof. Elizabeth Kizito; and Dr. Angela Napakol, head of research and partnerships, at Nkoyoyo Hall during the seminar.
Left to right: The Chaplain of UCU, the Rev. Canon Eng. Paul Wasswa; Robert Buga D’Jalo, a teacher at Kampala International School; the Director of the Facilities and Capital Projects, Eng. David Kivumbi; the Rev. Stanley Wareba; the Director of the Research, Partnerships and Innovations, Prof. Elizabeth Kizito; and Dr. Angela Napakol, head of research and partnerships, at Nkoyoyo Hall during the seminar.

By Israel Kisakye
Artificial intelligence has widened the gap between individuals and God on one hand, and narrowed the gap between believers and God on the other. 

But to what extent should believers rely on technology in their daily lives as they pursue to understand God more? Is it possible that digital addiction can lead to stunted spiritual growth? These, and more, are some of the questions that Uganda Christian University’s (UCU) Directorate of Research, Partnerships and Innovations (DRPI) has been battling. To seek some answers, DRPI recently held a seminar that centered on the impact of artificial intelligence on Christian faith.   

“Today, we are becoming increasingly more dependent on Google than on God,” said Robert Buga D’jalo, a teacher at Kampala International School, during the late July seminar held in UCU’s Nkoyoyo Hall. “We seem to ask Google more than we ask God.” 

Robert Buga D’Jalo making his presentation at the seminar
Robert Buga D’Jalo making his presentation at the seminar

Buga was one of the speakers at the seminar whose topic of discussion was Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Christian Faith: Contradictions and Convergence. He argued that many of the systems people create are intended to help man live a better life, but that they were instead making him more reliant on them than God.

“When AI takes over the world, we shall have a new world,” Buga noted, before he asked: “We don’t think a lot about evolution because, as Christians, we find our identity in God, but does AI threaten our dependence on God?” 

Dr. Angela Napakol, the head of research and partnerships at DRPI, said the emergence of technology has dominated the aspect of decision making, leading to people having more trust in computers than in God, with Buga noting that that is where the danger of artificial intelligence could come from.

“We might reach a point where we rely more on the artificial systems than on God and that is what we don’t want,” Buga reasoned. “As Christians, our existence should be based on the foundation of man, which is the creation of man in God’s image. This means in Christianity, there is a deposit of soul, spirit and who God wants us to be.”

Artificial Intelligence Vs God

Buga noted that the initial building blocks of artificial intelligence are based on the ability of human beings to build systems that do not challenge ethical issues. He urged Christians to create their artificial intelligence systems so that other people don’t create systems that challenge the belief of Christians in God. 

About a decade ago, it was not uncommon to find notices at entrances to churches, urging the congregation to switch off their mobile phones. Now, the wording in the notices has changed. Keep Your Phone in Silence is now the preferred wording. Reason? Many church-goers have abandoned the book Bible in preference for the Bible app on their smartphones. So, a mobile phone is part of the worshiping aid in church. 

Similarly, a congregant can use the smart gadgets for recording a preaching or taking photos during worship. Innovations like these will enable God to remain in people’s lives, because, as Buga noted in the July seminar, they will “enable us to solve our everyday problems.”

Holding debates like the one on artificial intelligence and the Christian faith, according to Napakol, will keep people’s faith afloat. 

“We can’t just sit back and watch as the world sinks,” she said. “We have to think critically about these issues, and how to get involved, otherwise we risk running behind, instead of ahead.” 

The Chaplain of UCU, the Rev. Canon Eng. Paul Wasswa, reminded his audience that man is created in God’s image, and, therefore, it is important for man not to replace God with code. In information technology, a code is a set of programming instructions.

Rebecca Nambuya, a year-one student pursuing a Bachelor of Social Work and Social Administration, said the seminar helped to widen her scope on how to use technology without losing focus on God. “I am now aware of artificial intelligence and how it advances my Christian perspective,” she said. 

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Mwogereze with one of their elderly beneficiaries in Kamuli. Courtesy photo

‘Community that gives hope and a smile to vulnerable’

News, Students, UCU School of Social Sciences


Mwogereze with one of their elderly beneficiaries in Kamuli. Courtesy photo
Mwogereze with one of their elderly beneficiaries in Kamuli. Courtesy photo

By Vanessa Kyalimpa
Richard Mwogereze’s parents dropped out of school early in life, and so did his siblings. Those two incidents served as learning points for the young Mwogereze. As he grew up, he witnessed first-hand how his parents struggled to meet the basic needs of the family. Seeing them struggle, Mwogereze believed life would have been a little bit better if his parents had completed school. With education, he believed, they would have been able to afford formal employment, and, therefore, fend for the family.

He, therefore, struggled against all odds to keep in school.

“I would make bricks and offer manual labor in sugarcane plantations to earn money for school fees,” says Mwogereze, currently pursuing Masters of Arts in Organizational Leadership and Management at Uganda Christian University (UCU). He says he started paying his tuition and buying his school requirements in Primary Six. 

Richard Mwogereze talks about the activities of Vine Uganda

Perhaps, Mwogereze would not have broken all the sweat to look for money for his tuition, had it not been for the life his aunt and her children led, which he says, was an inspiration to him. His cousins were going to school and, to him, the family could afford all the basic necessities they needed in life. 

“Plus, they owned cars and houses,” he notes.

He kept his eye on the prize until he graduated with a Bachelor’s in Social Work and Social Administration. Finally, Mwogereze thought he was done. However, he soon learned that it was one thing to get a degree and another to get a job.

After failed attempts to secure himself a job, Mwogereze settled for establishing an organisation, through which he hoped, he would earn a living, as well as helping the less privileged. That is how Butansi Youth Forum, a community-based organisation in Kamuli district, eastern Uganda, was born. Through the organisation, Mwogereze hoped he would empower the youth with life skills. The organization suffered stillbirth as it did not take off. Mwogereze believes he paid the price of inexperience. 

“I did not give up,” he says. “I soon got an opportunity to volunteer at a children’s home. Through that work, I got an opportunity to attend a conference, which opened the door of opportunities for me.”

Mwogereze and a colleague with whom he partners in preaching the Gospel.
Mwogereze and a colleague with whom he partners in preaching the Gospel.

Two women at the conference got interested in his work, and eventually employed him at their organization, Vine Uganda. The organisation is a non-profit evangelism program that conducts prison ministry and charity simultaneously. It serves up to nine villages in Kamuli district, offering child sponsorship, medical outreach, women’s projects and spiritual outreach. It also runs a pre-school and a babies’ home. Currently, Mwogereze serves as the organisation’s executive director.

Oftentimes, many women are left in dire poverty, struggling to provide food and shelter for their families. Vine Uganda is channeling energies to making life better for such women. It provides training for use of sewing machines, as well as employment. Through a six-month training course by a master seamstress, the women are expected to be able to make shirts, skirts, aprons, and school uniforms by the end of the training. Some of the products are sold in the community, and others like aprons sell in the United States.. 

“We envision a community that gives hope and a smile to the vulnerable and to those who have lost hope, with Jesus Christ being the centre of joy,” Mwogereze said. “It is an answer to the prayers of many vulnerable people.”

“We have also secured a large water project, an electric borehole.” The project, supported by Water Mission, is meant to help supply water to all units that house the organization’s projects, according to Mwogereze.

The organisation also sponsors up to 500 learners in primary, secondary and vocational levels, as well as community economic empowerment initiatives, where people are trained and given start-up capital to set up businesses that can provide them with income to support their families.

One of the biggest challenges they face, Mwogereze said, is limited funds, which grossly limits the number of people they impact in their programs. He is, nevertheless, hopeful that better days lie ahead.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Gerald Den Ouden making a presentation during the August workshop.

UCU staff ramps up research focus

News, SRPGS, Students


Gerald Den Ouden making a presentation during the August workshop.
Gerald Den Ouden making a presentation during the August workshop.

By Israel Kisakye
Performance metrics and rankings seem to be the new gold standard for higher institutions of learning. The statistics in the metrics and rankings determine how many students and how much funding a university attracts. With this awareness, the Uganda Christian University (UCU) Directorate of Research, Partnership and Innovation held a strategic planning workshop for staff.

The mid-August workshop that brought together directors, deans and heads of departments from different schools and faculties aimed at fostering appreciation and development of research. 

The UCU Director of Research, Partnership and Innovation, Prof. Elizabeth Kizito, said the workshop made it easier for her docket to play the key role in discussing issues of resource mobilization, research grant management and seeking partnerships and collaborations. 

We need to have an appreciation for research, says Dr. Elizabeth Kizito

“The directorate is a service center for the university,” she explained, adding, “if we don’t have a goal, we shall fizzle out at some point. We have to develop our research goals, what we want to attain and how we want it.”

Kizito noted that to improve research in the institution, the directorate has to go to the grassroots by engaging the university’s schools and faculties to come up with a clear research plan.

UCU staff members with Gerald Den Ouden after the workshop
UCU staff members with Gerald Den Ouden after the workshop

The workshop follows close on the heels of a special training launched in May, to skill graduate students to be able to produce publication-worthy research. At the launch of the training in May, the head of research training in post graduate studies at UCU, Dr. Joseph Owor, noted that the seminars will cover both the main campus and the constituent colleges. Academic staff from all the faculties are expected to attend the trainings that are conducted every Wednesday, starting the second week of every semester, for five weeks. 

Kizito believes that if energy is expended on research, UCU will get better in the area, as well as improve their position in the continental rankings of universities. 

For the August workshop, Gerald Den Ouden, a Belgium trainer and consultant in research and strategic planning, was the facilitator. Ouden has assisted with over 80 research projects in Africa.

“In order to effectively and efficiently implement a plan, all individuals involved must function as a whole or else the plan is destined to fail,” Ouden said, reiterating that research teams need to work as a collective body.

He noted that during strategic planning, every unit within the organization which is involved in research must agree with the plan, its direction and, therefore, implement the specific actions. 

Ouden provided new strategic planning tips to different schools and faculty participants, noting that all strategic plans must be flexible and practical. 

Expressing gratitude for Ouden’s presentation, the Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Assoc. Prof. John Kitayimbwa, described it as a student-centered learning approach. 

Kitayimbwa encouraged the different schools and faculties to emphasize the same approach to the students.

He said UCU exists to groom students and impact communities. “A good university exists because of research. It is one of our core values…Without research, we can’t have any impact.” 

David Bukenya, the UCU librarian, pledged to support researchers at the university to achieve their goals. He said the training had enabled them to further understand the needs of the different faculties, and where they need to give support in both teaching and research.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Around two dozen in-person participants listen and ask questions about the Covid study.

UCU team releases report on Covid conspiracy theory link to vaccination

COVID-19, News, SRPGS, UCU School of Business, UCU School of Journalism, Media and Communication, UCU School of Social Sciences


Around two dozen in-person participants listen and ask questions about the Covid study.
Around two dozen in-person participants listen and ask questions about the Covid study.

By Patty Huston-Holm with audio-visual by Conrad Okello
Covid-19 – a pandemic waning worldwide – was the topic of discussion for two hours on a Thursday morning in a far corner of the Uganda Christian University (UCU) main campus in Mukono.  More specifically, the talk surrounded how false information contributes to health crises overall and how communication of legitimate facts and figures could alleviate sickness and death. 

Dr. Geoffrey Rwabaingi Mulindwa, the director of medical services through Allan Galpin Health Center at UCU/Mukono, was among 40 of the combined in-person and on-line participants on Sept. 8, 2022. He listened as collaborators of public health, social science, journalism and business faculty presented their phase one research entitled “Conspiracy Beliefs and Covid-19 Vaccination Hesitancy in Uganda” and shared his perspective over a tea break. 

Dr. Bacwayo expresses appreciation for report questions and comments.

“Covid is real,” he stated without hesitancy. “Vaccination should be as annual as a flu shot.”

The medical doctor, age 60 and seeing first-hand cases of coronavirus, notes that the worldometer estimate of 169,396 cases and 3,628 deaths in Uganda is lower than for most countries in the rest of the world.  The Uganda data are derived mostly from heavily populated areas in a country that is 75% rural.  Residents in the rural areas have been mostly spared from the virus because they are not as close in contact with other people as city dwellers. He estimated at least half of the Uganda adult population has received at least one dose of a vaccination to combat Covid.

Regardless, Mulindwa said vaccination is a means of overall improvement of public health, especially as other diseases – such as polio – are coming back. Numerous credible sources, including the Yale School of Medicine, in August 2022, report the re-emergence of this once-eradicated, crippling polio disease. 

Professor Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, director, Postgraduate Studies, speaks as the chief investigator of the study of conspiracy theory impact on Covid vaccinations.
Professor Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, director, Postgraduate Studies, speaks as the chief investigator of the study of conspiracy theory impact on Covid vaccinations.

Prof. Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, an Associate Prof. of Governance and Development in the School of Social Sciences and UCU Directorate of Postgraduate Studies, was the Covid-focused study lead investigator with a multi-disciplinary team of colleagues from UCU. Others on the team are Emilly Comfort Maractho, Richard Sebaggala, Solomon Mwije, Mercy Amaniyo, Clare Cheremoi, Evas Kemigisha and Jacqueline Kobusingye.

The team was awarded a UCU research grant to study how conspiracy beliefs affected Covid-19 vaccination hesitancy in Uganda. In a three-year project with an online and physical survey of over 1,000 respondents, the team is examining conspiracy beliefs and their implications for Covid vaccination in Uganda. 

Among the Covid conspiracy beliefs are: 

  • The G5 cellular network is responsible for causing COVID-19. 
  • Bill Gates used Covid as a plan to depopulate the world.
  • High-powered people released Covid on purpose.
  • Vaccinations having microchips that can be used to monitor behavior.  

The study’s main objectives are designed to measure such conspiracy beliefs and establish how they impact vaccination decisions for adults and their children. 

Assoc. Prof. Elizabeth Balyejusa Kizito, director, Research, Partnership and Innovation, applauds the UCU team for the Covid-related research.
Assoc. Prof. Elizabeth Balyejusa Kizito, director, Research, Partnership and Innovation, applauds the UCU team for the Covid-related research.

The population engaged in the study is 47% male and 53% female from the Uganda areas of Mukono, Arua, Gulu, Sheema, Mbarara, Kapchorwa, Kabale and Wakiso. According to the study, inaccurate information is largely obtained through radio and social media via smart phones that are increasingly in the hands of both educated and less-educated persons.  

“A lot of this false information was coming through WhatsApp,” Bacwayo said. 

Conspiracy theories aside, among the data collected as of early September 2022 are:

  • Information is more trusted from health care workers than government officials.
  • Protecting other people is the main reason people get vaccinated. 
  • Lack of safe and effectiveness proof about the vaccine are the main reasons people don’t get vaccinated.

Bacwayo reported that worldwide, the percentage of the population threshold that needs to be immune to achieve herd immunity for any disease should be in the 60% to 70% range. The World Health Organization lists lack of vaccination as one of the top 10 threats to global health.

“Vaccine hesitancy is as high as 70% in developing countries,” Bacwayo said. “Conspiracy theories are the biggest driver to no vaccination.”

Among the questions and feedback from the roughly 24 in-person participants on September 8 was a question about the term “conspiracy,” the actual origin of Covid, why people believe false information, how Ugandan tribal traditions impact beliefs and the reality of a need to get vaccinated more than once.  

“We are using this feedback to inform our next phase of the research,” said Dr. Maractho, who is part of the research team. 

“We believe this study is relevant and that it will bear fruits in other areas,” Dr. Bacwayo said. 

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

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The UCU Directorate of Postgraduate Studies team spearheading the virtual research and writing training are (left to right) Dr. Godwin Awio, Dr. Joseph Jakisa Owor, Dr. Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, Dickson Tumuramye and Jerome Makumbi.

UCU launches post-graduate research and writing training

COVID-19, News, SRPGS, Students


The UCU Directorate of Postgraduate Studies team spearheading the virtual research and writing training are (left to right) Dr. Godwin Awio, Dr. Joseph Jakisa Owor, Dr. Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, Dickson Tumuramye and Jerome Makumbi.
The UCU Directorate of Postgraduate Studies team spearheading the virtual research and writing training are (left to right) Dr. Godwin Awio, Dr. Joseph Jakisa Owor, Dr. Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, Dickson Tumuramye and Jerome Makumbi.

By Patty Huston-Holm
In the midst of holding a job and raising a family, many a post-graduate student struggles with a blank computer screen destined for the required research paper. Filling that screen in a language – English – that isn’t a first language is an added obstacle for master’s and doctoral students at Uganda Christian University (UCU). 

Help is on the way.  It’s already here, actually. 

An initiative called CRAWs, which stands for Centre for Research and Academic Writing Services, offers on-line instruction on the various parts of a dissertation and thesis.  Led by a team of five within the UCU Directorate of Postgraduate Studies (DPS), the centerpiece of CRAWs is a virtual training module designed to increase understanding of the dozen sections of a research paper. Presenters are subject matter experts from among UCU’s 11 school and faculty areas.

Dr. Godwin Awio, one of the five DPS staff members spearheading CRAWs, is coordinating the module. The primary focus is on assistance to 300 students in the UCU master’s level pipeline. 

“Every student can do this,” Awio said. “That’s our main message.”

The on-line module is based on an in-person training conducted by a team of Americans and Ugandans from September 2015 until Covid hit in March 2020. During Uganda’s two-year lockdown, UCU stepped up on-line learning. When the education shutdown ceased, UCU emerged with a plan to conduct nearly all post-graduate courses on line. 

The CRAWs module, available without charge to all enrolled UCU post-graduate students, was launched in May of this year. It is designed to introduce participants to critical research and writing skills required to complete a research degree, diploma, publishable articles and other academic reports.

Learning outcomes are: 

  1. Identify features of theoretical paradigms
  2. Undertake a literature review
  3. Apply approaches to writing first draft, editing and proof reading
  4. Apply processes in identifying and responding to publication opportunities
  5. Apply time management strategies 

Participants who attend at least 75% of the training and complete an assessment requirement receive a certificate. Those unable to complete a module can re-take portions with the next offering period. 

For the first module in the spring, 200 students enrolled, with 50 receiving certificates. Most completions were from the School of Business, School of Education and Bishop Tucker School of Theology and Divinity. The biggest problem expressed by students in this module was how to do problem statements and how to engage methodology. 

The second module was slated Sept. 21 through Oct. 19, 2022. Based on UCU’s 73-page research manual, topics to be covered in addition to basics of writing include theory, methodology, questions, objectives and literature review.  Awio is hopeful soon to incorporate virtual coaching that was part of  the earlier model with a reminder “we won’t do the work for them.”

All members of the DPS staff have advanced degrees with understanding of frustrations and isolation of working on a research paper. Their content expertise is in social science, development studies and business. All  have involvement and understanding of the process. 

The five-member DPS team is:

  • Dr. Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo – director of the directorate 
  • Dr. Awio – head of publications, coordinating student training and publication of work
  • Dr. Joseph Jakisa Owor – head of research and training
  • Dickson Tumuramye – assistant registrar, coordinating writing services and staff research training skills
  • Jerome Makumbi – assistant registrar, managing post-graduate admissions and training

“We look at the training not just to finish a degree, but to sharpen skills to be used elsewhere and to yield quality papers worthy of being published and used by other researchers,” Awio said. “Analytical skills are valuable in multiple careers.”

Reflecting on his PhD research on employee engagement, Owor noted that beyond his thesis is the realization of the importance of his topic in the corporate world.

“Without  involving the whole of your head, heart and hands on something, you cannot succeed or make any difference,” he said.  “That’s what I invest in the task of promoting graduate research and training to yield quality output. I always insist on quality and, thereby, step on a few people’s feet.”

Makumbi, who did  his master’s research on university employee turnover, said,  “Research is knowledge sought for and it is humbling to know you are part of the process of changing the world because it’s through this that new innovation and knowledge is realized.”

Tumuramye, who did his master’s research on women economic empowerment, finds his biggest passion in research that involves children as both subjects and participants of studies, but is able to have compassion and understanding in all academic areas. 

Awio said his poverty-surrounded environment and his belief in God drive him to serve students. One favorite scripture is from Colossians 3: 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter Instagram and Facebook.

Students competing in basketball during the gala. The Main Campus won the basketball game.

UCU hosts first intercampus sports gala

News, Sports, Students, UCU Alumni


Students competing in basketball during the gala. The Main Campus won the basketball game.
Students competing in basketball during the gala. The Main Campus won the basketball game.

By Vanessa Kyalimpa
The desire to enjoy the experience of competition recently led Uganda Christian University (UCU) students to the institution’s sports arena at the main campus in Mukono. The activities, which were planned as team building exercises between students of the UCU main campus and those from Kampala campus, also offered bonding opportunities. 

UCU Bachelor of Law graduates who are currently pursuing a Diploma in Legal Practice at Uganda’s Law Development Centre (LDC), as well as students from the School of Medicine in Mengo, Kampala, were among those who took part in the sports gala that saw students compete in football, basketball, athletics, volleyball, netball and chess.

The gala, which was the first of its kind at the university, was organized by the student leaders of the university’s main campus in Mukono.

The UCU Main Campus team playing volleyball with the Kampala Campus team. The Kampala Campus team took the day in volleyball.
The UCU Main Campus team playing volleyball with the Kampala Campus team. The Kampala Campus team took the day in volleyball.

Sarah Adokorach, the Minister of Sports in the current Guild Government at the main campus, said they saw the gala as one of the ways to competitively get the students fit as they physically engaged and had fun. 

“I’ve been mobilizing and coordinating the different activities, and encouraging students to come and participate,” Adokorach said, noting that the idea of the sports gala was a hard sale, since they had never participated in one that brought together students from different UCU campuses. The best performers in the competitions were awarded medals at the end of the event.

“At first, we were skeptical that this would not happen the way we had planned, but we were pleasantly surprised it did, in such a successful way,” Adokorach said, noting that not even the light rain in the morning could dampen the mood of the students.

Since there was a lot of communication and exchange of ideas before, during and after the event, Adokorach says the quick benefit they reaped from the gala was the strengthening of the relationship among the leaders and students from the main campus, the School of Medicine, the Kampala campus and the alums pursuing a Diploma in Legal Practice at the LDC. 

UCU Mukono campus students compete against the students of UCU Kampala campus at the basketball court during the sports gala. 

Owen Masembe, the Guild President of UCU Kampala Campus, welcomed the idea of the gala, noting that oftentimes, students focus only on studies, forgetting about the physical aspects of their lives. 

“Kampala campus does not have the different sports facilities that the main campus has,” Masembe noted. “So, the gala offered an opportunity for the students to showcase their sports abilities.”

The Guild President of the LDC main campus in Kampala, Boss John Bruce, in one of the football games, captained his institution’s team of UCU alums to 2-2 draw, after going down 2-0 by half time. “A sports gala is a place where we come to shed off some weight,” he said. 

As a student at UCU, Bruce led the institution’s electoral body as the Guild Electoral Commission chairperson. He oversaw the transition from voting for student leaders at UCU using analogue means to an online voting process, e-voting app, the e-Chagua. The e-chagua helped UCU conduct elections even at a time physical presence of students at universities was still restricted, due to the Covid pandemic.  

Daphine Kateme, a student at the UCU School of Medicine, who also attended the gala, said one of the fundamental needs for a person’s well-being is the ability to connect with others, noting that she was impressed the gala achieved just that. 

“I made many friends from other campuses, just by talking to people, sharing our experiences and playing volleyball, Kateme said, adding: “I’m happy the gala offered me the opportunity to play volleyball again, after many years.”

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter and Instagram and Facebook.

Donations sought for UCU (September 25) Sunday

Bishop Tucker School of Divinity and Theology, News, Students, UCU Alumni


Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu with members of the clergy and other Church leaders who converged at Uganda Christian University recently for the Provincial Assembly.
Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu with members of the clergy and other Church leaders who converged at Uganda Christian University recently for the Provincial Assembly.

By Irene Best Nyapendi
It is that time of the year, again, when representatives of Uganda Christian University (UCU), take time off to spread the gospel about the institution. Named the UCU Sunday, the day, celebrated every last Sunday of September, was set aside by the House of Bishops of the Church of Uganda, for the province to hold prayers for the church-founded institution.

In addition to the prayers, the UCU Sunday, which will be celebrated on Sunday, September 25, is intended to mobilize support and resources for various activities at UCU, as well as create awareness about developments at the institution. 

Speaking about the objective of this year’s UCU Sunday, UCU Chaplain, the Rev. Canon Eng. Paul Wasswa Ssembiro, said it is three-fold. 

Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu
Archbishop Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu

“Our main objective this year is to pray for the institution, support clergy students through scholarship and also construct the Ordinands Apartment,” Ssembiro said. 

UCU is currently working with the 37 dioceses, alumni, the university’s guild government and students in preparation for the day. UCU Sunday first took place in 2017.

The Ordinands Apartments is intended to accommodate clergy students at the university. The apartment is expected to house more than 50 ordinands. An ordinand is a person training to be a priest or a church minister. Richard Mulindwa, the Church Relations Manager at UCU, noted that theology students require a calm environment to focus on God. 

“At the moment, the students are residing in the same halls of residence with other students, which is not ideal for their concentration,” Mulindwa said. 

UCU Council Chairperson on UCU Sunday

While preaching at a virtual UCU Sunday service last year, UCU Vice Chancellor Aaron Mushengyezi explained the reason for the Ordinands Apartments. He said some of the ordinands are married and would wish that their spouses could visit them during weekends. However, that is not possible since they reside with other students. 

Last year’s service, which was virtual due to a ban on gatherings to limit the spread of the coronavirus, was celebrated at Namirembe Cathedral in Kampala. That ban on physical gatherings in church has since been lifted due to the waning number of Covid-19 infections globally. 

Recently, Mushengyezi said sh400m (about $113,000) had already been secured for the apartments project that is estimated to cost sh8.5b (over $2.2m).

Archbishop Dr. Stephen Samuel Kaziimba Mugalu, who is also the UCU Chancellor, appealed to Christians to take part in the UCU Sunday. He called upon the flock to support the project under the theme “Arise, let us build the walls” (Nehemiah 2:18). Kaziimba also emphasized that ordinands need a supportive environment while pursuing their dreams of being professional evangelists. 

Collections for the past UCU Sunday events have been used to implement a number of projects at the institution. For instance, the sh300million that was collected for the UCU Sunday of 2018 was invested in building the UCU School of Medicine at Mengo in Kampala. Unlike public universities that get financial support from the central government, private universities in Uganda, in which category UCU falls, are run on tuition fees paid by students. 

American donations can be made through the Uganda Partners Web site donation button at https://www.ugandapartners.org/donate/. Put “UCU Sunday” in the comment box.  

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Newly elected executive committee of the UCU Business Society

School of Business becomes UCU’s 4th professional group

News, Students, UCU School of Business


Newly elected executive committee of the UCU Business Society
Newly elected executive committee of the UCU Business Society

By Kefa Senoga
The Uganda Christian University (UCU) School of Business (SoB) has become the fourth of UCU’s 11 schools/faculties to have a formalized professional group for all its programs. For the SoB, it’s called a “society.”

For the School of Law, it’s also a society. For the School of Social Sciences, the name is Social Work Association. For the School of Journalism, Media and Communication, the group is the Media Link Association.

On August 2, 2022, the UCU Business Society, which is now the official fraternity unifying all students under the UCU SoB, was launched after tense elections. These were the first elections conducted by the Business Society and organized to usher in a democratic leadership. Ayebare Phillip Bravo emerged as the winner with 76.35%, with Mujuzi Paul Richard at second with 23.65%.

The founding committee members of the UCU Business Society shaking hands with the new committee.

As with all four groups, the rationale for the Business Society is primarily two-fold: Student sense of belonging, and building of skill sets, relationships and connections beyond the classroom.

Giving his speech at the launch, Ayebare discussed the importance of implementing a four-point program as follows:

  1. Establishing favorable partnerships both in and out of campus, for example, with other associations in the university, in order to intensify student-related programs.
  2. Engaging students in extracurricular and developmental activities (i.e., intensifying sports activities, such as the business league).
  3. Advocating robust academic-oriented programs, such as mentorship and career guidance seminars.
  4. Ensuring student subscription policy, such as a semester-based mode of payment.

Natasha Alinda, the Vice President-elect of the UCU Business Society, says the student body will promote culture and values of UCU, “policies concerning students of business can easily be passed through our association, which is student-oriented.”

(left to right) Ayebare Philip Bravo, President-elect of the UCU Business Society; Ssemakula Musa, founder of the UCU Business Society; and Tayebwa Clinton, a colleague from the Business Society committee.
(left to right) Ayebare Philip Bravo, President-elect of the UCU Business Society; Ssemakula Musa, founder of the UCU Business Society; and Tayebwa Clinton, a colleague from the Business Society committee.

The SoB Dean, Vincent Kisenyi, says that “through this society, students will be able to do a lot of things as students, build their self-esteem, work on the different activities in the school and build that oneness among themselves, hence enjoying their stay at the university.” Kisenyi adds that one of the important ingredients in the UCU Business Society will be a strong business fellowship that will guide students to understand everything is anchored on God.

Ssemakula Musa, the former guild member of parliament (MP) for the SoB and who spearheaded the formation of the society, says that as he was contesting for the position of MP SoB, he noted in his manifesto that he would pioneer the establishment of a body that unifies all students under the SoB.

“Many students were coming to me, requesting for the formation of an association that brings them together,” Ssemakula said. “They always related to the UCU law society, which had demonstrated its visibility at the campus.”

Ssemakula says that it was important to come up with the UCU Business Society due to the fact that there are so many courses under the SoB, for example, Business Administration, Procurement and Logistics, Accounting and Finance, Tourism and Hospitality.

He adds that besides the Business Society encouraging unity and mutual relationship among the students, it is also meant to establish relationships between the students of the UCU SoB and other external stakeholders.

“We are looking at partnerships from bigger business entities like Stanbic Bank, Uganda Revenue Authority, global companies like Coca-Cola,” Ssemakula said. “Therefore, the Business Society will mediate all these processes, beginning with sourcing for students’ internship opportunities in these big companies.”

Ssemakula adds that another core reason for establishing the business society was to create avenues for financial support for students, for example, “we have plans of introducing the 1k campaign to help, in one way or another, our colleagues who may lack tuition.” This campaign will be in addition to UCU’s recent launch of a “For just 10K, Change a Life” campaign, seeking a small donation of 10,000 shillings per person. 

UCU has a process for such groups to be legally recognized by the university. A motion has to be tabled in the house of the students’ guild parliament and if this parliament passes it, then the guild vice-president, who is the guild official in charge of associations, forwards the matter to the Director of Students Affairs, who then presents it to the Vice Chancellor for approval.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

July 2022 graduating students at UCU

‘God Is the Plug’ for Business first-class degree recipient

News, Students, UCU Alumni, UCU School of Business


July 2022 graduating students at UCU
July 2022 graduating students at UCU

By Kefa Senoga
“God Is the Plug” is a youth-focused social media hashtag, emblazoned on clothes and used in slang with the meaning that God is the connection to prospering, achieving and succeeding. 

Uganda Christian University (UCU) School of Business graduate, John Baptist Mugabe, says indeed God is his plug. While hard work played a role, God gets the glory for Mugabe’s first-class degree, his internship and more. 

“I always made a special prayer at the beginning of the semester for success,” he said. “I also joined the Kigezi Ankole Anglican Youth Missioners fellowship for prayers.”  

Mugabe, who graduated July 29, 2022, with a Bachelors of Science in Accounting and Finance and a 4.54 of 5.0 Grade Point Average, said his success is a true representation of the Bible verse in Proverbs 3:5-6, which says, “commit your way to the Lord, trust in Him and He will act.”

John Baptist Mugabe narrates his story

Relying on God, Mugabe persevered to graduate with time and technical obstacles – both before and after Covid-restriction challenges. Mugabe says that in his first semester, he could not do his assignments on time due to the fact that he did not have a laptop and a smartphone. He borrowed a laptop from a friend to accomplish the coursework and assignments, but not always on a deadline.  

John Baptist Mugabe (left) holding his first-class award on graduation.
John Baptist Mugabe (left) holding his first-class award on graduation.

Mugabe comes from Kihani III, Kikyenkye Sub County, Ibanda District, in the western part of the country. He is born to Mr. Kamagara Felix and Mrs. Kamabaati Fausta. He joined UCU in September 2018 because, Mugabe says “UCU has a good reputation and students who have passed through it are highly competitive in the job market because of the values that it instills in them.”

Adding to Mugabe’s frustration in 2020 was online learning after the closure of all education institutions in the country due to the outbreak of Covid-19. 

“In my home area in Ibanda district, the network was always unstable,” Mugabe narrates, adding that insufficient upkeep was another challenge that became part of his life. He says it affected him because he couldn’t purchase the handouts that contained the notes that were given by the lecturers for revision purposes. However, Mugabe notes that all challenges as they came, motivated him to work harder.

As a Christian, Mugabe believed that God would intervene. And He did.

Mugabe has begun the journey of fulfilling his dream of becoming an accountant. As a UCU intern in the department of accounts, he performs duties such as student accounts management, staff debtors billing, receipt of university incomes and clearing of students.  He hopes to be retained as an employee in the finance department at UCU. 

Mugabe describes his experience of interning at UCU as one of his best due to the fact that he has got an opportunity to put into practice what he learned in the classroom. 

“It has given me an opportunity to interact with important people who have become an incentive to the person I am now and the person I hope to be in the future,” he remarks. Mugabe says that the university has been a source of inspiration to him. 

“At UCU, I have found mentors and friends who have inspired me…through the impact that their good work is making in the communities,” he said.  “Joel Alfred Kibenge, who is an accountant at UCU, is my greatest role model.”

He adds that his supervisors with expertise in his profession have mentored him with a set of skills and unforgettable experiences. Mugabe says that the uniqueness in his work performance is the emphasis he puts on giving timely, accurate and reliable financial information to clients. Mugabe says that however much the future is hard to predict, he wants to be a Certified Public Accountant in the next 10 years, perhaps heading a finance-related department in a large company in Uganda or in the world. 

“I also hope to have a family with a wife and children and also owning multiple businesses that employ at least 20 people,” Mugabe says.  

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Artist Joshua Kabitanya sitting at the base of the mural he created on UCU Mukono campus

‘It’s how God made me,’ artist says

COVID-19, News, Students, UCU School of Business


Artist Joshua Kabitanya sitting at the base of the mural he created on UCU Mukono campus
Artist Joshua Kabitanya sitting at the base of the mural he created on UCU Mukono campus

By Patty Huston-Holm
On a not-even-a-bit overcast morning and with a student whistling “Jesus paid it all” from Uganda Christian University’s (UCU) nearby business incubation center, Joshua Kabitanya talks about the significance of stickers inside chewing gum wrappers, why a misshapen tree is more interesting than a symmetrical one and details of a mural project on the UCU Mukono campus. 

Kabitanya is an artist. He modestly estimates 65% of the mural is his work. 

Sitting at the base of the painting that covers a once-gray cylindrical water tank,  Kabitanya’s all black attire and subdued demeanor contrast with the bold colors, messages and images of the mural. Just shy of his 32nd birthday, he admits his introversion with people and extroversion with his craft. 

“I hear music, I sense nature, I feel God,” Kabitanya said of his artistic process. 

Artistic rendition of UCU’s Bishop Tucker building embedded into mural
Artistic rendition of UCU’s Bishop Tucker building embedded into mural

On this late August day, the sunshine envelopes Kabitanya. When asked what he sees when looking around him, specifically which of two trees in front of the School of Business center he is most drawn to, he picks the misshapen, asymmetrical one. 

“It’s the tree that isn’t uniform that’s interesting,” he said.  

The mural, sandwiched between student dorms and up a hill from the library and Noll buildings, was the idea of American Mary Chowenhill, a UCU School of Business lecturer and missionary with the Society of Anglican Missionaries and Senders (SAMS). She was supported by American Jack Klenk, a long-time UCU supporter and a member of the board for the UCU Partners NGO. Both had previously acquired Kabitanya’s works.

“This is more than just a painting,” Klenk said. “This project was about entrepreneurship, which is the point of the hub (also known as the idea incubator) next door. It’s about how something ugly can be beautiful. What was formerly a gray tank is now a beautiful piece of art.”

Three-dimensional butterfly on mural
Three-dimensional butterfly on mural

Kabitanya, who met Klenk at Eunice Guest House on the campus, was the mural’s lead artist with contributions from Alex Kitonsa, as well as a small portion by UCU Human Resources student, Ruth Ayiyo Ayinza. A couple of students added their hand prints. Being cognizant of the need for Christian infusion, artists were otherwise given free reign for the designs. None had done a mural before. 

Components of the artistic story include:

  • Six rays of light reflective of the work of God and people, omitting the seventh (day of rest);
  • Colorful rendition of the UCU Bishop Tucker building; 
  • Alpha and Omega reminders that God remains from the beginning to the end of time;  
  • Keyboards modernizing the Old Testament stories of music from other instruments; 
  • Dancing as an expression of gratitude of the Lord; and 
  • African joy in mud-and-wattle huts surrounded by wildlife. 

“Some have asked why we didn’t depict our culture in more modern terms,” Kabitanya said, explaining, “Even today, people are more joyful when they go home to visit where they were born.”

Home for Kabitanya is Mukono. He is one of nine children. 

Kabitanya’s earliest recollection of others noticing his passion and talent for art was when he was in Primary 3. Chewing gum with stickers of sports stars was all the rage. He took to copying images from those stickers. Other children and teachers were watching. 

“I became the one who teachers would ask to draw things on the board during lessons,” he recalled. 

Kabitanya identifies himself as quiet and oftentimes distracted by normal conversation while being drawn to his own imagination about his surroundings – traits commonly described by artists. He meditates and creates.

“It’s how God made me,” he said. 

While certain of a destiny to art, Kabitanya learned to “hustle” with other work, making bricks and collecting stones for cement to pay for some of his clothing and school needs. At age 24 and with a diploma in electrical engineering from Kyambogo University, he decided to get serious with his artistic passion. Things were moving along, albeit slowly, and then Covid hit. 

The term “starving artist” became a reality. 

That’s when Chowenhill, Klenk and the leadership at the UCU School of Business stepped in, helping Kabitanya with a business plan as is part of what the incubator does for any who enter the building. While Kabitanya isn’t a UCU alum, he is a member of the surrounding community that UCU serves. 

“Everywhere you step, God gives you a lesson,” Kabitanya said. 

With Uganda’s two-year lockdown, survival became even harder. For Kabitanya, he reminded himself of the message from Joshua 1:9 to “be strong and courageous” and to not “be frightened or dismayed for your Lord God is with you wherever you go.” 

Portraits became more viable than other creations, but even the ability to produce those was minimal with Uganda’s government-ordered lockdown that lasted nearly two years. Kabitanya got his break with the UCU mural commissioning. Klenk, one of many UCU Eunice Guest House visitors Joshua sold paintings to over the years, echoed what other customers have said as follows: “He has the ability to see things other people don’t see.” 

Klenk and others secured funding and pushed Joshua to the project. 

Three months of eight-hour days yielded a mural unveiled in a May 24 ceremony. As of late August, the paint hadn’t faded. 

Kabitanya is modest and humble about compliments, finding hope in many who believe in him, including God, who, the artist says, gets all the glory.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

LRA survivor Olum Douglas speaking to Uganda Studies Program students at UCU

UCU alum shares child soldier captivity story with USP students

News, UCU Alumni, UCU School of Journalism, Media and Communication, USP


LRA survivor Olum Douglas speaking to Uganda Studies Program students at UCU
LRA survivor Olum Douglas speaking to Uganda Studies Program students at UCU

By Olum Douglas
August 25, 2022, is one extra-ordinary day I shall live to remember. Waking up that Thursday morning, I had a list of activities. From checking on my parents back home in the north via phone, to taking my children to school for a requisite government data collection registration activity, to an online job interview but foremost, an opportunity to share my story with a group of American students.

The Uganda Studies Program (USP) at Uganda Christian University (UCU) had invited me to speak about my child abduction to a 16-member group of students from North America.

Olum Douglas with USP students, (left) Lauren Thrush, Wheaton College (Illinois); and (right) Beth Merritt, George Fox University (Oregon).
Olum Douglas with USP students, (left) Lauren Thrush, Wheaton College (Illinois); and (right) Beth Merritt, George Fox University (Oregon).

In attendance besides the students were USP staff and my good friend, Patricia Huston-Holm, who I insisted attend the session because I needed a shoulder to lean on in case I broke down. It was my first time to speak the story before an audience.

When I first set out to write down my story in 2011, I spent about two hours trying to fill a page on a shorthand book. The painful memories of the brutality, torture, murder and untold suffering weighed so heavily on me, causing me to weep endlessly. 

I was putting words on paper for a Creative Writing course as part of the requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication degree I was pursuing at UCU.

After the 25-page narrative compiled under the title, “No more tears to cry,” I gathered the courage to tell the whole story of what happened to me in my native village of Gulu in northern Uganda. This narrative later became a book titled: “The Captive: My 204 days with the LRA rebels.” The book was published on Amazon in December 2020.

The days, weeks and months of writing were never a smooth sail. Many times, I was drenched in tears and unable to continue writing because the memories of some moments were so refreshed and painful.

Olum Douglas sharing a photo from his book, “The Captive: My 204 days with the LRA rebels.”
Olum Douglas sharing a photo from his book, “The Captive: My 204 days with the LRA rebels.”

On that sunny August 2022 day, I narrated to the students how I was abducted alongside several other children and adults on the night of April 4, 1998, by the Joseph Kony-led Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. I was 11 years old at the time. 

I told them how some of my colleagues were tortured and killed while I watched, and how we were forced to do many despicable things. As I spoke, I could see some members of the audience occasionally wipe tears.

Unlike the days I was compiling the story, I stood strong during the presentation and never shed a tear. I told the students that I have now overcome the pain.

It was an honor to be granted the platform to address the students because they are future leaders who may change the trajectory on global peace if they are helped to access the right knowledge and understand the impact of war on local communities, especially in Africa, which is a battleground for ideologies.

Personally, such opportunities help me to self-check whether I am still emotionally attached to the past. As most writers will tell you, getting something out like this is therapeutic. One of the key outcomes of authoring that book is that it helped me discharge much of the pain. And any opportunity to talk about it helps me discharge even further.

During the August session, the students were curious to know whether I take time to reflect and ask myself why that happened to me. They also asked whether all my colleagues have returned home, and what caused the about 20 years of insurgency in northern Uganda.

I answered as best as I could, knowing that later, they would have more questions as I still do. 

I am thankful to Rachel Robinson, the USP director, and the entire team for stretching non-Ugandan students to learn and understand my culture, including the painful parts. I also thank my friend and mentor, Patty, for her continuous support along this journey I know I am still on. Overcoming such experiences is not easy, but I am winning. 

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Olum Douglas lives in Mukono, Uganda with his wife and two children.  Through the UCU School of Journalism, Media and Communication, he is finishing his master’s degree in strategic communication at UCU. 

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Alan Kasujja engages in the recording session of the masterclass podcast with UCU students.

UCU students dialogue about African brain drain

News, Students, UCU School of Journalism, Media and Communication


Alan Kasujja engages in the recording session of the masterclass podcast with UCU students.
Alan Kasujja engages in the recording session of the masterclass podcast with UCU students.

By Kefa Senoga
Brain drain means the depletion of a country’s best and brightest workers who take their knowledge and skill to another country – usually leaving lower wages in a home country for higher wages in another country. 

Such was the topic of discussion among Uganda Christian University (UCU) students and facilitators from BBC Africa Daily. The occasion was a recent masterclass podcast session organized by a BBC Africa Daily team consisting of Alan Kasujja, host of Africa Daily; Janet Ball, producer for Africa Daily; and BBC minute presenter Ria Khatab.  The main question was: Would you stay, or would you go?

Alan Kasujja gives advice to UCU students.
Alan Kasujja gives advice to UCU students.

According to BBC, a new survey of more than 4,500 age 18-24 people in Africa found that 52% are likely to consider emigrating in the next few years, citing economic hardship and education opportunities as the top reasons. Ms. Ball says Ugandan young people are more optimistic about the future in their home country than youth in Kenya and Nigeria. 

Kasujja says that one of the most difficult decisions he had to make in life was accepting a job offer in another country. He appeared both amused and conflicted by the answers he got from the young people at UCU regarding why they want to spend the rest of their lives in Uganda or why they want to leave.

Throughout this discussion, the common justifications from these young people on why they want to leave their countries were three-fold: adventure, better paying jobs and better education opportunities. 

Alan Kasujja offers some advice to students at UCU

Kenneth Bananuka, a third-year journalism student playing with the UCU basketball team, says that he wants to play professional basketball at the highest level, which is not in Uganda.

Joshua Bamwike, a UCU School of Medicine student, said the pay for medical workers in Uganda is unfavorable. “As medical students, we put in a lot of effort in research and pay high sums of tuition; then at the end of the day, the salaries we are paid are still discussed while in other better countries, it’s not negotiable for medical workers to get a better pay.” He thinks of moving to Canada, if he got the opportunity after his studies. 

“How much money do you want?” Kasujja asked.

“Roughly, I would want 30 million Ugshs a month (about $8,000 dollars),” Bamwike replied. According to statistics, monthly poverty in the USA remained elevated in February 2022, with a 14.4 percent poverty rate for the total US population considering the high cost of living.

However, Rukia Micky Nambwayo, also a medical student at UCU looking forward to being a gynecologist, does not agree with those who wish to leave their country to seek greener pastures. Nambwayo says that it is unfair for some doctors to leave their country and go look for jobs elsewhere. 

“They should stay and serve their country such that the people in Uganda also get the opportunity of being treated by the best,” she says.

According to Nambwayo, when you decide to offer medical studies, you should not be looking at the money, but rather at the services and help that you are going to offer to people.

Two journalism students – Christiana Ampeire and Timothy Nsubuga – shared the same view of “going to other countries such that they can be able to learn new skills and knowledge and return to apply them in their countries.” Timothy Nsubuga emphasizes that he is “not looking forward to leaving my country and staying in a foreign country for over 100 years.”

Despite the fact that Ampeire is not looking at completely abandoning her country, she agrees that it is not unusual to hear young people lamenting about leaving their country. She says most of her colleagues share the same view with Bamwike that there is no hope in their country and, therefore, they have to find means of leaving.

Ampeire thinks that the government should listen and act against the reasons that bring such kind of desperateness among the youth. “The youth in these professional fields should be catered for more in the national budget and even given more pay to motivate them,” Ampeire says. 

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter, and Facebook and Instagram.

Rosemary Ndyemanya Marion (centre) receives a dummy cheque for her prize money.

UCU student’s jewellery creations yield national award

News, Students, UCU School of Business


Rosemary Ndyemanya Marion (centre) receives a dummy cheque for her prize money.
Rosemary Ndyemanya Marion (centre) receives a dummy cheque for her prize money.

By Vanessa Kyalimpa
Making jewellery started out as a pastime for Rosemary Ndyemanya Marion. As a young girl, she learned the activity by helping her mother make necklaces and earrings, which she sold to supplement her monthly salary. 

During her Senior Six holidays, she took the activity a notch higher, by starting to make her own jewellery for sale. 

“I often went to town with my mother, to buy the beads and threads and all the other products she needed for her jewellery business,” she narrates. 

On one of the trips, Ndyemanya asked her mother for money so she could also buy what she would use to make her own products. 

“She gave me sh5,000 (about $1.5) and that’s how I started,” said Ndyemanya, a student of Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance in the Uganda Christian University (UCU) School of Business. She is in second year of her study at UCU.

Some of the excitement as Stanbic bank announces the winner

When Ndyemanya sensed that she had learned enough about making jewellery and was able to fly alone, she started a company, Anya Wrist. The year was 2021. 

With the business, she has been able to make money. For instance, she says there are months she earns up to sh900,000 ($237) in sales. It is not just the money she is reaping from the business. In July, Ndyemanya won a business start-up challenge in the National Schools Championships that was organised by Stanbic Bank in Uganda. The competition attracted participants from 100 schools.

One of the products that Ndyemanya makes
One of the products that Ndyemanya makes

The award, in a competition where her pitch was the Anya Wrist business, saw her walk home with a prize of sh5million (about $1,300). At the awards gala, a short profile of Ndyemanya’s pitch wowed the event’s chief guest, Thomas Tayebwa, the Deputy Speaker of Uganda’s Parliament. In addition to the sh5million, Tayebwa also gave Ndyemanya another sh1million (about $260).  

The competition, in its seventh year, was held under the theme “Empowering Job Creators of Tomorrow.” Upon the selection of the applicants in March, they were taken for a boot camp in April, where Ndyemanya learned valuable lessons, which she believes will be able to make her business grow. The knowledge and skills provided were in the areas of how to grow the business, sell and market products and use the numerous opportunities that social media offers to close the physical gap between the producer and the customer.

“I’m not from a financially stable family,” Ndyemanya said. “My mum is a primary school teacher and my dad is a reverend. In order to make ends meet, my mom would make crafts, soap and wine for sale at church after service.” Ndyemanya thanks God for the opportunity that the Stanbic Bank entrepreneurship challenge offered her.

Just like any student running a business, Ndyemanya is not short of obstacles. “When I’m in school, I find it hard to balance both academics and work, so I find myself having to leave out some orders that need delivery in distant places so I can attend my classes,” she said, noting that she has extra roles as a student leader. At school, Ndyemanya is the student custodian of her hall of residence. 

“During my holidays, though, I give my all to the business, making up for any losses during the semester.”

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Students at the blood donation tent during the health awareness week

Health Awareness week focuses on mental wellness

News, Students, UCU School of Business, UCU School of Journalism, Media and Communication


Students at the blood donation tent during the health awareness week
Students at the blood donation tent during the health awareness week

By Vanessa Kyalimpa
First, it was an issue only talked about in hushed tones. Then, the rate of drug abuse increased among students and youth, bringing dialog to the public domain. 

Uganda Christian University’s (UCU) Trinity Semester (May-August) Health Awareness Week was part of that domain with the issue of mental wellness and drug abuse fast growing among youth in open discussion. 

UCU Guild President Racheal Sserwadda Mirembe said they discovered that there were cartels in Mukono that supply youth and students with drugs, leading to substance abuse. The revelation by Mirembe is not surprising. In March 2022, the Police said at least 16 percent of the youth in urban centers in Uganda are under the influence of drugs. 

Tinka Zarugaba, the head of Uganda Police’s anti-narcotics department, said abuse of drugs, such as cannabis, heroin and cocaine, was on the rise, especially in urban areas, greatly affecting the youth. Zarugaba’s remarks were made in March 2022, at a function where close to 50kg of narcotic drug exhibits estimated to be over sh770million (about $200,000) were burned in Kampala. 

A police officer, right, at the health camp
A police officer, right, at the health camp

In June, police arrested four people who were accused of selling drug-laced cookies to students of one of the elite secondary schools in Uganda. The Police said the “drug-bust was carried out after the secondary school suspended 10 students who ordered drug-laced cookies, which they consumed at a school party.”

At the Uganda Christian University Health Awareness Week held in July 2022 at the UCU Guild Grounds, the institution’s students were joined by those from other universities – Makerere, Kyambogo and Makerere Business School.

The campaign, which ran under the theme Say No to Drug and Substance Abuse, was part of the Health Awareness week that is dedicated to providing a general understanding and knowledge about health, health care and its services, health needs, diseases and preventive measures. 

It is held every semester and organized by Allan Galpin, UCU’s health center, in conjunction with the UCU Guild Government and the counseling department at UCU, the Ruth Nkoyoyo Wellness Center.

Other health services, such as blood screening and donation, free dental screening and optical screening, were offered at the health week.

Listen to the band advocating against drug abuse

Olivia Kamusiime, a year-three student pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Communication, thanked the university and the student leaders for the initiative of the health week. She said that so many students face challenges, which could lead them into abusing drugs, but that with campaigns like those held at the health week, she is optimistic a positive change will be registered.

Josephine Achol, a second-year student pursuing Bachelor of Procurement and Logistics Management, said that she got free eye screening services and realized she had had an underlying eye problem she did not know about.

Ruth Igiraneza, a student of Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Communication, said through the health camp, she was able to know her HIV status, as well as get her eyes checked. She said the extension of the health awareness week activities into the Thursday community worship hour enabled her to know the dangers of self-medication. 

“For instance,” Igiraneza said: “I did not know paracetamol (also known as the acetaminophen pain killer) has caffeine in it.”

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Molly Nantongo and Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, former dean of UCU’s School of Social Sciences and now Director for Postgraduate Studies, in August 2022. “You were my dean, and read my name,” Nantongo recalled of her connection to Kukunda at the 2015 UCU graduation day on the Mukono campus.

UCU alum dances way to success with goal of helping vulnerable

News, Students, UCU School of Social Sciences


Molly Nantongo and Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, former dean of UCU’s School of Social Sciences and now Director for Postgraduate Studies, in August 2022. “You were my dean, and read my name,” Nantongo recalled of her connection to Kukunda at the 2015 UCU graduation day on the Mukono campus.
Molly Nantongo and Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, former dean of UCU’s School of Social Sciences and now Director for Postgraduate Studies, in August 2022. “You were my dean, and read my name,” Nantongo recalled of her connection to Kukunda at the 2015 UCU graduation day on the Mukono campus.

By Patty Huston-Holm
When I think of Molly Nantongo, I think of dancing. The tiny gap in her front teeth is one way I pick her out from hundreds of Ugandans I’ve met. Both of those things – dance and space evident when Nantongo smiles – have played an important role in her still unfolding achievement. 

On a Saturday morning in August 2022, from a couch in my Uganda Christian University (UCU) Tech Park apartment, Nantongo explained the role. A 2015 UCU alum with a Bachelor of Social Work  and Social Administration, she sandwiched in time to talk just five days before her flight to California, USA. Our conversation was punctuated with laughter, hope from despair and bites of chocolate brownies.

Laughter
I met Nantongo in 2016. In addition to the meager salary that she got from performances with a troupe at Uganda’s Ndere Cultural Arts Center, she got some shillings from me for private dance lessons between shrubs and hanging laundry in the side yard of where I lived at UCU. Her young 20-something moves were a sharp contrast to those of her much older but eager-to-learn counterpart.  

We laughed then and with Dr. Kukunda Elizabeth Bacwayo, then dean of the UCU School of Research and Post-Graduate Studies, enroute home to Mukono after watching Nantongo dance with Ndere Troupe one Sunday night in Kampala.  


Molly Nantongo giving private African dance lesson to Author Patty Huston-Holm

Nantongo was piecing together earnings from three jobs: a professional dancer, an occasional private dance teacher and teaching assistant and tutor for undergraduate students in the university’s foundation courses.  At that time and still, she had visited more of USA’s 50 states than me.  

“I’ve been in about 95% of the United States,” she said. She got there before age 15. 

Hope
In 2002, Nantongo was one of four children living with a single mother, a former Hutu in Rwanda, in the Kampala slum suburb of Kirombe.  Missing school and food on the table were an accepted way of life that the then 10-year-old filled with “cracking jokes” and dancing. One such day, she and a girlfriend jumped gleefully onto a political campaign truck filled with music blaring from loud speakers. They laughed and danced, oblivious to those seeing them, before jumping off to make the 35-minute walk from home. 

“Mom was bitter,” Nantongo said. “She caned me.”

Nantongo ran away and slept the night on some steps where a sex worker scooped her up, made her tea with milk and, despite the child protests that her mom would “beat me to death,” took her home.  

There, she learned that she had been noticed on the truck.

“They were looking for the dancing girl with the gap in her teeth,” she said.

That organization, now known as Undugu Society of Kenya, helped Nantongo finish primary school. Another organization, Empower African Children, got her to the United States as a member of the Spirit of  Uganda Various Artists – Spirit of Uganda: 2008 Tour Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic  “Because I could dance,” Nantongo explained, adding,  “Plus, I had a story to tell.”

Her moves were natural until age 15, when there was formalized instruction to be ready for travel, do shows internationally and raise money for vulnerable children like her. The 2008 USA tour with 11 girls and 11 boys was six months in buses and planes. 

“The organization called me ‘Maureen’ and taught me how to jump and move my hands in different tribal dances,” she said. Her favorite dances are from northeastern Uganda, namely the Karamoja region, with a particular affection for war dances without drums. 

More Hope
As Nantongo told of her journey, she shared that her siblings weren’t totally left behind as  Empower African Children assisted with education. And she never took her support for granted. Working hard as she did in the years after getting her bachelor’s degree was both rewarding and giving back. She helped students understand health and wellness and world views in the UCU undergraduate foundation courses. 

Alas, like for many, Covid was a hardship. A degree meant little without a place to teach, and dancing meant little without an audience to dance for. Nantongo started a passion fruit business to support herself and her mom, age 52, who struggles still from a stroke in 2017. 

A year into being a street seller, a friend suggested she apply for a scholarship opportunity through the American Embassy. Without much optimism as one of 60 candidates for one slot, she participated in the two-week orientation – raising her hand and smiling a lot. She was chosen for a two-year master’s program in social welfare at the University of California in Berkley. 

Once there, she applied for a $10,000 “Davis Project for Peace” grant – one designed to help Ugandan youth (ages 14-20) who are victims of Covid shutdown impacts, including pregnant-out-of-wedlock girls.  The 15-week project, entitled Ntongo Skills4Peace, took place through mid-August 2022 with assistance for several thousand youth.  

Molly Nantongo, UCU alum studying at the University of California, Berkley, holds a replica of a character from the Flat Stanley children’s book in 2016. This rendition from a Dayton, Ohio, class taught by Huston-Holm’s niece is part of an educational project designed to expose schoolchildren to different people and cultures.
Molly Nantongo, UCU alum studying at the University of California, Berkley, holds a replica of a character from the Flat Stanley children’s book in 2016. This rendition from a Dayton, Ohio, class taught by Huston-Holm’s niece is part of an educational project designed to expose schoolchildren to different people and cultures.

 

“If we don’t do  something now, these girls will end up in prostitution,” Nantongo, turning age 30 in October, said. “I’ve been using the grant here to focus on vocation skills like catering  and tailoring, hair dressing and welding for these vulnerable.”

As Nantongo is  wrapping up her final year in California in 2023, she has her sights on working for USAID, UNICEF. United Nations or World Bank, with her forever passion to help the poverty vulnerable as she once was. 

“I want to start mentoring sessions for children who have been born and raised in the slums to give them hope and connect them to different resources that can help them attain their goals,” she said, smiling to show that gap in her teeth that she doesn’t intend to plug. 

More Laughter
As for dancing?
On this Saturday in August, Nantongo pulled up a video on her phone. It shows three students in  Berkeley, California.  In it, she is dancing with a young man from Kenya and a woman from China. And all three are laughing. 

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Also, follow us on Twitter and Facebook. 

Nantongo Molly can be reached at Instagram nantongo.maureen |(LinkedIn: NANTONGO MOLLY | ;Twitter: @NantongoMolly | FaceBook: Nantongo Maureen.

Prof. Timothy Wangusa gives a speech during the celebration at Makerere University

Prof. Wangusa hailed for contribution to literature in Uganda

News, Students, UCU Alumni, UCU School of Education


Prof. Timothy Wangusa gives a speech during the celebration at Makerere University
Prof. Timothy Wangusa gives a speech during the celebration at Makerere University

By Kefa Senoga
A fountain of knowledge. A man gifted with words. A man who can weave words to create a magical appeal. These were some of the descriptions bestowed on Prof. Timothy Wangusa as the academia gathered on July 8, 2022, to celebrate a man who has contributed to Uganda through the spoken and written word. 

The event, whose theme was Celebrating Wangusa@80, was convened by Uganda’s Makerere University as part of activities to celebrate 100 years of the university. It also coincided with a celebration of 80 years of the literary giant. Wangusa, a poet and novelist, was born on May 20, 1942.


UCU lecturer Timothy Wangusa has a birthday that coincides with Makerere University’s centenary. The university applauded his service for literature in the country and region during his 80th birthday celebration and the launch of his four books.

Wangusa also is a name known at Uganda Christian University (UCU), where he played a key role in establishing the department of languages and literature in the School of Education. A research fellow at UCU from 2003 to 2005, he was a research supervisor and was instrumental in developing UCU’s Master of Arts and PhD program in literature. 

Prof. Timothy Wangusa receives gifts from Makerere University officials on July 8
Prof. Timothy Wangusa receives gifts from Makerere University officials on July 8

At 27 years, Wangusa joined Makerere as an academic. Six years down the road, in 1975, he bagged a PhD in literature, becoming the first person to acquire the qualification at Makerere. Six years later, Wangusa became one of the few African professors at Makerere.

Wangusa jokingly refers to himself as the mean point between Makerere University with it’s 100 years of existence and Uganda with its 60 years of independence this year 

“If you add 100 years of Makerere to 60 years of Uganda and divide by 2, you get me,” Wangusa explained to the July 8 audience. 

Wangusa, who hails from Manafwa district in eastern Uganda, says throughout his teaching and writing career, he has emphasized the mutual importance of the spoken and the written word. 

One of his inspirations for the “economy of words,” Wangusa narrates, is when, at the age of 10, he attended Sunday school in the eastern Uganda region of Bugisu, his native area. He says the preacher summed up his message in four words: “Always love one another.” To Wangusa, if anyone practiced the love for one another, they will have obeyed all the Ten Commandments.  

As a teacher, he says he found it difficult to teach what he calls the most difficult doctrine to comprehend, the doctrine of the Trinity. He says, in his wisdom, he attempted to define God to his students, by coming up with the Trinity Tree, which he described in a 15-word poem: 

The father in the root

The son in the shoot

The spirit in the fruit

Wangusa says that his discovery of the significance of the economy of words has informed his career and he testifies that he has been inspired by words which have guided his humanness of character and style of writing. 

“My first novel – Upon This Mountain – could have been four times longer if I had been an expansionist, but I am a ‘compactionist’,” he said. The novel, which is 116 pages, is part of the literature syllabus for many secondary schools in Uganda.

The event at Makerere University also was used to launch Wangusa’s latest books – I Love You, You Beast, a book where he shares reflections on faith and literature from 1969 to 2009; Pathfinders’ Footprints in Modern African Poetry, a collection of poems; Lost in Wonder, his autobiography; and Niyanga Nilaliila, a translated autobiography in Lumasaaba, his native language.

Arthur Gakwandi, a novelist, short story writer, diplomat and Makerere lecturer, said Wangusa creates “cryptic communication, packed with meaning and difficult to comprehend.” 

“He can find meaning in simple things,” Gakwandi said. “He can see the supernatural in ordinary things, a tree or object, which most people ignore. He then finds a word to communicate that momentary insight.”

Dr. Susan Kiguli, a poet and senior lecturer of literature at Makerere, said she always thought that great writers were only dead people. So, when she came across poems and novels by Wangusa in secondary school, she had no reason to believe that the professor was still alive.

“However, when I joined Makerere University, I was shocked to learn that Wangusa was one of our lecturers,” Kiguli said. “Being a man of small stature, he did not tower over us. But when he began to speak, he was larger than life. He is small, but carries a mountain of achievements.”

Peter Mugume, a lecturer at UCU, says he first met Wangusa as his undergraduate teacher at Makerere University. He says he later got the opportunity to work with Wangusa as a colleague lecturer in the department of literature at UCU. 

Wangusa attended Nabumali High School from 1958 to 1961 for O’level, before joining King’s College, Budo for A’level from 1962 to 1963. From Budo, he joined Makerere University, where he pursued a Bachelor of Arts in English course, and then to the UK’s University of Leeds for a master’s degree in literature.

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