Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution for Academic Excellence in Africa

Synthesis Report of the Proceedings of The 3rd State of the Nation Platform

December 4, 2009 Kampala, Uganda

Bernard Tabaire Jackie Okao

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  ACODE Policy Dialoguefor AcademicSeries Excellence No. in Africa8, 2010 Table of Content

List of Acronyms...... ii

1.Introduction...... 1

2.Summarry of Discussion...... 3

2.1 Financial Performance...... 3

2.2 Research and Knowledge Management...... 4

2.3 Quality of Service Delivery...... 5

2.4 Management/Staff Relations...... 6

2.5 University/ Student Relations...... 6

2.6 University/Government Relations...... 8

2.7 University Image and Standing...... 8

2.8 Governance...... 9

3. Issues to Ponder...... 10

4. Annex: List of Participants...... 12

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa List of Acronyms

ACM Association for Computing Machinery ACODE Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment BTVET Business, Technical, Vocational Education and Training FM Frequency Modulation ICT Information and Communication Technology IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers MUASA Makerere University Academic Staff Association STON State of the Nation TTI Think Tank Initiative

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution ii for Academic Excellence in Africa Introduction

Established in 1922 as a technical independent universities: University of school, Makerere University is now Nairobi, University of Dar es Salaam, one of the largest universities in and Makerere University. eastern and central Africa with 20 faculties/institutes/schools offering not Makerere was home to many post-in- only day but also evening and external dependence African leaders, includ- study programmes to a student body ing late Ugandan president Milton of more than 30,000 undergraduates Obote and late Tanzanian president and 3,000 postgraduates. It is also a Julius Nyerere. Former Tanzanian centre of research. president Benjamin Mkapa and cur- rent Kenyan president Mwai Kibaki In 1963,Makerere University College are also Makerere alumni. became the University of East Africa.* It became an independent national In the years immediately after Uganda’s university in 1970 when the University independence, Makerere University of East Africa was split into three was a focal point for the literary activity that was central to African 1Background information adopted from Wikipedia.

Cover photo: Prof. Baryamureeba, Ag. Vice Chancellor Makerere University (standing) delivering his master plan to reposition Makerere University among the top African Universities while Onesmus Mugyenyi (seated) analysing the master plan at the 3rd session of the State of the Nation platform on December 4, 2009.

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa nationalist culture. Some prominent It appears, however, that Makerere can writers, including Nuruddin Farah, Ali pick itself up. After all, no condition is Mazrui, David Rubadiri, Okello Oculi, permanent. Toward the end of 2009, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, John Ruganda, Prof. Venansius Baryamureeba, a Paul Theroux, V.S. Naipaul and Peter young computer scientist and dean of Nazareth, were at Makerere at one Makerere’s Faculty of Computing and point in their writing and academic Information Technology, was named careers. In those days, Makerere acting vice chancellor. On December Medical School conducted top-notch 4, 2009, Prof. Baryamureeba research. presented his plan to revive Makerere at the third session of the State of the However, the days when Makerere was Nation platform. admiringly referred to as the Harvard of Africa are long gone. Makerere’s He spoke about the need to streamline decay dovetailed with the decline of management practices through the country starting in the early 1970s. employing more open administrative But even when the country started to systems and integrating the use of pick up in the late 1980s, structural information and communication adjustment policies ensured a cut in technologies in all university operations. government funding. General poor This, he hopes, will allow Makerere to management of the institution has move into more systematic planning only made the situation worse. The that will help raise money, improve university is now characterised by the quality of teaching and research, numerous student and staff strikes and enhance staff welfare, and once again raise the overall profile of the a decline in academic performance. university.

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa Summary of discussion

Financial Performance To improve financial performance, Prof. Baryamureeba said Makerere will Financial performance is concerned have to reduce waste while at the same with measuring the results of an time being innovative in generating organisation’s policies and operations money. The acting vice chancellor’s in monetary terms whereas financial efficiency plan entails, among others, management entails planning for the automating financial management to future of the organisation to ensure a enable the enforcement of budget line positive cash flow. Makerere’s financial performance and generation of financial management challenges come from a information to ensure transparency. lack of control structures and systems This in turn would lead to cutting the as well as running the university not number of top management meetings as a revenue-generating entity but to once a month from the present once rather as an expenditure entity. The a week. At 2,400 courses, curricula university lacks a business plan and that will be revised; and the 27 faculties implies that there is no clear direction collapsed into seven. for raising revenue. A strategic plan without a clear business plan is largely The university also has to increase impossible to execute. There has been on the amount of money it generates elastic recruitment of administrative internally. To do so, it will launch staff at the centre, which continues to university learning centres country increase the wage bill. For several years, wide to run certificate, diploma, and the university has run a deficit budget bachelor’s degree programmes. Instead and has domestic arrears of three of erecting buildings, Makerere will years of Shs26 billion. Also, processes rent space in order to manage costs. in the university are extravagant and Campus FM will be revamped with two wasteful with too many administrators components – a commercial arm and coupled with poor accounting by the a training arm. The university will also staff in terms of who is doing what. develop its idle land, renovate its houses Participants generally agreed with Prof. in the upscale Kololo neighbourhood of Baryamureeba’s diagnosis. They added Kampala and rent them out at market that decision-making at the university rates, appeal to alumni for donations, is too expensive because of too many allow companies to advertise in form of allowances for the too many managerial screen savers on university computers, committees that meet too many times. and get academic staff to research and On top of this, there is inadequate publish more to raise the university’s transparency and accountability. rankings and thereby attract more funding. Some truly innovative ideas

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa that Prof. Baryamureeba suggested mation on research funded by key include supporting incubation centres development partners through insti- in things like software engineering and tutional development programmes. food science and technology to run as Makerere has potential for a larger commercial businesses following the output of high quality research and research and development model. publications but this is still limited by There is also the idea of establishing a weak linkages with the private sec- commercial zone at the main campus tor yet a lot of research elsewhere is by renovating the existing structures funded by the private sector. There is so that spaces can be rented out to also little initiative/ability to source for businesses such as banks, bookstores, research funding, and limited publicity telecoms, food and coffee shops. of research accomplishments and on- going initiatives through the Web and Research and Knowledge Internet media. Management Strategies for improvement, according Research and knowledge management to Prof. Baryamureeba, include refers to processes and systems that developing an integrated system that facilitate research and innovations, will provide a central point of contact knowledge dissemination and on research issues; encouraging staff retention. The research process at to start websites (to carry information Makerere is not adequately managed, on their research and publications), which partly explains why much of something that will be integral to the students’ research work is lagging. their appraisal; developing a project Web-enabled research management management system that will provide tools are becoming very popular and updated information on every project the reason for their use is that they managed by Makerere; and ensuring help research work to reach wider that all scholarly work and reports are audiences and at the same time uploaded in Google Scholar and other improve the visibility of the university. important databases. Yet Makerere lacks these tools making Participants, almost all of whom are it difficult to manage research proc- Makerere alumni, said that their alma esses. Google Scholar has millions of mater must be a leader in public records on research and knowledge debate. It needs to hire “rock star” management but contains little from academics as well as establish a public Makerere yet it is used in university policy fellowship programme for some rankings. The information on research exceptional people who have worked being undertaken in the university and in public life to serve as distinguished the level of funding is not known. The visiting fellows for a specified period. central administration only has infor- “They make a university a hotbed

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa for debate,” said a participant. The Quality of Service Delivered way things are today kimeeza has more robust debate than Makerere, Quality of services delivered such as suggested yet another participant. processing of documents especially Indeed, when Makerere had star academic papers (testimonials, professors like Ali Mazrui (1960s), transcripts, certificates), and payment Samwiri Karugire and Mahmood of suppliers leaves a lot to be desired. Mamdani (1980s), debate raged on the Students and the wider public Hill. The proposed establishment of the have repeatedly expressed their 15-million-dollar Makerere Mazruiana dissatisfaction with service delivery Project to host an East African Ali at Makerere. The university does not A. Mazrui Centre for Global Studies have service level agreements to act building, an Ali A. Mazrui Chair, and an as benchmarks for service delivery. Ali A. Mazrui Scholarship is a step in Registration of students is unnecessarily the right direction; so is the proposed complicated. The quality of teaching Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile Policy and laboratory services is hampered by Centre, a think-tank. The imminent lack of state-of-the-art lecture theatres return of Prof. Mamdani (after sojourns and laboratories. Most lecturers have at Cape Town and Columbia) to no access to projectors and laptops. head the Makerere Institute of Social They still use chalk. They dictate Research should be a positive sign that notes in class instead of uploading we may soon see more and better them on online learning systems. debate at Makerere. The sustenance Replies to communications within the of the recently re-introduced inaugural university can take weeks or months. lectures for newly named professors Service delivery is hampered by lack of is also critical for the advancement of supportive ICT systems and poor ICT high calibre discussions. Furthermore, integration; lack of the right calibre of Makerere is usefully thinking about staff to provide services; inadequate becoming a major centre for scholarly appraisal system; and poor information conferences and to that end it is management. No one even seems to looking to form strategic alliances know the exact number of students with major conference organisers enrolled at the university. Service and international accrediting bodies delivery is also affected by lack of staff like ACM (Association for Computing motivation and retention mechanisms. Machinery) and IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the To change things, the Baryamureeba world’s largest professional association Plan seeks to, among others, retrain for the advancement of technology). staff; create a one-stop information centre (office), and an online information portal for providing information; automate service

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa Some of the core group members who are Makerere alumni share a light moment with Prof. Baryamureeba (holding an envelope) after the rd3 session of the State of the Nation Platform meeting at Protea Hotel in Kampala delivery (including student payments, As a result, few of the graduate registration, and requests) so that students complete studies within the paper work is reduced and the status required two years for the master’s can be monitored online; and develop degree. Prof. Baryamureeba said some a voice over the Internet system to faculties do well while others do not. enable savings on calls made within the Besides, some students show up and university. All these aspects require do one year of the master’s then get ICT knowledge. There will, therefore, a good job and stop work on their be a system for staff to acquire laptops/ degree programmes. “The university computers under a hire purchase is not to blame entirely,” the acting scheme, and to get e-learning training. vice chancellor said. “But we are Students will be helped to own laptops streamlining things. You remain inactive under a student laptop loan scheme. for six months, you go.” Participants, some of whom are Management/Staff Relations graduate students at Makerere, said that their supervision is poor not There is lack of appropriate relationship necessarily because of lack of ICTs but between management and staff with simply because lecturers are teaching every side claiming superiority. There is elsewhere to earn an extra shilling. no strategy to retain staff supported by the university to advance their careers.

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa Once these members of staff complete for the establishment within the uni- their studies there is no engagement versity of SACCOS for staff welfare to ensure that expectations on either and retirement. side are adequately taken care of. The university lacks a reward and University/Student Relations recognition mechanism for outstanding performance. There is a lot of Student leaders feel that they do not have intrigue at all levels. This is certainly enough access to university managers detrimental to building a culture that at the various levels. Whenever there is results-oriented. Dependency on is dialogue with the university officials, the grapevine (rumour) is ripe largely however, the students feel that they are because the flow of information from being lectured most of the time instead those who have it is extremely difficult. of being listened to. The Students Recent academic staff strikes have Guild leadership has also persistently been mainly due to lack of dialogue complained over lack of timely access and trust between the academic staff to the money for Guild activities. association (MUASA) and the university Information on new policies affecting management. On the other hand, the students gets to them late and at times relationship between administrative the sensitisation is not adequate. There staff and university management came are also student concerns over lack of to climax when the administrative staff appropriate avenues to seek redress in took the University Council to court case of complaints; lack of assurance over a pay dispute. mechanisms with regard to delivery of services; and inappropriate facilities to Therefore, for every regular Council foster ideal learning. and Senate meetings, Prof. Baryamu- reeba suggested, statements from Consequently, the Baryamureeba Plan staff associations will be tabled for seeks to ensure that Guild money is discussion as one of the ways to foster transferred as approved and in a timely dialogue and understanding within the manner. Also, for every regular Council university. Also, chairpersons of staff and Senate meetings, a statement from associations will be invited to attend the leadership of Makerere University the end of the month management Students Guild will be tabled for meetings; the vice chancellor will ad- discussion; the Guild president will dress staff at their general meetings be invited to table a statement at so that his/ her address forms part of the management meeting every the discussion; there will be a reward month; and at every Guild Assembly, and recognition policy for outstand- the vice chancellor or the deputy ing performance; plus introduction for academic affairs will address the of an intrigue and conflict-resolution Guild Representative Council (student mechanism. One participant called parliament) so that the address forms

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa part of the discussion. Furthermore, Some caution is in order here. Mak- the university intends to have modern erere being a public university must hostels constructed on campus to necessarily engage with the govern- check the continuing proliferation of ment. The university must, however, usually sub-standard hostels around guard against being a handmaiden of the university. And, in change of policy, the state because such a relationship the university will house only first-year could easily compromise academic students. As to the poorer (needy) freedom. Said Prof. Baryamureeba: students, the government is coming up “The university needs to engage with a loan scheme to help them pay and network with government de- their way through college. partments and ministries and be part and parcel [emphasis added] of the University/Government implementation of the government Relations programmes.” That is a rather jarring statement coming from the head of Makerere University needs to any academic institution, least of all reposition itself as a service provider one of higher learning like Makerere. to the government, according to the Baryamureeba Plan. Currently, University Image and engagement with the government Standing is not strategic and this leaves a lot of gaps in managing relationships. The image and reputation of Makerere There is need for a comprehensive University have been greatly affected framework defining the relationship by negative media reports due mainly between Makerere University and the to poor service delivery and lack of in- government. formation dissemination. The universi- ty lacks a public relations strategy and Going forward, the vice chancellor and thus the engagement with the public is other members of top management ad hoc. The university website, which will regularly interact with ministers is supposed to be the main source of and technocrats especially in the information to the media and general ministries of education and finance; and public both locally and internationally, the university will create a think tank is never regularly updated and as a re- to debate government policies so as sult Makerere University web ranking to help inform government decisions. by Webometrics has been poor. Lack Engagement with the government of timely and accurate information may also have the benefit of the state has also been interpreted as lack of funding more research work that is transparency, which has contributed relevant to the country instead leaving to the negative publicity. There is also much of the research to be funded by the problem of poorly packaged in- foreign philanthropic foundations such formation in form of annual reports as Rockefeller.

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa and newsletters. There is lack of im- in the communities around Makerere pression management as well. For ex- and beyond. This would be in the ample, the main gate area is shabby, tradition of the once famed Makerere and the entrance to the Main Building Free Travelling Theatre of the 1960s and facilities therein are in an appall- that took theatre to the people all ing state. over the country and beyond and made the university quite popular To spruce up Makerere’s image, Prof. among the public. Baryamureeba suggested, among other changes, centralisation of all Governance advertising and entering into conditional advertising contracts; strengthening Governance relates to decisions that the public and corporate relations define expectations, grant power, function; using staff to promote and or verify performance. In some advertise the university; and issuing faculties, departments operate as weekly press releases and briefs. In autonomous units without direction and supervision from the faculty terms of impression management, the dean. At university level there is main entrance to the university will hardly any direction or supervision be reconstructed with better signage. of faculties by the vice chancellor and The same goes for the main entrance the deputy vice chancellors. Within to the Main Building. More gates will the vice chancellor’s office the roles be constructed, and persons selling of the vice chancellor and the deputy newspapers and the kiosks along vice chancellors are not clear. Thus University Road will be relocated. the key issues can be summarised as To check the forging of certificates a very big administrative structure, that some participants decried, Prof. inappropriate reporting lines, and lack Baryamureeba said the university is of teamwork among top managers of contracting a new company that will the university. issue certificates with watermarks and There is, therefore, the need to other security features. On sex-for- develop internal reporting guidelines, marks, the acting vice chancellor said amongst other strategies for change. the practice appears more common All relevant Council and Senate at the graduate level and that students decisions and policies shall be put mostly initiate it. “Now you are caught on the intranet to be accessible by you leave the university, student or all authorised staff; deans will submit lecturer,” Prof. Baryamureeba said. quarterly reports to top university He added that every 10 students management and this will be automated will have an advisor on academic and to enable ease of report generation; performance-based appraisal system other affairs, including moral. The will be institutionalised with key university would also do well for its performance indicators forming the image to encourage lecturers and students to engage in pro bono work basis for appraisal.

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution  for Academic Excellence in Africa Some Issues to Ponder

• Prof. Baryamureeba’s plan to public and private. It is a sensible improve the state of affairs at idea worth considering because Makerere University as presented gone are the days when Makerere is the plan of a solid manager, was the only university in the even leader. It is not the plan of country that had to do everything. a visionary and transformative leader of an institution that deals • A related idea regards establishment primarily with the generation and of polytechnics to train diploma exchange of knowledge. It would level professionals, the technicians have been useful to hear his view as it were. Universities teach at about the fundamental importance higher theoretical levels and do and role of the university in a research at similar levels but the developing country and what country needs diploma holders knowledge areas it should be as well to fix the nuts and bolts. going into in the world of today The government’s plan for BTVET and that of tomorrow. This would (business, technical, vocational have entailed addressing what the education and training) could be acting vice chancellor thinks are better focussed. the emerging knowledge needs, if • Makerere is not known for anything any, and how he plans to position in particular. Much as all Makerere Makerere to address those needs. programmes are not lousy, it would It is the needs that the university be very helpful for the university to seeks to meet that should define have two or three top-notch centres the management structure and of excellence known across Africa. infrastructure it should have. Such centres – the Economic Policy Possibly all Makerere seeks now Research Centre comes to mind is to improve its management and – would attract star professors, then focus on the fundamental star students, do quality research needs at a later time. work, and thus attract more money • It is time Makerere and the and prestige to the university. This government decided on what type requires clear strategy and focus. of university Makerere should Universities elsewhere do it. be primarily. An idea floated Makerere too can. before suggests that Makerere • In dealing with the private sector, should focus more research and the university should not limit itself graduate teaching. It should leave to doing research that benefits the undergraduate teaching and interests of the sector directly. It training to other universities both

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 10 for Academic Excellence in Africa should also lobby for the private students, he should revamp the sector’s sponsorship of endowed university press. He should seek chairs and professorships to to make the Makerere University research a wide range of issues. Press a prestigious imprint on the continent by investing in quality • The university may want to editors and a quality press or enter consider seriously the revival of into partnership with others who The Makererean newspaper and/ have quality presses. or set up a campus news bureau that covers all manner of key • The Makerere University physical developments at the university. infrastructure is a great shame and These could range from key things are getting worse, to be hires, retirements, and deaths charitable. As a matter of urgency to research breakthroughs. This the university must set up a fully- would complement the outward fledged operation and maintenance strategy of reaching out to the department to keep the university media through regular news running in some decent shape. Half- releases, and advertising from a measures through existing units central office. such as the estates department will not do. • If Prof. Baryamureeba is serious about publishing by staff, and even

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 11 for Academic Excellence in Africa Annex: List of Participants

NO NAME CONTACTS & E-MAIL ADDRESS

M/SKashilling, Rugaba & Associates Plot 14 Nakasero Road Hussein R. Kashilling P.O. Box 22226, Kampala 1. 0717-771177 0712 090060 [email protected]

Ag. Vice Chancellor 2. Prof. V. Baryamureeba Makerere University P.O.Box 7062, Kampala

Makerere University P.O Box 7062, Bruce Balaba Kabaasa Kampala, Uganda 3 Convocation chairman +256 414 532631/4 0392-548929 [email protected]

Headmaster Nyakayojo Secondary School P.O Box 462 Tel: +256 48528060, National Vice Chairman 4 James Tweheyo Uganda National Teachers Union Plot 28-30 Bombo Road P.O box 377 0772-524-244 +256 41346917 [email protected]

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 12 for Academic Excellence in Africa Communication Department Dr. Peter Mwesige Makerere University Kampala 5 ACME P.O. Box 7062 +256 772-313067 [email protected]

Uganda National Chamber of Commerce Policy Research & Advocacy Plot 27, Nakasero Road Morrison Rwakakamba P.O Box 6213, Resident Consultant 6 Kampala (U) +256 414340249 0712070181/0777 164660 [email protected]

RDC, Tororo P.O Box 1 Tororo or Samuel Mpimbaza Hashaka 7 P.O Box 352 +256 772507182 [email protected]

Private Consultant C/O ACODE Jacqueline Asiimwe Mwesige 8 +256 772 311713 [email protected]

Prof. Pamela Mbabazi Dean, Faculty of Development Studies 9 Mbarara University of Science and Technology

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 13 for Academic Excellence in Africa Makerere University Senate Building, Thomas Tayebwa Convocation Office 10 MUK Convocation 0772 755622/0702200400 [email protected]

Mubende Town Council Network of Peace Living With HIV/AIDS Kamugisha Leonard Main Street next to the Town Council 11 Coordinator P.O Box 7 Mubende +256 774259446 (0772671192) [email protected]

[email protected] Edmond Owor 12 0772502803

13 Peter Kibazo WBS TV

Victoria Advocates Dewinton Road Kampala / Gerald Karuhanga Makerere University 14 NYTT Convocation Office Room 124 0772357375/0392 966387 [email protected]

Jaguar Group P.O Box 4799 Mr. Oramire Stuart Kampala 15 Business Development Manager +256 772 860363 [email protected]

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 14 for Academic Excellence in Africa State House Nakasero P.O Box 25497, Kampala Sunday Bushema Emmanuel +256-41-231900 16 Office of the Vice President +256 712 973094 [email protected]/ [email protected]

Kiwanuka & Karugire Advocates P.O Box 6061 Francis Nshekanabo 17 Acacia Avenue, Kololo 0774-685421

Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Mr. Zikusooka Amos Public Health Coordinator, Communications 18 0712 425004/0712423004 Programme [email protected]

Executive Partner RR Relations Plot No. 16, Martyrs Way Ntinda 19 Richard T. Baguma Kampala +256 752383900 +225 752 628998 [email protected]

Chairman 20 Nobert Mao Gulu District Local Government P.O.Box 2, Gulu

State House Richard Todwong P.O Box 25497, Kampala 21 Presidential Advisor Tel: 256-41-231900 Northern Uganda +256 772 424271 [email protected]

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 15 for Academic Excellence in Africa Uganda Cooperative Alliance Ltd Tayebwa Benson Plot 47/49, Nkrumah Road President of the Uganda P.O. Box 2215Kampala-Uganda Cooperative Alliance (UCA) 22 Tel; 256-414-258898/4,8 Fax: 256-414-258556 [email protected]

Parliament of Uganda P.O Box 7178 Hon. Lydia Wanyoto Kampala EAC Legislative Assembly 23 256414377180 +256 772 588 429 [email protected]

24 Charles Rwomushana

Bugamba Sub-county Mbarara District Vincent Mujuni Kyamadiidi 25 0782617415 [email protected]

P.O Box 34911 Kampala. Bernard Tabaire 26 [email protected] 0772575140

27 Arthur Owor

28 Arinaitwe Rugyendo The Red Pepper Publications

29 Kalundi Serumaga Journalist

30 Arthur Bainomugisha ACODE

31 Onesmus Mugyenyi ACODE

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 16 for Academic Excellence in Africa 32 Daniel Lukwago ACODE

33 Lillian Muyomba ACODE

34 Brenda Asiimwe ACODE

35 Stephen Doi - Kutosi ACODE

36 Barbara Ntambirweki ACODE

Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 17 for Academic Excellence in Africa About State of the Nation Platform Annex:The State List of the of Nation Participants platform is a national policy forum to promote upward and downward policy conversation on contemporary public policy and governance issues in Uganda. The platform brings together individual leaders and professionals in the public sector, the private sector, civil society, the media and other interest groups into a policy discourse on contemporary policy and governance issues in the country. As an innovation in policy outreach and communication, the platform is a hybrid of ACODE’s breakfast dialogue format, interactive panel discussions and outreach through media. This policy outreach initiative has been conceived and is made possible with core funding support to ACODE provided under a grant from the Think Tank Initiative (TTI). The State of the Nation platform as a policy dialogue fora is defined by five core features: A core group of persons selected based on their professional backgrounds and achievement, public roles, active leadership in their social groups and interest in public policy and governance issues. Because of the individual influence and positions of its individual members, this core group acts as the brain trust of the State of the National platform and provide a policy feedback loop between citizens and policy makers. Local Level Segment is an innovative elements of the State of the Nation platform as a strategy for downward and upward policy engagement. The district fora aims at localizing national policy debates and putting them into the local context. Students Segment are organised to nurture and encourage a new generation of young leaders in the country, special segments of the State of the Nation Platform are from time to time organized targeting students and student leaders. Like the District segment of the platform, the students’ segment are organized in the different parts of the country and attendance is by invitation. All proceedings of the various State of the Nation platform are fully recorded. ACODE has entered into partnership with a number of media houses (TV and Radio) to ensure that the proceedings are broadcasted to a wider audience. In addition, the proceedings are also produced in the form of video and audio podcasts and loaded on the internet so that they can be accessed through ACODE and other partner websites. The participants in the State of the Nation platform have been built into a citizens network linked through electronic media, in particular, e-mail, cell phone and shot message texts. Building on the lessons from previous policy campaigns, the participants are mobilized into a network of citizens exchanging views and ideas on contemporary public policy and governance issues, helping members leverage key policy and decision making centers to increase the impact of their work, and generating consensus on issues of national importance.

Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment Plot 96, Kanjokya Street, Kamwokya. P.O.Box 29836, Kampala-UGANDA Telephone: +256-417-712150 Fax: +256-414-534056 Email: [email protected] , [email protected] ©2010 ACODE All Rights Reserved Reviving Makerere University to a Leading Institution 18 for Academic Excellence in Africa