The 2014 Mak-Sida Annual Review Meeting was opened by the Ambassador of Sweden to Uganda, H.E Urban Andersson yesterday (Monday, 6th October 2014) in the CEDAT Conference Hall.
The annual review meeting brings together Ugandan and Swedish partners to review the year’s accomplishments in research and work towards strengthening synergies. It is expected that the annual review meeting will feed the International Science Conference slated to take place in April 2015 at the end of the implementation of phase IV. The science conference will present opportunity for stakeholders in Uganda and abroad to discuss achievements from the Mak-Sida support since 2009 to 2014.
In his remarks, the ambassador said, ‘it is my pleasure to address this Annual Review Meeting in our current phase of research collaboration between Sweden and Uganda’. He further noted that five years of intense work in laboratories, libraries and seminar rooms has been accomplished contributing to a critical mass of PhD and Masters’ graduates for Uganda. He acknowledged the mutually contributing relationship from which Sweden stands stronger in terms of science discoveries and institutional exchange. The ambassador noted the competitive selection process for the next agreement which is already underway. The Ambassador thereafter launched the Graduate Studies tracking tool intended to check the work progress of graduate students at Makerere University. The tool was designed through Sida support.
The opening was attended by the Vice Chancellor (VC), Prof. John Ddumba Ssentamu. He welcomed all to the Annual Review Meeting and thanked the Royal Government of Sweden for supporting Makerere through the four phases to a tune of 71million dollars. The support has contributed to capacity building for the university in terms of staff and infrastructure.
The Director of Research and Graduate Training, Prof. Mukadasi Buyinza, noted the complexity of problems facing the world today. Makerere University has been able to address the challenges through impact oriented research with support from the Royal Government of Sweden.
The opening meeting was attended by staff and students of Makerere University as well as staff from the Embassy of Sweden, Kampala.
After the opening, the College of Natural Sciences (CoNAS) successfully hosted the Sida Science Day research workshop under the theme, ‘Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development’.
The event was organised by CoNAS and the Directorate of Research and Graduate Training (DRGT) with support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). This is an annual event held to showcase and share work accomplished by Sida supported projects and students.