MUKONO, UGANDA — Uganda Christian University (UCU), through its School of Journalism, Media and Communication (JMC), will host the 3rd International COMMPASS Conference from February 2 to 6, 2026, at its Main Campus in Mukono. Themed “Media, Migration & Mobility: Reimagining the African Narrative,” the five-day event will bring together journalists, journalism educators, policymakers, and students from across Sub-Saharan Africa and beyond to share findings and chart new paths for migration reporting on the continent.
The conference marks the culmination of the three-year COMMPASS project—Communicating Migration and Mobility: E-Learning Programs and Newsroom Applications for Sub-Saharan Africa—funded by the European Union under its Erasmus+ programme. The project has united a consortium of six African universities from Uganda, Malawi, and Burkina Faso with two European partner institutions: TU Dortmund University in Germany and ISCTE-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa in Portugal.
Since its launch in 2023, COMMPASS has developed an innovative Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on reporting migration, the first of its kind in Sub-Saharan Africa. The MOOC, offered in English, French, Portuguese, and Kiswahili, has trained over 1,500 students and journalists across the region, equipping them with research-based methods, ethical reporting frameworks, and reliable data tools for covering migration stories.
The conference programme is structured around several key objectives. Delegates will have the opportunity to explore the results of the COMMPASS MOOC and its impact on journalism education and newsroom practice in the region. The event will also recognize excellence in migration reporting through awards for outstanding work by both professional journalists and journalism students from Sub-Saharan Africa.
Two landmark initiatives will be officially launched at the conference: a strategic partnership with The African Journalism Education Network (AJEN) and the establishment of the African Journalism Students’ Network (AJSN). Both networks are expected to strengthen collaboration among journalism institutions and foster a new generation of well-trained media professionals across the continent.
A keynote address by renowned scholar Prof. Ralph Akinfeleye will focus on empowering African narratives through digital storytelling and innovative journalism. Panel discussions, workshops, and networking sessions will further explore the intersection of migration, media, and mobility, with a strong emphasis on bridging the gap between the classroom and the newsroom for sustainable migration reporting.
The CoMMPASS project has been led by Prof. Dr. Susanne Fengler, Director of the Erich Brost Institute for International Journalism at TU Dortmund, and coordinated across partner institutions in Uganda (UCU and Makerere University), Malawi (University of Livingstonia and Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences), and Burkina Faso (Université Joseph Ki-Zerbo and Université Thomas Sankara). Associated partners include UNESCO and the World Journalism Education Council.
UCU’s Mukono campus will provide a fully accessible venue with conference materials, daily refreshments, and access to all sessions for registered participants. The primary language of the conference will be English, with translation services arranged as needed.
For more information about the COMMPASS project and the upcoming conference, visit https://commpass.org
Notes to Editors
About UCU: Uganda Christian University is a leading private institution of higher learning in East Africa. Its School of Journalism, Media and Communication is a recognized center of excellence in journalism education in the region.
About COMMPASS: COMMPASS (Communicating Migration and Mobility: E-Learning Programs and Newsroom Applications for Sub-Saharan Africa) is a three-year EU Erasmus+ funded project (2023–2026) implemented by a consortium of eight universities across Africa and Europe.
Media Contact: School of Journalism, Media and Communication, Uganda Christian University, Mukono.
Website: ucu.ac.ug