By Kefa Senoga
Following a recently signed partnership agreement between Uganda Christian University (UCU) Vice Chancellor, Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi, and Graham Yoko, the CEO of the Accelerated Education Enterprise (AEE) in Durban, South Africa, UCU is set to launch a study program designed to train teachers for schools following the Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) Curriculum.

According to Dr. Mary Kagoire, the Dean of UCU School of Education, UCU signed the MoU with AEE because the latter manages the ACE curriculum in Africa, including Uganda.

“Institutions throughout Africa that implement the ACE curriculum receive their teaching and learning materials, as well as support, from AEE,” Kagoire explained.

AEE offers Christian education that inspires faith and guides children towards a meaningful relationship with Christ, with the intention of children being secure in their identity and better equipped to face the challenges of the modern world.

Kagoire said the ACE curriculum is a personalized system of instruction, where the learners are given instruction materials they use to study at their own pace. The instruction materials have integrated biblical values..

AEE has been providing Christian education solutions to schools and homeschools since 1983 through globally-recognized curricula and education solutions tailored to Africa’s unique needs. It seeks to empower and impact Africa by delivering access to world-class Christian education solutions that are innovative and relevant to the continent.

According to Kagoire, every topic a child learns in the ACE curriculum has a related Bible verse. Being a university founded on Christian principles, AEE found it in a better position to support the faith-based program. 

The implementation of the collaboration between the two entities will commence once AEE trains UCU teaching staff on how to instruct the teachers or facilitators of the ACE curriculum. After the training, expected by early 2025, UCU will start promoting the ACE-training diploma program they are set to design, before submission to the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) for accreditation.

“We are also exploring the possibility of starting continuous professional training programs whereby in case of any adjustments or changes, we can keep on training the ACE teachers,” Kagoire added, noting that a working committee had been established to actualize the Memorandum of Understanding between UCU and AEE.

The diploma course will be available to already trained teachers, as well as individuals passionate about teaching.

“We want the teachers or experts in different skills because all we are giving them are the different pedagogical skills,” Kagoire explained, noting that the partnership comes as a significant step for UCU because it will be the first university to offer the program in Africa. And the university seeks to offer services to Uganda and the whole of Africa, especially through online classes. However, Kagoire said for that to happen, they will need support in terms of computers and the necessary software for online classes. 

UCU Set to Revolutionize Christian Education with ACE Curriculum

According to Kagoire, the number of schools partaking in the ACE curriculum is increasing because many parents are interested in their children receiving a biblical foundation in their education. Uganda is among the more than 20 countries in the sub-Saharan Africa with the ACE program. Currently, 67 schools are under the ACE program in the country.

There is an increase in demand for ACE schools, especially among many of the church schools, including All Saints Cathedral School in Kampala, which is now an ACE school.

ACE runs from pre-school up to grade 12 and AEE oversees the testing and assessment of the learners enrolled in the curriculum. However, in Uganda, there is an arrangement in place where the Uganda National Examinations Board does the “process of equalization.”

Kagoire further remarked: “Now that they have handed the bit of training and developing of facilitators to us, we shall see a lot of potential in growth.” 

On Tuesday, July 9th, 2024, The Most Rev. Dr. Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu, Archbishop of the Church of the Province of Uganda and Chancellor of Uganda Christian University (UCU), along with Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi, Vice Chancellor, and Mr. David Mugawe, Deputy Vice Chancellor – Finance and Administration, visited the UCU Arua Campus. The purpose of the Chancellor’s visit was to boost morale, assess progress, and pledge support for the development projects at the Campus.

Rev. Julius Izzy Tabi, Director of UCU Arua Campus, expressed gratitude to the Chancellor and his entourage for braving the challenging journey to Northwestern Uganda to visit Arua Campus.

“We thank you, Chancellor and your entourage for enduring the challenging journey to the Northwest to visit us at Arua Campus” Rev.Tabi said.

Rev. Tabi highlighted the Chancellor’s launch of the 50-year master plan for the campus, which includes the construction of the Bishop Orombi ICT Complex. Fundraising efforts have been initiated for this project.

Rev. Tabi with gratitude also mentioned the Vice Chancellor’s pledge of 20 million and the President of Uganda’s pledge of 2 billion Uganda shillings towards the Bishop Orombi ICT Complex.

 Additionally, an announcement was made about organizing a fundraiser dinner on August 9, 2024, at the Imperial Royale Hotel, Kampala, inviting everyone to contribute generously towards the project.

“We invite everyone to contribute generously towards the project, which will enhance our campus infrastructure and have a profound Socio-economic impact,” Rev. Tabi said.

Furthermore, it was also noted that Bishop Charles and the diocese of Ma’di West Nile have offered 60 acres of land for the university college. This offer is pending ratification by the Trustees (house of bishops) before proceeding with the application for college status.

Attainment of constituent college status would create opportunities, including potential partnerships with the neighboring Church of Uganda Kuluva Hospital, allowing UCU to introduce medical, public health, and nursing programs in Arua.

Dr. Kaziimba commended the leadership, staff, and students of the campus for their dedication and hard work, stating that, “your efforts have not only upheld UCU’s standards but also contributed significantly to the development and progress of the West Nile region and beyond.”

Compiled by: Irene Best Nyapendi

Edited by: Harriet Adong, Consultant at UCU’s Communication and Public Relations Department

Uganda Christian University (UCU) has today, Friday, July 5^th, 2024, graduated a total of 1,160 students at its main campus in Mukono, Kampala during the first part of its 25th Graduation Ceremony. Among the graduates, 538 were male and 622 were female. Of these, 24 students achieved first-class honors, with 14 being female and 11 male.

The 1,160 students graduating with diplomas and degrees today came from disciplines including: Education, Law, Social Work and Social Adminstration, Medicine and Surgery, Dentistry, Business Adminstration, Accounting and Finance, Development Studies, Engineering and Public Administration among others.

Sarah Nsereko emerged as the overall best student with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.72. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science.

Timothy Ddumba, a former UCU Guild President, emerged as the best male student, with a CGPA of 4.64, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology.

The university Chancellor His Grace The Most Rev. Dr. Stephen Samuel Kaziimba Mugalu, thanked the UCU Vice Chancellor and his dedicated staff for their tireless efforts and exemplary leadership. He noted that, it is the commitment of the UCU Vice Chancellor and team around him which has kept the university growing from strength to strength.

Dr. Kaziimba noted that this ceremony marks a significant milestone in the life of UCU graduates who have dedicated years of hard work, dedication, and sacrifice to reach this momentous occasion.

“I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the graduating class of 2024,” said Dr. Kaziimba. “As you step out into the world, beyond the UCU gates, I encourage you to keep learning because learning is the only thing the mind will never get exhausted of, fear, nor regret.”

He mentioned that today the graduates stand on a face fold of a new chapter in their lives, equipped not only with knowledge and skills but also with values that reflect the philosophy of UCU.

Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi, the University Vice Chancellor noted that UCU graduates are known for being different in whatever they do hence they should go and shine in the marketplace.

As he delivered his remarks, the UCU Vice Chancellor congratulated staff members upon their awards and accolades, also mentioning his own Golden Jubilee Medal awarded by the President of the Republic of Uganda for his contribution to the education sector.

Prof. Elizabeth Kizito, Director of Research Partnerships and Innovation, being elected President of the All Africa Horticulture Congress, which will be hosted by UCU in 2028.

Prof. Emily Maratcho, from the School of Journalism, Media, and Communication, being elected Board Chairperson of the African Centre for Media Excellence.

Prof. Angella Napakol, Director of Academic Affairs, being promoted to Associate Professor among others.

Prof. Mushengyezi later took the guests through some of the other achievements UCU has registered in the recent past.

For the sixth year in a row, UCU emerged as the overall “Best Exhibitor” among both public and private universities in Uganda during the National Council for Higher Education Exhibition which was hosted by UCU at its regional college in Mbale.

NCHE recently accredited a PhD in Journalism, Media, and Communication (JMC); a PhD in Development Studies; a PhD in Business Administration; a Master of Arts in African Studies; and a Master of Literature among others.

UCU emerged first runner-up at the 2023 Inter-University games, with six gold medals.

UCU has signed a partnership with Millersville University for student and staff exchanges, joint research, and other activities.

UCU has launched a seven-year campus transformation initiative.

The new Kampala campus building was handed over to UCU by the contractors on May 20th, and construction of parking lots, renovation of buildings, and infrastructural improvements are ongoing at regional campuses.

The UCU “Just for 10k” campaign has raised 167 million Ugandan shillings, supporting over 100 needy students.

UCU has strengthened partnerships with the US and regional based partners, including St. Paul’s University in Kenya, and signed a partnership agreement with Accelerated Christian Education Enterprise in South Africa.

The Faculty of Agricultural Sciences received an Erasmus grant worth 800,000 Euros.

A team led by Dean Dr. Rose Mary Bulayaba received 50 million Uganda shillings through the UCU research fund among other grants.

UCU students of Computer Science were awarded the best pitching team at one of the national hackathon sessions among other achievements.

Prof. Mushengyezi urged all graduates to face the world with the courage and boldness of one who has a vision and purpose in life.

“Pursue your dream relentlessly, and as you do so, demonstrate excellence in word and in deed as a servant leader that UCU has prepared you to be,” said Prof. Mushengyezi.

He also encouraged them to make the most of the knowledge and skills they have acquired while at UCU, their cherished alma mater.

Prof. Daniel Wubah Urged UCU Graduates to Drive Positive Change

Prof. Daniel Asua Wubah, a Ghanaian-born, and the President of Millersville University of Pennsylvania who was the guest of honor at the ceremony, urged graduands to be advocates of positive change in their communities. 

He noted that while it may be tempting to view success solely in terms of personal achievements most important individuals in history are not those who focused solely on their own achievements but rather those who used their talents to make the world a better place.

Prof. Wubah encouraged the graduates not to be anxious, assuring them that their education has provided the skills needed to turn challenges into opportunities.

“Graduates remember you have been prepared to go and change the world,” said Prof. Wubah. “The world needs your expertise, creativity, and commitment to serving others.”

Compiled by: Irene Best Nyapendi

Edited by: Harriet Adong, Consultant at UCU’s Communication and Public Relations Department

By Dorothy Tushemereirwe
Not all adventures are created equal. Ask me – or maybe query a dozen Uganda Christian University (UCU) School of Dentistry students who recently traveled with me by boat to a remote island.

The moment I was carried, yes, carried, and plopped into a handmade boat fashioned of steel and wood, I was in for a ride and experience of a lifetime. Identically attired in  orange life jackets, the students, instructors, representatives of the UCU Directorate of Research Partnerships and Innovations (DRPI), and others traveled with me across a not-so-calm Lake Victoria towards Koome Island, remotely located within central Uganda’s Mukono District.

More than 19,000 residents from as far as Western Uganda make the island their home. In the early 1900s, there were fewer occupants because  many fled or succumbed to a parasite-causing African “sleeping sickness.”

Today, cultures that include Baganda, Banyankole, Bakiga, Acholi, Langi, the Iteso and Lugbara gravitate here, with the lure of free land but little else. Houses are scattered with a church, one government health center and a primary and a secondary school on 3,000, mostly mosquito-free acres. Hand-crafted canoes and nets, scattered about the shoreline, tell the tale of meager economic support through catches of Nile perch and tilapia.

In short, and to help facilitate a dentistry school project of free services to economically-poor residents, I was stuck in the middle of nowhere.  Tourists and citizens find other nearby land masses like Ngamba-Chimpanzee Island for orphaned chimpanzees more familiar and attractive, and even livable with restaurant food and electricity. Koome, part of Kyaggwe Saza in the Buganda Kingdom, uses solar energy and sketchy generators.

A group of polished urban dwellers  and office-type urban colleagues, we arrived near Entebbe, 22 miles from Koome, with an expectation of a somewhat modern Packwach or Kalangala-like ferry, the kind you see in the honeymoon movies, replete with a roof, and wind sails.  I imagined the one I used at Kazinga Channel and pineapple bay,  but Koome’s ferry, we were told, got stuck somewhere. The Uganda government, noticing no sustainable commercial benefit from it, was reportedly not thinking of reviving it, but local government officials said that revival plans are underway.

The lessons of obstacles to accomplishment were just starting, albeit untimely and harsh.

Yet, zealous for our (worthy) dental mission among the island’s most vulnerable population, we felt nothing was going to hinder us.  The first shock was getting loaded (and I mean physically ) onto a boat. Along with a group of  University students and Dr. Arabat Kasangaki, a dentist and teacher, we allowed the rugged hands of a fisherman to carry us to the unstable swinging vessel. 

After about 30 of us were nervously hauled onto the seemingly fragile, open-air wooden transport,  we navigated the June winds and the gale. The message that we would arrive “soon” was followed by more than two hours of a hair-and-clothing-wet journey of life jacket-tightening and, for some, nausea. 

As people from a Christian university would do and as waves hit the transport’s outsides and splashed inside, we sang. Led by Dr. Arabat, there were the words of “Tukutendereze Yesu” as well as the UCU theme song, “To God be the Glory” and other melodies of Zion.

It seemed we were on a trek to a foreign land. Our heavenly home seemed nearer than before. Jonah’s biblical account of every guy in the boat praying to his own god seemed more real, except that in our case, unlike Jonah, we had no hope of a Nile perch spitting us out.

Responses among passengers were both varied and similar. As faith followers, thoughts went to empathy for the Lord’s disciples seeing Jesus sleep through such sea turmoil as did a baby among us on this 2024 journey. 

“Service learning is very essential in our training,” Dr. Arabat, a seasoned medical professional said. “Taking our students to remote areas like this one is of value to our students to help those who have been urban all their lives appreciate the need within our communities. We believe this helps them nurture compassion later after graduation. “   

I am a mobilizer experienced in Human Resource practice.  But no human in this boat seemed either resourced, or emotionally mobilized enough for what we were facing. At that, some, like my neighbor enroute, could still afford a nap.

I had spent a better part of my life familiar with facing discouraged employees, not sailors, so I may have been ready for a pounding boss all my office days, but not a pounding wave.  What seemed like an ordinary day quickly turned out dramatic, as engine failure rounded up the early drama at mid-lake when no mainland was in sight. 

One of our rowers looked so baffled and clueless, too, to which someone in the boat remarked “He must be an intern.” I am not sure we laughed as well at that joke as we should have. Alas, does anybody banter when the smell of uncertainty is near?

To be precise, it was 2.5 hours later that we had an island in view.  You could almost hear the loud sighs, arriving around 4:30 p.m. By sheer grace, we touched land feeling weary, beaten, hungry and emotionally spent.

I wondered: Must fixing teeth be this hard?

Initially, we were to have stayed at the remarkable Ngamba island, (renowned for its chimpanzee tourism) but it was flooded, which meant we eventually had to  be booked at Walindi Point, another island about 20 minutes away from the service area and by antiquated boat transport.

UCU’s Commitment to Service

The first night on the day we arrived at Walindi point, we were exhausted. We crashed but were awakened by a fierce storm that raged and shook our cabins from Midnight to 3 a.m. Preceded by another boat trip, Koome was waiting for us the next day. 

By 7 a.m., my group and our captain, Geoffrey, were enroute to Koome, where dentistry students had spent the night and  were already receiving patients – the start of helping roughly 400 men, women and children with cavities, gum diseases and tumors during four days.  For ongoing wellness practices, toothpaste and toothbrushes, compliments of Henry-Schein dental supplies, were left behind. 

The service there as well as in Mukono was sponsored by the UCU Directorate of Research Partnership and Innovation in collaboration with Uganda Partners, Koome Sub-county Local government and the Uganda Wildlife Conservation and Education Centre (UWEC).

Part of my role, arranged by Uganda Partners, was to support the person recording demographic information. As with many low-income populations, the number of teenage mothers was high, with one particular embedded in my memory.  The young woman arrived with her two children, seething with tooth pain and in need of fillings and extractions. I wondered what would have happened if we hadn’t come.

Such is the dire plight of many Koome Island residents that have never seen a dentist.  Every mission UCU undertakes on this island is a healing affair, for such who never get a chance to have teeth checked, let alone use a toothbrush.  

Would we go again?  

“Yes,” Dr. Arabat readily responded. “We would appreciate any support to keep the light shining. We believe this as an entry for other university programmes to improve the livelihoods of the island communities.”

Will I go again?  Yes, for the same reasons. 

By Irene Best Nyapendi
A week to the International Labor Day celebration on May 1, 2024, Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi received a phone call informing him that the national medal awards committee had vetted and selected him among the people to receive an award. 

“When I received the call informing me that I was among the medal awardees, I was overwhelmed with joy and emotion,” the Uganda Christian University (UCU) Vice Chancellor  said. 

The Diamond Jubilee Medal, which he was awarded at the national celebrations in Fort Portal City, is reserved for people who have made remarkable achievements in leadership in public and private sectors. On that day, Prof. Mushengyezi was among 57 other people who were honored with various medals. The Office of the President has a system of recognizing and rewarding Ugandans who have distinguished themselves in service to the nation with outstanding acts of achievement and heroism. 

UCU Vice Chancellor, A great achiever of humble beginnings

Overwhelmed with joy and gratitude for the honor, Prof. Mushengyezi reflected on his humble beginnings, growing up in a modest rural family where his late father didn’t attend school at all, and his mother stopped in Primary Two. 

He narrated an incident at the age of 11

when he was severely ill and he couldn’t attend school. He was referred to Atapara Mission Hospital in northern Uganda, which was run by Christian missionaries. The medical personnel assured his mother that the facility was the best place to treat his severe condition.

“When we got to the hospital, the doctors examined me and told my mother that if she had not brought me in, I wouldn’t have lived beyond 48 hours,” he said. “When the national medal was pinned on my jacket that morning, I reflected on how far God had brought me. The young boy who was about to die in Primary Five was now receiving a national medal, and this thought evoked emotions in me.”

He wished his late parents had witnessed this moment.

According to Mushengyezi, the medal is a gift from God and a vote of confidence in his diligent service to humanity, and to Makerere and UCU. He acknowledged their role in elevating him to the position of Vice Chancellor that he holds today. 

“This medal is a vote of confidence in me, but also a vote of confidence in our university,” Mushengyezi said during an interview with Uganda Partners in his office at the UCU Main Campus in Mukono. 

“I share the medal with UCU because I am sure I was noticed because of my current position at the institution,” he said. “I also dedicate it to my late mother and my wife who have been a great source of prayer support.”

UCU Vice Chancellor’s Contribution to the education sector

Mushengyezi has dedicated 35 years to the education sector in Uganda, first as a secondary school teacher at Mbarara High School in western Uganda in 1989. He returned to school and made further academic progress, from a Bachelor of Arts degree at Makerere University where he graduated with First Class honors in 1996, to a Doctorate from the University of Connecticut in the USA in 2007. He rose through the ranks at a fast pace, becoming an Assistant Lecturer, Lecturer, Senior Lecturer and Head of Department, and Associate Professor and Faculty Dean at Makerere University, before joining UCU in 2020 as Vice Chancellor. 

When he came to UCU in 2020 at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, he spearheaded drastic measures to ensure continuity of learning, shifting the university from in-person learning to online studies and assessment. This was a tall order since staff and students had little prior experience with this pedagogical model. His efforts made UCU an exemplary model for online learning in Uganda, attracting study visits from many universities.

As Vice Chancellor, Mushengyezi has led UCU through challenging times financially. He implemented innovative measures to ensure continuity of learning, and with the support of the University Council, he pushed through reforms that enabled the university to cut costs, close unviable units and academic programs, and save significant funds that have been channeled to infrastructure development, staff welfare, digitizing operations, and improving efficiency in service delivery. Under his leadership, UCU has achieved significant milestones in a short time, including purchasing new property and constructing a new block at Kampala Campus without borrowing from the bank. In 2024, he led the Management team to roll out a seven-year Campus Transformation Initiative, with a drive to elevate UCU campuses to international standards in all aspects of university life.

Throughout his career in the education sector at Makerere, Prof. Mushengyezi won and coordinated many research grants and managed partnerships with several universities and international agencies. Before he left Makerere, he and the Dean of Social Sciences (Prof. Andrew State) had just won a $800,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation to establish a Centre of Excellence in Research, Teaching and Learning at the university. He was part of a network of university programs worldwide, including the Norwegian Program for Capacity Development in Higher Education and Research for Development (NORHED), the African Humanities Program funded by the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), the International Fellowships Program (IFP) of the Ford Foundation, among others.

His efforts also secured a large grant from the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) to train teachers to write bilingual books for primary school students under the Universal Primary Education (UPE) program by the Government of Uganda. The project equipped many Primary Schools with reading materials in mother tongue and English in Lira, Alebtong, Gulu, and Iganga Districts. He also initiated several academic modules to teach literature and media for young people at university.

Through Mushengyezi’s passion for community development, he led a team that founded Franciscan Investment Co-operative Society in 2010, a financial institution based at St. Francis Chapel Makerere that grew to 2,877 members and a portfolio of Shs. 26 billion ($6,936,498) by December 2023. While he was a Dean of the School of Languages, Literature and Communication at Makerere University, he founded a staff savings association called Tushirikiane, which has grown to about Shs.1 billion ($266,788) in savings. These financial institutions have transformed the lives of many families and contributed to the government’s programme of eradicating poverty.

“These are things I did out of passion to contribute to the community’s transformation. I did not imagine that because of such engagements I would one day merit nomination for such a distinguished national award,” the UCU Vice Chancellor said.  “I extend my gratitude to the President of Uganda, and all individuals who were involved in the nomination and vetting process for this national medal.”. 

Mushengyezi encourages others to never give up: “Never allow any adversity to kill your vision in life; sometimes life is not a straight line. I had to first pursue a diploma course, become a secondary school teacher and then go to university later. Some things require patience, focus and hard work.”

A Vice Chancellor of a university serves as the chief academic, financial and administrative officer of the institution. He or she advances the university’s mission and vision and ensures compliance with the legal requirements and expectations of the Government of Uganda and its organs. Prof. Mushengyezi is one man who is certainly serving this calling with passion and commitment.

He is married to Patience Rubabinda Mushengyezi and they have four children. They have also raised and supported the education of 14 other young people in their family, and these are now serving the nation in various sectors of the economy.

By Kefa Senoga
When asked to name one contribution she has made in journalism that makes her overjoyed, Assoc. Prof. Emilly Comfort Maractho smiled and straightaway gave the answer: “Reviewing and redesigning the journalism and communication curriculum is one of the proudest things I have ever done in my career and in journalism.” 

Maractho said the revised curriculum was influenced by discussions on “what kind of journalists and communication professionals we want to prepare.”

The curriculum Maractho referenced was “a more practical” one taught within what was earlier called the Department of Journalism and Media Studies.  Then head of journalism in the Faculty of Journalism, Media and Communication (now School of JMC), Maractho had the lead role in the emphasis on practicality when reviewing and redesigning curriculum within requirements of the National Council for Higher Education, which mandates revisions every three years. 

In the revised curriculum, Maractho said they intended to give the journalism and communication students not just the knowledge, but also the skills. For instance, she says, a person needs a solid understanding of economics in order to be a successful business journalist, and that was the thinking behind the introduction of course units like business and economics journalism in the curriculum.

Maractho found herself leading the curriculum review because shortly after obtaining a PhD in 2017, she was named the head of UCU’s Department of Journalism and Media Studies. The previous office bearer, Prof. Monica Chibita, had been promoted to the position of Dean in the then-newly established Faculty of Journalism, Media and Communication.

UCU Empowering Academia Through Leadership

Six years after her promotion to senior lecturer and head of department of Journalism and Media Studies, Maractho has been promoted from the level of Senior Lecturer to Associate Professor in Media Studies. Maractho says that this promotion is more of an acknowledgment of her accomplishments in the spaces of media, communication and development. 

“To be an associate professor, you must have significantly contributed to a particular discipline through research, publications, experience, and the work that you are doing in that field,” says Maractho. She has also written many papers and Chairs the Schools’ Media, Democracy and Development Research Group.

Maractho’s venture into media academia began in 2005 when she took a postgraduate program in environmental journalism at Makerere University, and took shape in 2012 when she moved to Daystar University in Nairobi, Kenya, to pursue a master’s in communication, majoring in media studies. Initially, she studied development studies at Makerere University, where she graduated in 2003 with a bachelor’s in development studies. Thereafter, in 2007, she pursued a masters in development studies in 2007 at Uganda Martyrs University Nkozi.

Maractho says she desired to study journalism at the undergraduate level, but did not secure the points to qualify for a government scholarship. Furthermore, her parents  could not afford to pay for the course on a private sponsorship.

“My mother agreed to pay for a course whose tuition she could afford and development studies was among the cheapest courses; actually, it had the lowest tuition at the university, so I enrolled for that,” Maractho asserts.

Nevertheless, Maractho didn’t give up on her lifelong passion. After her university education, she joined Uganda Electricity Distribution Company limited and did part time work as an editor for the Westnile, a community newspaper whose target audience was northwestern Uganda. That is how she enrolled for a postgraduate course in environmental journalism at Makerere University in 2005.

Since undertaking her Master’s in Communication at Daystar University in Nairobi, Maractho has seamlessly integrated herself into the media and journalism academy. Subsequently, in 2014, she embarked on a PhD in Cultural and Media Studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.

Maractho’s May 2024 promotion to the level of Associate Professor coincided with her appointment as chairperson of the board of the African Center for Media Excellence (ACME), a non-profit organization that “occupies the space between the media industry and academic institutions that train journalists.” 

“Our role as ACME is to make sure that there is journalistic excellence, so my job will be to champion the work of ACME, its ideals, and core values, and making the institution live to its full potential,” Maractho said.

She also sits on the boards of Uganda Media Women’s Association (UMWA) and Nation Media Group, Uganda.

She adds that part of her contribution at UMWA was participating in developing a gender-sensitive curriculum that provided training on reporting women’s stories, particularly those concerning domestic violence. She argues that such stories were not being given prominence by the media houses.

Previously, Maractho served as the director for the Africa Policy Centre (APC) at UCU, a think-tank set up by the university to propose policy alternatives to transform communities.

“My biggest achievement at APC was collaborating with the Impact Centre in South Africa to do research on the science granting councils in Africa,” she said. “A science granting council is a governmental body that champions science and technology. For example in Uganda, we have the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology.”

Maractho’s educational journey began in 1984 in Nebbi Town, where she attended Nebbi Primary School and later moved to Muni Girls Secondary School and Mvara Secondary School. All the three schools are located in northwestern Uganda.