Minister Mutuuzo’s research revealed persistent gender inequality

Dr Peace Regis Mutuuzo (PhD in Gender Studies)
Dr  Mutuuzo examined the effect of Affirmative Action (AA) for women’s political participation on gender transformation in Uganda. It adopted mixed methods largely anchoring in qualitative approach. The findings demonstrate that, although AA has increased women’s participation in politics, patriarchy disposition has led to persistent gender inequality. The study found that inadequate civic education had limited   local communities’ awareness of policies that promote women’s political participation. AA has led to a perception that open seat is a preserve for men, thus confining women’s participation to AA seat and yet male MPs are unwilling to support a policy for equal gender representation. AA policies have improved women’s status in society but at a cost of women shouldering both the female and male gender roles. The study recommends government to consider amending Articles 78 and 180 2(b) of the Constitution to provide for a 50:50 gender representation in politics.

Dr Ally Ramathan Kibirige (PhD in Finance and Accounting)
Dr  Kibirige investigated the cost efficiency of private primary schools  (PPS) in Uganda using agency, atewardship, stakeholder and intellectual capital theories. He particularly examined the factors that explain cost efficiency in private primary schools. He established that Intellectual capital plays a mediating role in the relationship between internal control system, job motivation and stakeholder participation in PPSs. He recommends that PPSs should continuously adapt internal control and job motivation mechanisms if they are to remain efficient. He further asserts that PPSs should recognise the role of all stakeholders in the modern competitive environment. From the policy perspective, he recommends that government should focus on reducing regulatory costs and risks associated with obtaining licenses and simplifying compliance procedure for businesses.

Dr Janepher Nsozi Sambaga (PhD in International Relations)
Dr  Sambaga investigated cross-border trading (CBT) behaviour among females, using a multi-theoretical framework of personal initiative, symbolic interaction and complexity theories. She examined the behaviour of females who succeed in CBT with interest of scaling it up to empower more female entrepreneurs. She undertook to establish the mediating role of self-organisation in the relationship between personal initiative and CBT behaviour among females in Uganda. She used a cross-sectional survey design with 410 female cross border traders, analysed through SPSS Version 26 and AMOS for a regression analysis. She validated the quantitative results using qualitative data.  Her findings indicate that Personal initiative, mediated by self-organisation, significantly influence CBT behaviour among females in Uganda. She recommends that Policy makers should underscore Personal Initiative, Self –Concept and self-organising behavioural skilling in school curriculums at an early age of a female, in order to encourage entrepreneurial behaviour at all levels in Uganda. 
 
Dr Geoffrey Mutumba Ssebabi (PhD in Energy Economics and Governance)
Dr  Ssebabi investigated the relationship between energy consumption and economic growth in Uganda. He investigated the short and the long run relationship between energy consumption and economic growth. Secondly, he investigated the pass through effect of shocks from renewable and non-renewable energy consumption to Uganda’s economic growth. He used the granger causality test, vector error correction model (VECM) and structural vector auto regression (SVAR) to estimate that relationship. The findings presented mixed results. Although the results from granger causality test and VECM indicate that energy consumption promotes Uganda’s economic growth, there is no pass-through effect of shocks from both renewable and non-renewable energy consumption to Uganda’s economic growth. The policy implications are energy transition from traditional biomass to modern energy sources, public private investment in the energy sector, energy subsidy reform and faster production of the oil and gas sub-sector to foster economic growth.  

Dr Michael Jackson Wakwabubi (PhD in Finance)
Dr  Wakwabubi investigated financial distress in Local Governments (LG) in Uganda using new public management, deontological and network governance theories. He particularly examined the risk factors and the mechanisms that can be adopted to reduce financial distress in LGs in Uganda. He established that Corruption, Local Governance and LG delivery system are key antecedents of financial distress in LGs in Uganda. He recommends the strengthening of the enforcement of the leadership code by the Inspector General of Government. He further recommends the sensitisation and training of both political and technical staff to improve on the LG delivery system. Policy wise, he recommends that the government formulates a policy that aims at improving the LG delivery system, by employing the personnel with the required knowledge and skills and also develop programs that reduce bureaucracies, inculcate discipline and parsimony in resource use by the LG staff.

Dr Jacob Otim (PhD in Energy Economics and Governance)
Dr  Otim investigated the link between economic growth, agricultural production, governance, and carbon emissions in East African Community countries using data from 1996 to 2019. The results indicated a positive influence of carbon dioxide emissions and governance on economic growth. In addition, it revealed the detrimental impact of carbon emissions on livestock production. The study also identified bidirectional causality between economic growth and governance, suggesting that economic growth can predict governance quality and vice versa. Furthermore, the study found unidirectional causality from economic growth to carbon emissions. The study’s recommendations included, among others, the implementation of environmental legislation and the pursuit of sustainable economic growth using renewable energies to curb carbon emissions. 

Dr Hellen Christine Waiswa Amongin (PhD in Education Psychology)
Dr Amongin investigated the relationship between emotional intelligence (EI), interpersonal relations (IR), and achievement among university upgrading teacher students at Makerere University and Uganda Christian University, Mukono. The quantitative findings show that EI is not significantly related to the quality of IR but qualitative findings show that they are related. EI is positively and significantly related to subjective academic achievement. All aspects of EI are not related to objective academic achievement. IR are positively and significantly related to subjective academic achievement but not significantly related to objective academic achievement. EI has a more positive influence on non-academic activities than IR.  IR has a stronger influence on non-academic achievement than EI.

Dr Samuel Auchi Ngonela (PhD in Historical and Humanistic social Sciences)
Dr  Ngonela analysed the influence of marginalized voices in Kenyan society, focusing on Kibera, Kuresoi, and Changamwe. Utilising the Neo-Gramsci theory and complex systems theory, the research explores how subaltern voices shape peacebuilding and power dynamics in Kenya. Key findings reveal a resistance to international peacebuilding frameworks, eroding local governance structures and creating an “other” that facilitates subaltern articulation within post-conflict peacebuilding. Hybridisation of ideas and everyday practices contributes to a historical transformation of Kenya, navigating traditional and external influences in peacebuilding efforts. Marginalized communities, including Mijikenda, Digo, Ogiek, and more, employ strategic mechanisms to counter changes introduced by the liberal peace state, preserving their identity. The study emphasizes understanding the link between subaltern voices and societal violence, advocating for inclusivity through considering diverse perspectives in the pursuit of sustainable peace and conflict prevention. Emerging institutions, evolving through socio-historical processes, are seen as crucial for fostering this inclusivity.

Dr Aziz Wakibi (PhD in Marketing)
Dr Wakibi investigated on sustainable innovations among Financial Institutions (FIs) in Uganda, employing complexity and institutional logics theories. He found that organizational resilience acts as a mediator in the relationship between institutional logics, self-organization, and sustainable innovations among FIs. He recommends FIs prioritize building strong partnerships, collaborate within the ecosystem, engage stakeholders, and align operational processes with global sustainability goals, such as the UN SDGs, Uganda’s Vision 2040, NDP III and other phases to come. From the policy perspective, he recommends that Government should require all FIs to enlist for Sustainability Standards and Certification Initiative to operate in a holistic framework. Additionally, policymakers should create supportive regulatory environments and foster public-private partnerships for sustainable technology investments. The study underscores the importance of integrating sustainability into core strategies and investing in employee training and technology for environmentally friendly services.  

Dr Benard Musekese Wabukala (PhD in Energy Economics and Governance)
Dr  Wabukala examined the concept of electricity security in Uganda. Framed on securitisation theory, the barriers, measurement, and influence of energy dynamics on Uganda’s electricity security are identified, constructed, and assessed respectively.  Through a systematic literature review, the barriers to electricity security in Uganda are both existential and potential. He constructed an electricity security index (ESI), and found that Uganda is “moderately” electricity secure. Dr Wabukala established that in the long run, price of crude oil, share of renewable electricity generation, distribution losses reduce electricity security while energy intensity increases electricity security.

Dr Mary Oliver Basemera (PhD in Psychology)
Dr  Basemera examined the relationship between loneliness, resilience and psychological among the elderly aged 60 and above in Kyankwanzi, Rakai and Jinja. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 300 participants for this study. Data was analysed using ANOVA, correlation and regression. Findings revealed a positive relationship between resilience and psychological wellbeing, loneliness was negatively but significantly related to both resilience and psychological wellbeing. Across districts results revealed that loneliness and resilience differed significantly. Thus, the majority of lonely elderly people were found in Jinja compared to those from Kyankwanzi and Rakai. Thus could be due to lack of social support or less intergenerational contact. Psychological wellbeing had no significant difference for the three districts. It was recommended that resilience skills through training could be done for the elderly. The study was funded by Comboni Missionaries.

Dr Simplicious John Gessa (PhD in Communication)
Dr Gessa investigated how media frames wildlife information and how that shapes public opinion. He undertook a mixed method study doing a survey, key informant interviews and content analysis to collect data in two urban areas of Kampala, Fort Portal and two communities adjacent to national parks of Kibale and Queen Elizabeth in Uganda. The findings indicate that media generally reports negatively about wildlife with majority of frames reporting conflict such as poaching, encroachment, illegal trade, and diseases of animals. The population listened more to radio with fewer people reading newspapers. Most respondents had a negative perception of wildlife based on information provided by the media channels with media viewed as trusted key source of information. The study recommends increase of positive content of wildlife information in media as well as enacting communication strategies that disseminate wildlife contributions to the public beyond ecotourism.

Dr Jacob Katusiime (PhD in Religion and Politics)
Dr  Katusiime historicised the emergence of the movement for the restoration of the Ten Commandments of God (MRTCG), popularly known as Kibwetere’s movement and also make sense of the religious movement’s mass violence, often remembered as the 2000 Kanungu Inferno. Jacob’s study is built upon decolonisation as a methodology and the critical utilisation of aspects of anthropology, historicism and political science. Jacob’s study contends that the religious movement arose from multiplicities of the history of political marginalisation within institutions of the nation-state. The MRTCG is a product of the colonial politicisation of ethnicity, political parties and religion. Jacob’s study also argues that the MRTCG violence erupted within the context of Uganda’s regulation and criminalisation of religious movements. In reflecting on the agency of breakaway religious movements in postcolonial Africa, Jacob’s study calls for a historicisation that focuses on their interaction with institutions of nation-state power.

Dr Elizabeth Amongi (PhD in Clinical Psychology)
Dr Amongi assessed the effectiveness of community-based trauma focused-cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) management across gender in post-conflict northern Uganda. The study established that, TF-CBT was effective in treating PTSD across gender. There was recognition of no significance in gender difference in access to TF-CBT however it was established that there was a significant gender difference in PTSD symptoms. Challenges such as; opposite sex counsellors, mixed-sex counselling, poor mobilization, community stigma, poor infrastructure, drunkenness, dual relationship, economic crisis, etcetera were obstacles to TF-CBT outcome. To mitigate these issues, sensitisation, hiring additional personnel, same sex clients during sessions, same sex counselors with clients, family support, involving elders and cultural leaders in influencing mobilisation.

Dr Doreen Chemutai (PhD in Gender Studies)
Dr Chemutai was inspired by the biased discourse on the parliamentary performance of women on affirmative action seats vis-a-vis that of women in open seats. She comparatively analysed the pathways, perceptions, and performance of women members of Parliament (MPs) on affirmative action seats and open seats in Uganda’s 10th parliament. Using a poststructuralist feminist lens, her analysis demonstrated no significant performance differences based on seat type. Women’s performance is shaped by contextual factors like constituency interests, voter characteristics, and the experiences, interests and positionality of women members of Parliament. The discourse surrounding the performance of women MPs is a patriarchal construction that exists to undermine and isolate women’s participation. Her study contributes to current debates on women’s parliamentary performance by clarifying the actual performance of women MPs in affirmative action seats in association with those in open seats.

Dr Franklin Higenyi (PhD in Gender and Development studies)
Dr  Higenyi focused on the effect of gender on career progression of female doctors in Uganda public medical services. Specifically, the study explored gender disparities and factors affecting career progression of female doctors in Mulago national and Fort Portal regional referral hospitals. The study adopted case study design capturing women’s perspectives on career progression in Uganda public medical services, highlighting gender disparities in leadership roles. The factors that constrain female doctors’ career progression: institutional gaps, socio-cultural factors (cultural norms, patriarchal perceptions) and individual factors. The study concludes that gender impedes female doctors’ career progression highlighting inequality in public medical services. The study recommends, ministries of Health and Public Service to enforce gender-sensitive policies to address disparities, patriarchal norms, enhance mentoring and capacity building and encourage doctors pursue career progression opportunities.

Dr Ibrahim Alhaji Ahmadu (PhD in Political Science and Development)
Dr Ahmadu studied the intersection of youth, state capacity and empowerment in Yobe state of Nigeria. Within Nigeria’s socio-political and economic landscape, youth emerge as a pivotal demographic with untapped potential for driving economic growth, fostering innovation and contributing to national development. The study highlights intricate dynamics shaping the empowerment landscape in Yobe State. Despite implementing numerous empowerment programmes, the youth still lack confidence in the state’s capacity to empower them out of poverty. This scepticism is mirrored by persistent challenges of escalating youth unemployment and the subsequent abdication of their citizenry roles. Hence, Nigeria needs to reposition itself as a developmental state of embedded autonomy to assume its custodian, demiurge, midwife and husbandry roles to ensure an improved economy and regain youth confidence.

Dr Dorothy Aumbur Igbende (PhD in Psychology)
Dr Igbende contextualised the phenomenon of quality of life from the psychiatric work environment and associated stress encounters among mental health practitioners in Nigeria. She found that physical and psychological job demands, social relationships but specifically poor work environment conditions, patient violence, work overload, mental demands, role conflict, supervisory relationships, and knowledge and information sharing were major factors that induced stress (eustress or distress) and influenced the quality of life of practitioners. The study established that the perception of stress as an opportunity leads to eustress, which improves quality of life, while the perception of stress as pressure results in distress and impairs quality of life. These findings implore practitioners to develop a positive mindset in handling their day-to-day tasks in the mental health setting to improve quality of life.