University Education in Uganda

Despite the recent expansion of higher education in Uganda, there is still much cause for concern. Enrolment levels lag behind those of much of the rest of the continent; enrolment in technical universities in only one percent; there is no government science and technology policy for highe education despite an identified social need; the new universities are broadly imitating the old colonial models; and there has been little curriculum reform. This study addresses the state of tertiary eeducation in Uganda and proposes reforms in the following areas: university management; how to manage the current two-tier system of public and private universities; institutional capacity; financing and coping with decreasing resources; curricula design which is appropriate to African development needs; how to correct the imbalance of arts/humanities and science students and shortages of academic staff; access to tertiary education; quality of education; and institutional and academic autonomy. The author is Professor of History and Vice-Rector of the Islamic University of Uganda at Mbali. He has published widely on a range of subjects including secondary and tertiary education, Islam in Uganda and social violence.