The public university being established on the former Busoga University campus will be called Iganga University, Cabinet has resolved, bringing to an end months of debate over the institution’s name.
Minister of ICT and National Guidance Justine Kasule Lumumba announced the decision at a press briefing on Monday, October 5. She also said the Shs98 billion funding gap facing the project had been resolved.
Lumumba said Cabinet reached the decision after reviewing how Uganda’s other public universities are named, noting that most take their names from where they are located. She gave the examples of Makerere University in Makerere, Kyambogo University in Kyambogo and Soroti University in Soroti.
She added that Iganga University will serve students from across Uganda, not only those from the Busoga sub-region.
The minister did not give details of how the Shs98 billion gap had been closed or when the university will admit its first students.
A long-running name fight
The decision goes against the recommendation of the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE). In August, State Minister for Higher Education Dr John Chrysostom Muyingo told Parliament that NCHE had shortlisted Iganga University and Kiira University, then rejected Iganga over concerns that a district name could make a regional institution appear to serve only that district. The council unanimously recommended Kiira University.
Busoga University alumni had pushed to keep the original name. In February, they served a legal notice on the government task force arguing that the agreements governing the takeover require the Busoga University name and its Iganga headquarters to be retained. Iganga District chairperson Ezra Gabula, also an alumnus, had argued that the President directed a takeover of the existing university rather than the creation of a new one.
The naming question had held up the university’s reopening. In July, officials said consultations were complete and only the President’s approval was outstanding, which pushed back plans for an August intake.
From private to public
Busoga University was founded by Busoga Diocese of the Church of Uganda in the late 1990s, with its main campus in Iganga. NCHE revoked its provisional licence in 2017 over problems including mounting debts and unqualified academic staff, and government later agreed to take it over as a public institution.
Refurbishment of the Iganga campus has been completed, though the works have drawn criticism. Busoga Kingdom Katukkiro Dr Joseph Muvawala Nsekere recently said the renovated buildings fall short of a public university’s standard, a claim First Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga dismissed.
CampusBee has contacted the Ministry of Education and Sports for details on the reopening date and the first intake, and will update this story.
Iganga University: good choice or should it have stayed Busoga University? Tell us. @campusbee.ug
