Assoc. Prof. Umar Kakumba has officially handed over the responsibilities of the First Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs) to Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi.
This marked the end of a dedicated tenure of five and a half years by Prof Kakumba.
Held this morning (2nd August, 2024), the handover ceremony was attended by key university officials, including Ag. DVC Finance and Administration, Prof. Henry Alinaitwe, who represented Vice Chancellor Prof. Nawangwe.
Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi, a seasoned academic with extensive experience in forestry resource economics, will now serve as the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic Affairs) of Makerere University.
According to the university website, his tenure is effective from 11th July 2024 and will last for six months, concluding on 10th January 2025, or until a substantive appointment is made, whichever comes first.
Prof. Mukadasi’s impressive academic background includes a PhD in Forest Economics from Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Yogyakarta, Indonesia. He also served as the Director of the Directorate of Research and Graduate Training (DRGT) at Makerere University from 2014 to October 2022.
Both the university and Prof. Kakumba remain tight-lipped on the latter’s next move. It also remains to be seen how the structural changes will impact the progress of the university.
Prof. Kakumba’s leadership as deputy vice chancellor in charge of academic affairs has been one filled with many wins for the university. For instance, he championed the institutionalisation and capacity development of the Institute of Open, Distance and e-learning (IoDEL) and the development and rolling-out of the Academic Management Information System (ACMIS).
He also provided leadership to establish institutional affiliations with training programmes at the National Defence College-Njeru, (2021); Uganda Military Academy, Kabamba, 2019/2020; Police Senior Command and Staff College-Bwebajja (2022); and IGAD Sheikh Veterinary School Somaliland (2020).
