Professor William Senteza Kajubi, a two-time Vice Chancellor of Makerere University, has been honoured as the father of the Education Sector in Uganda.
This was during the 4th Annual Kajubi Lecture 2023 co-hosted by Makerere University Vice-Chancellor, Prof Barnabas Nawangwe and the new U.S. Ambassador to Uganda, H.E Amb. William W. Popp.
Speaking at the Tuesday lecture held at the Yusuf Lule Teaching Facility, Professor Anthony Muwagga Mugagga, Principal of Makerere College of Education and External Studies (CEES), expressed his gratitude to the U.S. embassy in Kampala for the great support extended to Makerere University, over the past four years.
“I want to thank the organizers of the 4th Annual Kajubi Lecture. I personally thank and recognize my team at CESS for a job welcome in bringing us all here to celebrate and honour the legacy of the late Sentenza Kajubi, the first full bright scholar,” he said.
Wasswa Kajubi, a member of the Kajubi family, said the idea of the public lecture is that “we will listen in to the ideas brought forth by the keynote speakers and use the ideas to better our personal lives and the countries in which we live at large”.
“I hope that we will all learn a lot today, and transform today’s ideas into useful products and services,” Wasswa noted, adding: “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”
In his remarks, Prof Nawangwe described Professor William Senteza Kajubi as a gallant alumnus and a change maker.
“His legacy was so impactful that despite our reputation as academicians to always debate issues, none has ever come up to debate the reference to him as the father of the Education Sector in Uganda. I think we ought to applaud ourselves on that.”
According to Nawangwe, it is therefore heart-warming to note that 71 years after Prof. Senteza Kajubi secured his Fulbright Scholarship, Uganda’s Higher Education is being discussed through the lens of technological advancement.
“I would therefore wish to commend the U.S. embassy on the choice of keynote speakers, for who could be better primed to unpack today’s theme than two Fulbright alumni, whose careers are intricately woven in education, industry and technology.”
On his part, U.S. envoy H.E Amb. William Popp, lauded Makerere University’s distinguished history, saying it is not only among the leading academic institutions in East Africa but also has a bright future.
“Last year the U.S. embassy was proud to launch the first Kajubi-Fulbright Lecture as part of Makerere’s 100-year celebrations. This year, we are pleased to continue the tradition of bringing American and Ugandan experts together to discuss the future of higher education and to honour the first Fulbrighter from Africa and Makerere’s former Vice-Chancellor Professor Senteza Kajubi. It is wonderful to see some of the Kajubi family here today!”
He went on: “Through our development work, it is our hope that Uganda will move from a developing nation to one that is self-reliant. To do that, it is essential for institutions like Makerere University to build a workforce ready for the 21st century and beyond.”
According to Amb. Popp, technology has become an essential part of work.
“From diplomacy to engineering, and policy-making to education, we all need a workforce that can effectively use information technology, gather and learn from data, and productively leverage the vast amounts of information on the internet. Technological literacy is now the language that allows the citizens of our nations to collaborate as we build a more prosperous future,” he noted.
