STUDENTS’ GENDER MAIN STREAMING SEMINAR

The Africa Development Bank (AfDB) is supporting higher education in Uganda and has provided funds to improve science and technology in the eight public universities (whenever it does not hurt, MUBS is described as a public university). MUBS has been a beneficiary and a new building was constructed to house the computing faculty. The bank has also funded what is known as cross cutting issues, these include; business incubation, gender main streaming, improving the welfare of the disabled, E-learning, among others. Among these cross cutting issues, gender main streaming has been a key issue, in the last 50 years or so the world has been struggling with the issue of equity among men and women. Women have been marginalized as a result of the differences created among men and women by the biological and physical differences. This has resulted into women not having equal opportunities compared to men. In many societies especially Africa women are denied right to education, women cannot inherit property, there are few women in paid employment, there are few women in top management positions and there are few women in political leadership positions. This denial which is based on gender has disadvantaged women and denied them opportunities to access resources and denied them opportunities to advance their careers and find their rightful positions along the men. There have been solutions to this challenge. These have included: Affirmative action, feminist movements and legal provisions that have supported women inclusion in various activities of the society.

In educational institutions the expectation is that the people are more rational and therefore more inclusive in their decision making and in their actions. Some advances have been made but there are still people with a thinking that is not supportive of promoting equality among men and women. The AfDB has provided funding to support sensitization for both staff and students on this important matter. The first seminar was held for staff in MUBS in December, 2016. A cross section of both male and female staff were invited to participate in the sensitization seminar. The seminar was addressed by Ms Evelyne Nyakoojo, Dr. Sabrina Kitaka and the Director of the MUBS Leadership Centre Ms Regis Namuddu. The MUBS Leadership Centre is the coordinating and implementing unit on the gender activities in MUBS. On Wednesday February 15, 2017 a sensitization seminar for the MUBS students was held in the MUBS new building. The seminar was addressed by Ms Evelyne Nyakoojo, Dr. Annet Nabatanzi, Ms. Racheal Mirembe and the Director of the Leadership Centre Ms Regis Namuddu. My role in these seminars is of course to make opening remarks, to thank participants and the donors for making the event happen and I would also share my experience on the need to support women to succeed. I have found, in working with women that they are more committed to work, better decision makers, more equitable in resolving conflicts and more thoughtful if the conditions are right. MUBS has a large number of women in management positions and has been supporting women to pursue doctoral programs.

I thank AFDB for the financial support and the leadership centre for making things happen, of course I thank the facilitators and the students too.