Humanities and the Arts

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A Model for Enhancing Digital Transformation through Technology‑related Continuing Professional Development Activities in Academic Libraries in Context
(Discover Education, 2024-07-02) Nakaziba, Sarah; Ngulube, Patrick
This paper is based on the findings of a doctoral study that aimed to examine the role of continuing professional development (CPD) in enhancing digital transformation in selected university libraries in Uganda. One of the ways of effecting digital transformation is to continuously build the technological competencies of the librarians working in academic institutions through attending technology-related CPD. The study adopted a mixed methods approach with a convergent parallel design for collecting qualitative and quantitative data from six universities in Uganda. Quantitative data were collected from 76 librarians with a minimum degree-level qualification from the six selected universities. Qualitative data were obtained from six University Librarians working in these universities. The study findings indicated several challenges hindering librarians from participating in technology-related CPDs such as lack of management support, lack of personal interest, limited funding, and lack of opportunities, among others. The implementation of digital transformation within university libraries in Uganda was also reported to be beset by a lack of competent staff, limited management support, lack of funds, and technological gaps. Therefore, this paper presents a proposed model to address challenges hindering the digital transformation and the participation in technology-related continuing professional development activities within academic libraries. The proposed model is based on the study findings, and it draws from Watkin and Marsick’s learning organisation model, andragogy theory, the technology-organisation-environment framework, and extant literature. The model will guide academic libraries in the implementation of a conducive environment to necessitate staff development and implementation of digital transformation.
Access to Justice: Widows and the Institutions Regulating Succession to Property in Uganda
(Human Rights Review, 2006) Kafumbe, Anthony Luyirika
The 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda in terms of article 31 (2) thereof, establishes rights under which widows and widowers can inherit property from their spouses and enjoy parental rights over their children. A duty is placed on the government to make appropriate laws to this end. More important though, the state has a duty to facilitate the administration of estates in general by making, through decentralization, the institutional and legal framework on succession more accessible to ordinary people. An issue that deserves fresh consideration is whether this obligation to make the legal and institutional framework on succession accessible to ordinary people and especially widows, the years fater the Constitution was promulgated has been realized, and if so, whether it has advanced the property rights of these surviving female spouses in the estates of their deceased spouses.
Accountability and Public Interest in Government Institutions
(International Journal of Public Administration, 2019) Kwemarira, Godwin; M. Ntayi, Joseph; Munene, John C.
The study attempts to explain public interest in government institutions using stewardship theory. This study builds upon previous studies which have largely used agency theory to examine public interest. Data relating to the constructs of responsibility, answerability, and openness were found to be significant predictors of public interest. Data were collected from public primary schools’ teachers and parents in these schools. This paper urges public officers in government institutions to offer accountabilities for the public funds as they execute their tasks and duties. These findings have both policy and managerial implications which we discuss.
Accounting for Variability in the Linearization of Ditransitive Constructions in English among Native Speakers
(Argumentum, 2018) Isingoma, Bebwa
In order to account for the variability in the linearization of ditransitive constructions in English, semantic and syntactic as well as pragmatic motives have been proposed. Of recent, gradience grammar has been proposed (cf. Bresnan & Ford 2010), whereby categorical semantic constraints have been discounted and probabilistic tendencies advanced. While the current study subscribes to all those criteria, it intends to focus on two auxiliary properties that have so far not received enough attention as regards their role in the variability in the linearization of ditransitive constructions, namely diachronic factors and analogical leveling. This complementary account will thus fill up the lacuna posed by the fact that despite the role of the multifactorial predictors advanced so far, these do not fully answer, for example, the question as to why some speakers or speech communities accept, while others reject, constructions in which these very predictors are at work.
Adolescent girls’ perceived readiness for sex in Central Uganda - liminal transitions and implications for sexual and reproductive health interventions
(Taylor & Francis, 2022-03) Kyegombe, Nambusi; Buller, Ana Maria; Meiksin, Rebecca; Wamoyi, Joyce; Muhumuza, Richard; Heise, Lori
Young women in Uganda are at risk of negative sexual and reproductive health outcomes, in part because of sex with older men. Theoretically grounded in the concept of liminality, this paper examines perceived markers of adolescent girls’ suitability for sexual activity. In 2014, we conducted 19 focus group discussions and 44 in-depth interviews in two communities in Uganda. Interviews were conducted using a semi-structured tool, audiorecorded and transcribed verbatim. Interviews examined markers of transition between childhood, adolescence and adulthood and how these were seen as relating to girls’ perceived readiness for sex. Analysis was thematic. Pre-liminal status was most often accorded to childhood. Sex with a child was strongly condemned. Physical changes during puberty and children’s increasing responsibility, autonomy and awakening sexuality reflected a liminal stage during which girls and young women were not necessarily seen as children and were increasingly described as suitable for sex. Being over 18, leaving home, and occupying ‘adult’ spaces reflected post-liminal status and perceived appropriateness for sexual activity including for girls under the age of 18. Interventions that seek to prevent early sexual debut and sexual activity with older men have the potential to reduce sexual and reproductive health risks.
African Art needs to Come Home - and this is why
(The Guardian, 2015) Dilip, Ratha; Kabanda, Patrick
African art dots museums across Europe and North America, gracing countries where many Africans would be hard pressed to get a visa. In the Neues museum in Berlin, the bust of Queen Nefertiti is lit and kept at a temperature to mimic conditions in Egypt. Its grace radiantly reflects the meaning of her name: “the beautiful one has come.” For Egypt and Africa, however, the beautiful one left. Nefertiti has been in Germany since 1913, despite the fact Egypt has demanded she be returned home.
African Feminism: How should we change?
(Development, 2006) Tamale, Sylvia
Sylvia Tamale gives a critical, self-reflexive analysis of the African women's movement, with her proposals for the changes she would like to see. She asks that African feminists transform themselves and societies into a more equitable, democratic and tolerant one.
African Perspectives on Religion and Climate Change
(2022) Chitando, Ezra; Conradie, Ernst M.; Kilonzo, Susan M.
Climate change, a global emergency, has become one of the most pressing issues of our time (see, for example, Religions for Peace 2016: 6; Satgar 2019; Gills and Morgan 2020; Cilliers 2021 (chapter 15); and IPCC 2021). Activists from diverse backgrounds have drawn attention to the urgency of addressing climate change, as it is an existential threat. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 13 on climate action, itself closely con nected to other SDGs (Nerini et al. 2019), expresses the emerging consensus on the need to address climate change as a matter of urgency. It refers to the need to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.” As I shall argue throughout this chapter, Africa’s vulnerability to the impact of climate change calls for climate justice, which in turn is tied to human rights and sustainable development. Thus, “Climate justice links human rights and sustainable development to safeguard the rights of those affected by climate change”
Alcohol Abuse and Addiction
(The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Global Security Studies, 2020) Omona, David Andrew
Alcohol is a substance that people have consumed from time immemorial. Numerous examples from ancient literatures and myths allude to alcohol consumption as a part of cultural celebrations. In some societies rituals and ceremonies were not complete without alcohol use. However, “enduring alcohol consumption and the passing down of this habit through generations does not adequately explain why alcohol is consumed” (Freeman and Parry 2006). What certainly have changed over the years are the patterns of alcohol use. Available evidence suggests that the quantity of alcohol consumed is far greater today than in earlier times (Freeman and Parry 2006). The 2004 World Health Organization (WHO) estimate of the people who consume alcohol around the world stands at two billion (World Health Organization 2014).
Anesthesia Provider Training and Practice Models: A Survey of Africa
(Anesthesia & Analgesia, 2019) Law, Tyler J.; Bulamba, Fred; Ochieng, John Paul; Edgcombe, Hilary; Thwaites, Victoria; Hewitt-Smith, Adam; Zoumenou, Eugene; Lilaonitkul, Maytinee; Gelb, Adrian W.; Workneh, Rediet S.; Banguti, Paulin M.; Bould, Dylan; Rod, Pascal; Rowles, Jackie; Lobo, Francisco; Lipnick, Michael S.
In Africa, most countries have fewer than 1 physician anesthesiologist (PA) per 100,000 population. Nonphysician anesthesia providers (NPAPs) play a large role in the workforce of many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), but little information has been systematically collected to describe existing human resources for anesthesia care models. An understanding of existing PA and NPAP training pathways and roles is needed to inform anesthesia workforce planning, especially for critically underresourced countries. METHODS: Between 2016 and 2018, we conducted electronic, phone, and in-person surveys of anesthesia providers in Africa. The surveys focused on the presence of anesthesia training programs, training program characteristics, and clinical scope of practice after graduation. RESULTS: One hundred thirty-one respondents completed surveys representing data for 51 of 55 countries in Africa. Most countries had both PA and NPAP training programs (57%; mean, 1.6 pathways per country). Thirty distinct training pathways to become an anesthesia provider could be discriminated on the basis of entry qualification, duration, and qualification gained. Of these 30 distinct pathways, 22 (73%) were for NPAPs. Physician and NPAP program durations were a median of 48 and 24 months (ranges: 36–72, 9–48), respectively. Sixty percent of NPAP pathways required a nursing background for entry, and 60% conferred a technical (eg, diploma/license) qualification after training. Physicians and NPAPs were trained to perform most anesthesia tasks independently, though few had subspecialty training (such as regional or cardiac anesthesia). CONCLUSIONS: Despite profound anesthesia provider shortages throughout Africa, most countries have both NPAP and PA training programs. NPAP training pathways, in particular, show significant heterogeneity despite relatively similar scopes of clinical practice for NPAPs after graduation. Such heterogeneity may reflect the varied needs and resources for different settings, though may also suggest lack of consensus on how to train the anesthesia workforce. Lack of consistent terminology to describe the anesthesia workforce is a significant challenge that must be addressed to accelerate workforce research and planning efforts.
The Applicability of International Human Rights Law to Non-State Actors: What Relevance to Economic, Social and Cultural Rights?
(The International Journal of Human Rights, 2008) Ssenyonjo, Manisuli
In recent years, non-state actors (NSAs) such as transnational corporations, civil society groups, international organisations (including the World Trade Organisation, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund) as well as armed opposition or terrorist groups have assumed major roles in relation to the progressive enjoyment throughout the world of all human rights, and economic, social and cultural rights in particular. Despite this development, NSAs are still not bound directly by existing international human rights treaties which apply to states parties. The fact, however, is that the growth in the wealth and power of NSAs has meant an enhanced potential for NSAs to promote or undermine respect for human rights. This raises two fundamental questions examined in this article: (1) how should international human rights law ensure that the activities of NSAs are consistent with international human rights standards? (2) How should accountability of NSAs be promoted effectively when violations of international human rights law occur? It is concluded that in order to ensure more accountability for human rights violations by NSAs, it is relevant to consider the adoption of a Statute of an International Court of Human Rights, to which NSAs could also become parties in addition to states.
Assessment of Legal Information Needs and Access Problems of Lawyers in Uganda
(Library Philosophy and Practice, 2010) Tuhumwire, Innocent; Okello-Obura, C.
Unresolved legal problems can entrench disadvantage and increase social exclusion unless legal assistance is made available to members of the community (McClelland, 2009). “As a lawyer, and even more so as a local member, I have met a number of people who have been unable to address a small legal problem before it escalates. Often this is because they don't know what to do or where to go", (McClelland, 2009) asserts. Legal information is considered one of the essential ingredients for effective justice to be done in any democratic society. In our day-to-day life, legal issues have become part and partial of our environment. The ever-increasing number of legal cases in the country has enormously led to petitions in court by various people with hope that they will be backed up by lawyers. However, it is worth noting that timely access to the right kind of legal information determines the performance of any legal officer in any judicial process. It is on that basis that this paper examines the legal information seeking behavior of the legal practitioners, the lawyers in Uganda.
Beat By Bit: On Measuring Trade in Value Added in the Creative Economy of Southeast Asia
(In Bilangan: Selected Papers from the 2018 International Conference on Cultural Statistics and Creative Economy, 2018) Kabanda, Patrick
Trade in cultural goods and services is one of the least understood areas in commerce. Yet another hugely important but under-scrutinized area is that of Trade in Value Added. Indeed, as former World Trade Organization Director-General Pascal Lamy said, such statements as “Made in China” do not tell us much. Why? Because what is labeled as “Made in China” usually comprises inputs from many different parts of the world. This discussion considers the concept of Trade in Value Added and postulates scenarios in which nations of Southeast Asia may contribute to regional and global cultural trade in value added. Since statistics on this topic are likely to be minimal or non-existent, the paper goes on to propose ways Southeast Asian nations might consider to start collecting data on their creative economy Trade in Value Added.
Beating the Human Rights Drum
(Pretoria University of Law Press., 2015) Nassali, Maria
After belabouring for hours to explain to my grandmother, Evelyn Nakitto, the subject of my doctoral studies, she summed it up in one sentence: ‘Ooh! You are going to study good manners.’ I then began to question why human rights is a concept that is almost exclusively confined to regulating state power. And yet, despite NGOs’ effort to dismantle existing power structures of especially hierarchies and patriarchies, NGOs inadvertently repeat the same structures within their organisations and relationships. I began to explore the concept of human rights based approaches.
Bed Diplomacy
(2021) Omona, David Andrew
Bed diplomacy is an informal kind of diplomacy where peaceful relationship between two or more parties is hatched, enacted, cemented, maintained, and reenacted through marriage. This form of establishing, maintaining, and reenacting relationships between people of diverse traditions has been part of human interaction from antiquity. Whereas right from antiquity women were blamed for all ills of life, as seen in the writings of the Greek Hesiod in the myth of the great woman “Pandora” – who is believed to have “opened the lid of a jar containing all plagues and diseases of the world and let them out” (Pomeroy et al. 2004, p. 72), they also have invariably been the source of enacting, maintaining, and reenacting peaceful relationships between people who are or would have been enemies
Benefits of ICT in Education: Teaching-Learning Process
(African Journal of Education, Science and Technology, 2021-08-01) Lubaale, Grace
The use of Information Communications Technology (ICT) in education and training is increasingly becoming a priority in African countries including Uganda. The paper aims at examining the benefits of ICT in education with a specific focus on teaching-learning process. The presenter used both qualitative and quantitative approaches of identifying the uses, application, relevance and impact of ICT in the teaching-learning process with specific cases in Uganda. The paper identifies and explains benefits of ICT in general and in the teaching –learning process in particular like to the learners in terms of general, motivational, independent learning and team work as well as teachers in planning and preparation. The paper identifies the barriers of ICT use as at five levels; political economy, technology, teachers, school and education system. The paper concludes that ICT is important in the teaching-learning process because it greatly enhances comprehension of the language and subject matter of learners as well as easing the work of teachers. It recommends government, education systems, learning institutions and individuals to embrace ICT holistically.
Between exonormative traditions and local acceptance: A corpus-linguistic study of modals of obligation and spatial prepositions in spoken Ugandan English
(Open Linguistics, 2022) Isingoma, Bebwa; Meierkord, Christiane
Research into Ugandan English places it in the nativisation phase of the evolution of Englishes, amidst a nexus of local acceptance with ingredients of endonormativity and ingrained exonormative traditions. The current study shows how the use of modal verbs of obligation and spatial prepositions provides insights into how the nexus of the above phenomena has shaped Ugandan English. For example, although the preference of have to over must is a global trend, in Ugandan English, it is more prevalent in Bantu-speaking than in Nilotic-speaking areas because of substrate influence. Crucially, although the use of spatial prepositions is generally similar to how they are used in, for example, (standard) British English, the peculiar use of from to encode stative location in Ugandan English is, despite some regional variations, so widespread in the country that it tends towards endonormative stabilisation.
Boda Bodas and Road Traffic Injuries in Uganda: An Overview of Traffic Safety Trends from 2009 to 2017
(MDPI AG, 2020-03-22) Silvia, D. Vaca; Austin, Y. Feng; Seul, Ku; Michael, C. Jin; Bina, W. Kakusa; Allen, L. Ho; Michael, Zhang; Anthony, Fuller; Michael, M. Haglund; Gerald, Grant
Introduction: Road traffic injuries (RTIs) are an important contributor to the morbidity and mortality of developing countries. In Uganda, motorcycle taxis, known as boda bodas, are responsible for a growing proportion of RTIs. This study seeks to evaluate and comment on traffic safety trends from the past decade. Methods: Traffic reports from the Ugandan police force (2009 to 2017) were analyzed for RTI characteristics. Furthermore, one month of casualty ward data in 2015 and 2018 was collected from the Mulago National Referral Hospital and reviewed for casualty demographics and trauma type. Results: RTI motorcycle contribution rose steadily from 2009 to 2017 (24.5% to 33.9%). While the total number of crashes dropped from 22,461 to 13,244 between 2010 and 2017, the proportion of fatal RTIs increased from 14.7% to 22.2%. In the casualty ward, RTIs accounted for a greater proportion of patients and traumas in 2018 compared to 2015 (10%/41% and 36%/64%, respectively). Conclusions: Although RTIs have seen a gross reduction in Uganda, they have become more deadly, with greater motorcycle involvement. Hospital data demonstrate a rising need for trauma and neurosurgical care to manage greater RTI patient burden. Combining RTI prevention and care pathway improvements may mitigate current RTI trends.
Building a Parallel Corpus and Training Translation Models Between Luganda and English
(arXiv preprint arXiv, 2023) Kimera, Richard; Rim, Daniela N.; Choi, Heeyoul
Neural machine translation (NMT) has achieved great successes with large datasets, so NMT is more premised on high-resource languages. This continuously underpins the low resource languages such as Luganda due to the lack of high-quality parallel corpora, so even 'Google translate' does not serve Luganda at the time of this writing. In this paper, we build a parallel corpus with 41,070 pairwise sentences for Luganda and English which is based on three different open-sourced corpora. Then, we train NMT models with hyper-parameter search on the dataset. Experiments gave us a BLEU score of 21.28 from Luganda to English and 17.47 from English to Luganda. Some translation examples show high quality of the translation. We believe that our model is the first Luganda-English NMT model. The bilingual dataset we built will be available to the public.
Building Strong Academic Libraries and Library Professionals in Uganda Through the University of Pretoria Carnegie CPD Programme
(Inclusive Libraries and Information Services, 2021-05-24) Juma, Gorrety Maria; Nakaziba, Sarah; Holmner, Malerne
Academic libraries are encountering numerous changes due to the emerging information communication technologies trends and the ever-changing information-seeking behaviour of their users. For the librarians to effectively implement these trends and remain competitive, they need to be regularly engaged in continuing professional development (CPD) activities. The study aimed to find out the factors that influenced the motivation to participate in the University of Pretoria (UP) Carnegie CPD programme and the potential impact on service delivery of the selected academic libraries in Uganda as represented in the programme. The study applied a qualitative research design with an interpretive research approach. Exponential non-discriminative snowball sampling was used to recruit participants. The sample size of the study included eight Academic Librarians who attended the UP Carnegie CPD programme between 2014 and 2018. Data was collected using face to face semi-structured interviews and electronically using ZOOM (online platform). The findings of this study show that most UP Carnegie CPD participants mainly attended the programme due to its rich content; the hands-on subject coverage and new ICT trends, and the need to build their professional networks. The study also revealed the following challenges that were encountered by the participants during the implementations of the various initiatives drawn from the CPD knowledge and skills: difficulty in managing social media platform, lack of IR back-end support, limited data analysis skills required in providing research support, library users’ lack of interest in IL training, limited collaboration between Faculty and Librarians, and technophobia from some library staff who frustrate implementation efforts. The study provides recommendations on how to address these challenges

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