Tag Archives: Norway

John Semakula and Frank Obonyo, UCU communications manager, during graduation ceremony at the UCU main campus in Mukono in 2019.

UCU-Norway collaborative – One recipient’s perspective

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John Semakula and Frank Obonyo, UCU communications manager, during graduation ceremony at the UCU main campus in Mukono in 2019.
John Semakula and Frank Obonyo, UCU communications manager, during graduation ceremony at the UCU main campus in Mukono in 2019.

(NOTE: In December 2020, the NLA University College in Norway announced plans to continue its partnership with the Uganda Christian University (UCU) Faculty of Journalism and Media Studies for a six-year period, starting in 2021.  The partnership involves a grant of sh8.4bn ($2.3 million) for UCU as well as the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and the University of Rwanda specific to promoting equality in gender and for people with disabilities and including PhD scholarships. This article gives the perspective of one UCU beneficiary of the current collaborative.)

By John Semakula

Around this time in January 2018, I had just returned from a five-month study trip in Norway. I had never been away from Uganda that long and never experienced such cold temperatures.

Apart from struggling to adjust to the cold and missing home, staying in Norway was a wonderful, memorable experience that positively impacted my life and career. I travelled to Norway in early August 2017 under an NLA University College one-semester exchange program to study global journalism. The opportunity was part of a scholarship awarded in 2016 to me and five others at Uganda Christian University (UCU), where I was pursuing a Masters Degree in Journalism and Media Studies.

John Semakula (second left) with friends at Kristiansand, Norway, in 2017.
John Semakula (second left) with friends at Kristiansand, Norway, in 2017.

Through the Norway government Norwegian Program for Capacity Development in Higher Education and Research for Development (NORHED), the UCU Mass Communication Department received in 2013 a sh4.7bn ($1.3 million) grant for staff capacity building.  At the time, I was a senior writer at New Vision and teaching several UCU course units such as news and feature writing and investigative journalism.

Collaboratives are important from academic, cultural and work place perspectives.

While in Norway, one of the key values I learned was keeping time. If I had not mastered time keeping, I would not have survived because nearly everything in Norway – as is common for Western world countries – rotates around time management. Without the skill, one would miss a bus from the College to Kristiansand town for shopping and fail to submit coursework on time, which is punishable. Overall, being late is perceived as lack of respect. This expectation is difficult to implement in Uganda where tardiness excuses range from traffic jams to weather.

In Norway, traffic is orderly.  Unlike in Uganda, Norwegian drivers follow roadway rules and are respectful of pedestrians. Respecting the laws means citizens report other citizen disobedience. In Uganda, citizens often help criminals to escape justice.

The experience in Norway reinforced the value of networking. In my class of about 20 students, we had representation from Palestine, Ethiopia, Ghana, Denmark, Norway, Uganda, Pakistan, Germany, Brazil and Nepal. Some of the journalists, especially those from Europe,  could not believe our stories of Ugandan police using teargas and clubs to stop members of the press from doing their work. Such police brutality does not happen in many developed countries. In Norway, it’s rare to see a demonstration and when it occurs, the participants are escorted peacefully away by unarmed police officers. I learned that in Norway, Germany and Denmark, journalists are valued and paid well.

Through the Christian-based NLA University College, I saw a commonality with UCU in how belief in God was incorporated into the curriculum. Many people in Norway go to Church every Sunday and attend evening prayers and other fellowships. I attended many of the church services and evening fellowships in Kristiansand. I was treated the same way Jesus treated participants at the wedding in Cana. However, I saw the growing trend of fewer young people in churches.

I was impressed with how the materialistically wealthy in Norway helped poor migrants by sharing food and clothes with them.  As a result there are usually no people sleeping on empty stomachs. 

In addition to growing me, the Norwegian grant under NORHED helped UCU establish and run an MA Program in Journalism and Media Studies and another one in Strategic Communication (supported by NLA University College and the University of KwaZulu-Natal). The benefits for UCU involved sponsorship of five PhD students, four “post-docs” and six student exchange visits as well as engagement in four international conferences in Africa and Europe and procurement of  books and equipment. The five PhD candidates completed their studies on time at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and four of the six MA students have graduated. 

For the Norwegian government that funded my trip and MA studies, I am highly indebted and aspire to gain more knowledge and experience if selected for the 2022 doctoral program.

Countries in what is known as African Great Lakes Region (Victoria, Malawi, Tanganyika) have a scarcity of doctoral programs. The Norwegian program will help fill that gap for higher education at UCU and the region. The doctoral program, like all the other projects under the NORHED II UCU grant, will run on the theme, Preparing Media Practitioners for a Resilient Media in Eastern Africa.  The goal is to produce a better-qualified workforce that can contribute to democratization. Other goals are improving the quality of media and communication education; enhancing the competence of academic staff; and improving gender balance and making the learning environment more inclusive. 

UCU will reach out to the university in Rwanda to help start the first local MA program in Media and Communication Studies. To achieve all the goals, partner universities also intend to optimize research and dissemination of findings on the continent and have already marked out three thematic research areas for focus: Media, Democracy and Development in East Africa; Media, gender, identity and participation; and the changing role of the media in crisis.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org

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Olum Douglas playing a horse puzzle game at home

My experience with the COVID-19 outbreak in Uganda

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Olum Douglas playing a horse puzzle game at home
Olum Douglas playing a horse puzzle game at home

By Douglas Olum

I wish COVID-19 had consulted me before breaking out in Uganda. At the time it came, I was at a near zero financial balance. As the virus label moved from an epidemic to, by late January 2020, a pandemic, I knew this meant worldwide and my country was likely not to be untouched. With a wife and two children to provide for, I worried about how I would save my family from starvation should our Government order a lockdown to keep us from working and traveling to the store.

When? I didn’t know.

I had spent the whole of February attending lectures for my MA program at Uganda Christian University. Within that time, I had not contributed any stories for the Uganda Partners organization, which is my main source of finances. My car selling business also had gone down since December 2019, when I made a commission on the last sale. I had spent weeks since the beginning of March, trekking between Kampala and Mukono, trying to revive the business. I had a few cars at hand for sale, with a few promises from prospective customers but none was materializing.

On Saturday, March 21, Uganda announced in her first case of the coronavirus infection. The victim was a 36-year-old businessman who had returned from a three-day trip to Dubai in the United Arabs Emirates.

I anticipated very tough times ahead if the numbers of identified cases increased. I thought that if I could just sell one car for a dealer, I would use the money to transport my wife and children from our apartment in Mukono to my village of Gulu in the far north. Personally, I couldn’t go because I had periodical course assignments to do and submit until late June. I knew that going to the village – far away from electricity and Internet access – would hinder my studies. Besides, I still felt we might avoid being swept deeper into the pandemic.

My confidence was rooted as far back as the year 2000 when Ebola first hit northern Uganda. Christ the King Demonstration Primary School, where I studied back then, was among the first institutions to be affected. One of our teachers contracted the virus disease and succumbed to it within the first four days. The Government moved to close schools only after his death. But none of us was ever infected.

My home 20 years ago was located near Lacor Hospital, a private hospital in Gulu that handled most of the Ebola cases. Many of our neighbors worked there to take care of the victims. Our market and public transports remained functional. We interacted without being distanced and without negative consequences. Thinking of that earlier survival time that was not as life changing as the COVID-19 restrictions, I was not discouraged.

Even when I had heard of death cases in China, Italy and Spain, I had the impression that the COVID-19 infection was not as dangerous as the Ebola that took a life in less than 72 hours.

Olum Douglas in his mask, walking in Mukono Town during the lockdown
Olum Douglas in his mask, walking in Mukono Town during the lockdown

When a Norwegian newspaper/magazine journalism friend asked me to accompany her in collecting data for a story she wanted to do about the COVID-19 situation in Uganda, I didn’t hesitate even though we planned to work in the business hubs in Kampala. We were supposed to carry out the survey on a Monday. But a cough and cold hit her, necessitating postponement. While I was a bit anxious, she assured me that her condition was not the coronavirus because she had largely been at home, with very minimal trips to buy groceries and no contact with any person who had just entered or returned to the country. We re-scheduled our work for the next day, Tuesday, March 24th.

As I travelled to Kampala that hot, sunny day, I learned of eight new cases of confirmed infections. March 24 was my last trip to the city – at least for a while. That night, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni announced a ban on all public transport means, with private means limited to carrying not more than two passengers. The ban eventually was extended for everything except for trucks transporting food.

At this point, the virus threat became a reality. Most people were wearing facemasks. Hand-washing containers were at all entries and exits of markets, large buildings, taxi parks and supermarkets. Shop owners and operators were sanitizing the hands of their customers. Unlike the usually welcoming market environment, the traders themselves were barring those who resisted hand washing.

Money to feed my family was uppermost in my mind. With a slight headache and enough shillings for a few days of family meals, I headed back to Mukono. But fear grew with the headache pain as I understood this to be one symptom of the COVID-19 infection.  The anxiety lessened when my temperature taken at the UCU gate registered a normal 97 degrees Fahrenheit.

Douglas and his children, Daphine and Victor, feeding their chicken during the lockdown
Douglas and his children, Daphine and Victor, feeding their chicken during the lockdown

While financially crippling, the government curfew since March 24 has meant more family time – singing, playing, teaching and learning with my children. And while I didn’t have access to computers on the locked-down campus, I was able to complete some long-overdue writing assignments on a phone donated to me by an American last year. Many times, I did the work just outside the UCU gate where the university wifi was weak but reaching.

At 53 infections and zero deaths as I write this on Easter Sunday, I remain optimistic that Uganda may escape the huge numbers experienced by much of the rest of the world.

How deep, when and where else will COVID-19 strike? I don’t know.  But surrounded by my wife and children, I’m watching.

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To support Uganda Christian University programs, students, activities and services, go to www.ugandapartners.org and click on the “donate” button, or contact UCU Partners Executive Director, Mark Bartels, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org.

Cultural shock: Uganda and Norway

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Barbara Nambozo, left, with new Norwegian friend, Ingrid Johanne, who she met on a bus

By Barbra Nambozo

Being a first-time traveller across country borders comes with a lot of excitement, some surprises and occasional frustrations. I was one of two master’s students from the Uganda Christian University (UCU) Faculty of Journalism and Media studies to experience those feelings recently in Norway.

My UCU student exchange programme between UCU and NLA University College at Gimlekollen in  Kristiansand, Norway, started in August of 2018 and lasted six months. NLA University is a private Norwegian Christian university with its main campus at Bergen. UCU has one of 50 international exchange programs with NLA and is the only one from Uganda.

Bus stop in Kristiansand, Norway
Bus stop in Kristiansand, Norway

Most of the time, I was engaged in classes – learning more about such topics as how journalism is practiced in other countries, gender development and research methodology. But the cultural immersion went beyond curriculum.

As a first-time traveler to Europe, I was excited. Friends who had visited Europe had shared several experiences, including cultural shocks such as harsh, cold weather. Psychologists describe cultural shock as an experience a person may have when he or she moves to a cultural environment that is vastly different from his or her own.

During my stay in Norway, I was impacted by three particular cultural differences: Trash disposal, time management and interpersonal relationships.

Trash
Norway is listed among the most beautiful countries on earth, according to an on-line tourism site called Travel Away. The country is famous for its natural attractions such as mountains, the midnight sun, lakes, breathtaking sites and a vibrant cultural life, among others. But sustaining such natural endowments is pricy. The cost, partly, calls for every person to act responsibly.

Learning something as basic as responsible recycling was not a “walk in the park.”

It is common to find “No Litter” signs along the streets reminding you to act responsibly. The streets and environment are clean, especially compared to Uganda. Back at the university dormitory, the trashcans are clearly labeled to guide users on how to dispense different garbage. For instance, you do not mix broken glass particles with waste food or plastic bags. During the first few weeks of our stay, it was common for students, especially from Africa (who perhaps were accustomed to indiscriminately disposing of trash), to receive emails from the housekeeper reminding us to sort the trash, according to the procedure set by the facility management. However, a few weeks later, every occupant seemed to have mastered the skill.

Time
Time management is at the top of everybody’s agenda in Norway – a bit of a shock compared to Uganda where time is relaxed. From arriving in time for the lecture to the bus stop, or going for the doctor’s appointment, everybody keeps time. Torbjorn Larsen, a member of the Misjonshuset Church in Kristiansand, in his late 50s, said: ‘‘Personally, I arrive in time for any meeting as a sign of respect to the host. It also helps me to be organized, and to reflect on the purpose for the meeting and my contribution to its success.’’

Once I tried to chase a bus that was leaving the bus stop, but I paid dearly. My phone fell and got smashed. I realized I could have saved the energy lost in the chase, and the phone, of course, if I had managed my time well.

Relationships
Being a regular traveler on the bus from the university to Kristiansand city was a good experience. I learned not to judge people, but understand why they behave as they do. During one of the orientation meetings for international students at the university, we were briefed that Norwegian people are more reserved than Ugandans. For example, some would not take up an unoccupied seat on the bus beside another traveler nor engage in a conversation with a stranger. A few times, I observed that on the bus.

Coming from an African environment, where commuters on a taxi (even as strangers) chat all the way to their destination points, discussing anything from politics to fashion, I found this unusual. But one day, while on board a bus, I decided to demystify the belief. I purposely occupied a seat next to a lady. We exchanged pleasantries and engaged in a conversation about Africa. Before she departed from the bus, we had become friends, and we have kept in touch since. Sometimes, all you need is a courteous gesture to turn a stranger into a friend. Do not be hasty to judge.

Since my return to Uganda, I have made more new friends, including an American friend on campus. I am a better steward of the environment, and I try to manage my time appropriately.

It is always a wise idea to read a book beyond its cover.

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For more of these stories and experiences, visit https://www.ugandapartners.org. If you would like to assist a current student or otherwise support the university, contact Mark Bartels, Executive Director, UCU Partners, at m.t.bartels@ugandapartners.org or go to https://www.ugandapartners.org/donate/

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