In Uganda, there has been few, if any instances of deliberate linkage of Government, University and society in general, and rural economy in particular. Sustainable rural development is the key for poverty eradication and prosperity for all, as more than 80% of Uganda's population derive their livelihoods from peasant agriculture and natural resources in rural areas.
The reason for this is the conventional education system, which encourages disconnections not only between the sciences (social science, natural science and the humanities) but also between theory and practice. This has lead to a disheartening graduates’ unemployment problem in Uganda.
Institute of Knowledge-driven Economy (IKEG) was incorporated on
20/04/2010 as company limited by guarantee and not having a Share Capital. IKEG is a Ugandan Non-Profit Organisation.
IKEG was founded to respond to the outcries appearing in Uganda’s
print and electronic media about the alarming levels of graduates’ unemployment
and plight of Ugandan graduates from universities and other institutions of
higher learning, to bring to ring
together the following stakeholders, including but not limited to: university
students and graduates; universities themselves and other institutions of
higher learning; the business community; the government and her development
partners; the politicians; law makers and financial institutions to discuss to
the question that “If higher education is
believed to be the key to progress and development, then what has gone wrong
with Uganda’s national systems”
RATIONALE FOR IKEG
Prof. F. R. Banugure’s presentation on IKEG, which is one of the millstones
of “Destined To Triumph”at the launch of the book on 12-Oct-2012 at Hotel Africana:
GOOD ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE AND THE MISSION OF THE INSTITUTE FOR KNOWLEDGE
ECONOMY GOVERNANCE ( IKEG):
Let me start
my remarks on the role and mission of IKEG by stating the obvious but important
idea, that the global economy is now characterized as a knowledge economy in a
knowledge society. What does this fact, mean for, the most developed countries
(MDCs) and the least developed countries (LDCs) like Uganda? For the former, it may mean that technological
innovations is the key to their future growth and continued dominance of the GE,
or that they must use their K-power to capture more market spaces world –wide. For the latter it means
that LDCs must develop their human resource as their major source of
livelihoods and that to grow their economies in a competitive world, they must
use smart and K–based policies and
management practices. MDCs and LDCs are highly interdependent and their future
prosperity is even more so.
Mr. Babyetsiza’s initiative to start IKEG was
informed by this reality. When he introduced it to me 2 years ago, he
discovered that he was talking to some one who had reflected on the issue and
was greatly concerned with the quality of economic governance in Africa in general
and Uganda in particular. Our concerns were summarized into 3 key questions.
Ø Do policy makers and their economic advisers really understand how the peasant economies work and how they can be
effectively transformed to achieve prosperity for all? (THE VILLAGE ECONOMY
QUESTION)
Ø Are we using the right knowledge package
to understand and manage our national economics right knowledge package to understand
and manage our national economies right from the village/community level to the
sector markets and the macro –economy levels?
Ø How can we improve our knowledge
–base to address the management challenges of LDCs economies with a view to
achieving prosperity for all in the shortest time possible?
RATIONALE FOR IKEG
In searching
for answers, Julius focused on the issue of graduates’ unemployment problem,
which he himself had faced on returning from his studies in the former SOVIET
UNION. He discovered that the economic policy bureaucracies of Uganda were not
responsive to the changing economic needs of Uganda’s society, especially so
for the needs of the youth who are just entering the labour market. Perhaps
this lack of responsiveness was due to some gaps in their K –base, or to even
lack of on thinking culture, or even
to use of wrong knowledge and wrong policy –making processes? We quickly
realize that there are, indeed questions of development management, which
needed the attention of the relevant professionals in communities of practice
as well as communities of K-generation and dissemination .This led to the birth
of IKEG as a starting point to spread awareness about good economic governance
for inclusive growth and prosperity for all
MISSION OF IKEG
The mission of IKEG, therefore, was designed to focus on:
Ø Research and knowledge for Development,
leading to publication on economic policy management and the structure and
performance of the village economies.
Ø Awareness seminars and training
workshops on economic governance, economic policy management; management
information systems, and communication strategies for effective net working and
learning for development.
Ø Social and management innovations (solutions)
to economic governance, and community based development.
CONCLUSION: WAY FORWARD TO TRIUMPH
By starting
IKEG, Julius Babyetsiza, has embarked on a journey of learning for development “. There are
many forms of success along this road, for example, as social innovators, as a
theory matter, as a great teacher. He can follow the footsteps of prof. Waagari
Mathai and other great achievers in social entrepreneurship. He may follow in
the footsteps of professor Kaniyeihamba who has served society with both intellectual
excellence and highest standards of ethics and integrity. The key is to be a visionary
for good governance, both economic and political. But he must remember that it
is important not to betray you vision after vigorously disseminating it and
sharing it with many .Yes, Mr. J. Babyetsiza
is destined to triumph, in one way or another, as a famous thinker and activist
for good economic governance and knowledge management. Let us wish him the best
on his journey of service to Uganda and humanity.
