Jude Luggya
9 November 2009
Kampala — In an effort to promote peace and stability in the region, a Makerere University don has partnered with other academicians across the world to set up the East African Institute of Governance and Conflict Management. Rev. Fr. Dr. Deusdedit Nkurunziza, a lecturer of peace at Makerere University says the autonomous institute was created to promote a culture of non-violence, democratic governance and societal transformation through research, training, advocacy and training.
Dr Nkurunziza told Daily Monitor in an exclusive interview that East African countries like Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda and Sudan are vulnerable to violence.
"The post-conflict and settlement situation in northern Uganda, for example if not handled well could escalate into a more deadly conflict," he said. "Rwanda is very peaceful, but there are indicators that violence can break out anytime. That is why leaders and decision makers have to get training on how to avert any future round of violence."
He said the tribal tensions in Bunyoro between Bakiga and Banyoro, cattle rustling along the Kenya-Uganda border by Karimajong and Turkana warriors are issues that require proactive skills. The academic also pointed to the Buganda uprising as an indication that the country is vulnerable to violence in the 2011 presidential and parliamentary elections.
He says the volatile region calls for knowledge and skills to enhance governance, leadership, human security and conflict management. "You cannot avoid conflict if leaders are not enlightened about how it can be avoided," he said. "Security forces like police and military need training in strategic handling of riots. Riots occur everywhere in Europe and the West but they are not as bloody as ours in the region because of the special training the security men get," he said.
The institute will offer certificates and diplomas in governance, leadership, human rights, human security, conflict resolution, conflict prevention and management, diplomacy, international relations, negotiations, mediation, peace building and development.
Dr Nkurunziza said the school whose head office is in Buziga, near Kampala is collaborating with the University of Coventry, Nairobi University and Makerere University to establish a masters programme in Peace Education at Nairobi University and an undergraduate degree programme in Peace and Human Security Studies at Makerere University.
Short certificate courses begin in January next year and the fully-fledged school whose main campus is to be constructed on Entebbe Road will begin in 2011, after accreditation issues by the National Council of Higher Education have been sorted out.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 The Monitor. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
