The LASER PULSE consortium members (Purdue University, Indiana University, University of Notre Dame, Catholic Relief Services and Makerere University-ResilientAfrica Network) convened in Washington DC, for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) LASER PULSE Research for Development Learning Summit, Tuesday May, 2nd, 2023. The consortium members were joined by USAID officials, other partners and...
On April 12-13, LASER PULSE convened university leaders and researchers from around sub-Saharan Africa in Kampala, Uganda, to continue their efforts towards strengthening capacity in research leadership and project management at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The workshop was attended by 11 sub-Saharan African countries, including DRC, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan,...
Dr. Lamin Kassama, Professor at Alabama A&M University, USA, and Principal Investigator of the new project on “The Impact of Traditional Practice on the Quality and Safety of Post-Production Handling in the Milk Value-Chain,” funded by USAID through LASER PULSE, traveled to Rwanda from March 11th – 18th, 2023 to launch project activities. The research...
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and short-lived climate pollutants (SLCP) from the Asian region have been increasing continuously due to rapid population growth and industrial activities. Specifically, the South and Southeast Asia (S/SEA) countries have a population of 2.36 billion, representing 30.66% of the world’s population in only 6.57% of the world’s land area. Population growth...
Uganda is known for its cultural distinctiveness, strong traditions and hospitality. Children in Uganda comprise 55% of the total population, making it the country with the youngest population on the continent, with massive potential for growth. However, mental health needs are high in some Ugandan school communities. An estimated 45% of Ugandan primary school learners...
This post originally appeared in MarketLinks on February 27, 2023. Even though USAID MBIOs have identified the value of engaging the private sector in the development sector (even consulted USAID’s PSE policy and the PSE Opportunities Tool), the problem of ‘where to begin’ and ‘how to operationalize private sector engagement’ remains a challenge for both USAID and partners. Through...
Around the world, USAID incorporates practices and policies into our programs to ensure that Indigenous peoples’ rights are upheld and their voices heard. Uganda is home to a rich diversity of Indigenous peoples — including the Benet, the Tepeth, the Batwa, the Ik, and the Basongora — and it is critically important to include their perspectives when...
As a LASER-PULSE Consortium member, Makerere University - ResilientAfrica Network (RAN) set out to assess and understand the research context, research capacity and capacity gaps in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in fragile and conflict affected states: a Case Study of Somalia and South Sudan. A highlight of the research findings Participating Universities were highly variable in size...
Uganda language policy requires rural schools to choose a dominant local language to use as the language of learning and teaching for the first three years of primary school, while English is taught as a subject. The Tepeth and Ik people face the worst case scenario with only a few elders still able to speak...
On 15th December 2022, teams from the USAID Uganda Economic Growth and Partnership Office visited Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST). The presence of the USAID Uganda Economic Growth and Partnership Offices at the meeting provided an opportunity to track the progress of project implementation and provide feedback on areas of emphasis and improvement....
