Research Projects

MaRCCI is an African Regional Centre of Excellence for Crop Improvement supported by a grant from World Bank (2017-2022). MaRCCI builds upon Makerere University’s highly respected PhD and MSc training in plant breeding that was initiated as a regional programme by the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) in 2008.

For more: visit https://rcci.mak.ac.ug/

Makerere University with support from Sida/SAREC has undertaken several research projects in the Faculties of Social Sciences, Agriculture, Medicine and Technology.

The key focus of support was on research and PhD supervision in the various areas as outlined below:

1. Faculty of Agriculture (Now College Of Agricultural And Environmental Sciences)
   Focus of support was on utilization of urban market crop waste on crop/livestock production system in the Lake Victoria region. The following projects are supported:
   • Livestock nutrition and husbandry project
   • Urban crop waste soil fertility inputs in urban and peri- urban Agricultural systems
   • Integrated pest management following use of crop-wastes
   • Social- economic implications of market waste utilization in urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture
2. Faculty of Medicine (Now College of Health Sciences)
   The following research areas are supported:
   • Molecular Biology of Malaria
   • Clinical Pharmacology of Malaria
   • Degenerative Diseases, particularly cancer
   • Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS
   • Mental Health
3. Faculty of Social Science (Now College of Humanities & Social Sciences)
   Focus of support was on “Consolidating Peace and Development in the Lake Victoria Regions and its Environments: The National and Local responses to Transformation from Turmoil to a more sustainable development process.’’ The following were the specific Research areas:
   • Uganda’s Foreign Policy in the Security Complexes in the Great Lakes Region from 1986
   • Agricultural Liberalisation, Gender Relations and Livelihood patterns in Central Uganda
   • Gender vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and changes in risk behaviour
   • Faculty capacity building Fund
   • Conflict and Post conflict reconciliation in Uganda
   • Public Policy, changing Gender Relations, Ideologies and Identities in Uganda
   • The Political economy of Disease in the context of conflict
4. Faculty of Technology (Now College Of Engineering, Design, Art And Technology)
   The following research areas are supported:
   • Performance of highway pavements in the Lake Region
   • Development of Environment Friendly Architecture in the Lake Victoria region
   • Water quality management and pollution control in Uganda
   • Characterisation of high temperature ceramic raw materials in Uganda for manufacture of firebricks
   • Sustainable energy for rural development
   • Integration of small renewable energy sources
   • Geographical Information System database for Uganda

The following research projects have been supported by NORAD

1. Faculty of Forestry and Nature Conservation (Now - School of Forestry, Environmental & Geographical Sciences)
   A multidisciplinary approach to encompass a range of species of plants, animals and socio-economic studies of local communities in Budongo Forest

2. Faculty of Agriculture (Now - College of Agriculture & Environmental Sciences)

   Ankole cow and Mubende goat genetic research through the Department of Animal Science, in collaboration with both local and international research institutions.

1. Incubator:  The Directorate for Information and Communication Technology Support (DICTS) in collaboration with IDRC and SPIDER  software development projects
2. Amategaitu:  Amate Gaitu is a community of commercial farmers in partnership with researchers, students, input suppliers, processors, distributors, consultants, investors and service providers, creating, sharing and applying scientific knowledge and technological innovation through supplying high quality, value added dairy, grain and fruit products for the nourishment and health of Africans.

The overall goal of the programme is to increase the capacity of Makerere and Partner public Universities to generate knowledge and promote research uptake for national and regional development. This is line with the Makerere University’s strategic Plan 2008/09 – 2018/19 aimed at enhancing the transformation and utilization of knowledge, research and Innovation capacity of public higher education institutions to conduct and sustain strategic and quality research that will contribute to the development needs of Uganda and beyond.

This goal is to be met by focusing on training to Masters and PhD levels, as well as postdoctoral research. The program will also emphasize strengthening partnerships and optimizing synergies with Sweden supported initiatives in the region.

Objectivies

1. Improve the institutional and research infrastructure to support a robust environment for research and innovations at Makerere University by 2020.
2. Strengthen local PhD training in public universities in Uganda by 2020.
3. Increase the generation and dissemination of knowledge and research outputs by 2020
4. Increase capacity for knowledge translation and innovations by 2020.
5. Increase partnerships and regional synergies for knowledge generation and sharing by 2020
6. Improve the coordination and management of research and knowledge uptake by 2020
7. |Increase cooperation with and strengthen capacity of partner public universities by 2020

For more information about this project, visit https://mak-sweden.mak.ac.ug

The Vehicle Design Project is an innovative research project aimed at applying contemporary technologies to develop sustainable transportation solutions for Uganda and Africa.

The Project was inspired by the Vehicle Design Summit (VDS), an International Student-Led Consortium aimed at Leapfrogging Sustainable Transportation Technologies.

In 2008, Vehicle Design Summit (VDS) Teams from 35 Pre-eminent Research Universities built a 5 seater Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicle, The Vision 200 Led by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). 

Makerere University, the only African team, developed the Power Train and in-Vehicle Communication Network for the Vision 200.

The vision of the project is to be at the forefront of research and development of green transport technologies in Africa, while its mission is to carry out research aimed at development of cost effective and environmentally friendly transportation technologies for Africa.

The Tactical Objective, on the other hand, is to build from scratch a 2-seater Electric Vehicle code-named Kiira as proof of concept, while the strategic objectives are; development of Hybrid Public transport Vehicle-(Omni-bus), and establishment of Centre of Excellence in Transportation Research.

Click Here To Read More About Kiira EV..