Host University and Country:Uganda Martyrs University (UMU)

Center Website Address:   www. umu.ac.ug
Center Director and email address: Dr. Jude Ssebuwufu  jssebuwufu@yahoo.com, jssebuwufu@umu.ac.ug

Primary Thematic Discipline of Center: Agriculture – Climate- Smart Agriculture

Brief Description of Center:
The Centre provides world-class training, research and community engagement for development in Agroecology, food systems, value chains and sustainable livelihoods to trigger balanced development in the region and beyond.

Key Objectives and Expected Outcomes:

1. Training of an all-round scientist who is academically excellent, ethically sound and morally mindful of the needs of others and the environment
2. Popularization of sustainable and climate-smart agricultural systems like Agro-ecology
3. Promotion of mutual collaborations with research institutions, academic institutions, Government agencies, industry and the Private sector, for sustainable development
4. Establishment of demonstration farms to provide hands on skills to the communities on the relevant technologies and practices to improve production, productivity and value addition
5. Up-grading of research and training infrastructure such as Laboratories, The University farm, Video-Conferencing facilities and value addition enterprises
6. Building more human resource capacity for the University to improve efficiency and effectiveness
7. Improvement of visibility of the University in order to attract more partnerships, funding, experts, and students for the sustainability of the Center.

Major Accomplishments to Date:

1. Appointment of key staff (management, academic, and administrative)
2. Enrollment of  more than 200 MSc students in the first year and 10 PhD students in the second year
3. Signing of MoUs with key partners in the first year
4. Raising of about USD 100,000 in external funding

Primary Regional and Global Partners:

1. Mathai Wangai Institute of Environmental Sciences, Nairobi University
2. University of Ghent
3. Swedish University of Agriculture
4. RUFORUM
5. Regional Cassava Centre