Academic literature on the topic 'Information society – Uganda'

Though one could not exhaustively and conclusively define all the attributes of an information/knowledge society, it seems Uganda has made commandable strides to such society. One of the prerequisites of such society is a corps of well-educated, trained and experienced information professionals to manage information and knowledge effectively in that society. Furthermore, the corps must perform professionally and ethically at all times. To fulfill this, an Information Code of Ethics (ICE) is required. However, Uganda has as yet to establish an ICE because of some reasons. These reasons are outlined in the paper. The ICE has two as-pects: theory and practice. These concepts are explained and related. The LA (USA) and the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professions (CILIP) formerly the LA (UK) are studied as living examples. The provisions of these ICEs are briefly explained. In view of the past experience a process of establishing an IME for Uganda is considered. The paper concludes with an outline of the content of an IME for Uganda.

Background: World Cancer Day (WCD) provides a platform to raise awareness. This year Uganda's commemoration was held at the Parliamentary grounds. Aim: To bring together Uganda's stakeholders through an inclusion approach to advocate for, share information and raise awareness on cancer while recognizing efforts made and appreciating challenges faced in the fight against the epidemic. Strategy: Partnership building was key. Partners involved were; Uganda Cancer Society (UCS), Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI), Ministry of Health, World Health Organization, media, Uganda Corporate League, interreligious council, Kampala Capital City Authority, Parliament of Uganda, Uganda Police and UCS member organizations. Program process: A committee was set up and a concept developed adopting the tri-process approach; “Before - During - After” for implementation of activities. Outcomes: The digital campaign was launched using the signs for change and the #WeCanICanUg. There was high media coverage; 3 major national stations Urban TV, NBS TV and NTV UG, one regional station-CGTN Africa, as well as online platforms such as; WHO Africa Web site, UICC World Cancer Day impact report, the Grape Vine, Chimp reports, and more than 5 YouTube media uploads as per our monitoring and surveillance efforts on reach and impact. The lighting of the Queen's way clock tower attracted many passersby and media coverage. In addition there was awareness creation in select churches (6) and mosques (2) on 4th and 2nd February respectively. The WCD ceremony was attended by over 400 guests and officiated by the Speaker of Parliament who doubled as chief walker. The 7.3 km match past attracted involvement of the community along the way. The Speaker called upon the government through Ministry of Health to inject more money into training of more cancer specialists to work on cancer patients. She also stated the need to have cancer services moved closer than just the regional centers but to every district referral hospital for cancer screening and cancer treatment. She pledged Parliament's unconditional support to work with civil society in the cancer fight. The Minister of Health committed to the full operationalization of regional cancer centers by 2019. She applauded the role of civil society through Uganda Cancer Society on the advocacy efforts stating that they had already started yielding good results . The event ended with the corporate league football competitions which were aimed at promoting healthy lifestyles through physical exercise. Notably was the match between the Parliamentary team and the UCI team. The winner was given a trophy marked WCD 2018. What was learned: The role of civil society through umbrella bodies like UCS plays a crucial role in cancer control as seen during through planning, mobilization, partnership building and execution of WCD activities. Creativity and innovation is key in generating stakeholder and public interest in cancer control activities like WCD.

The emergence of knowledge society globally today has created new challenges for Higher Education (HE) particularly with the development of Information Communication Technology (ICT) at a speed that has no match in history yet HE in Uganda is still lagging behind. The paper aims at unraveling the role and challenges of using ICT in HE of Uganda and education implications in order to provide the way forward with Kyambogo University as a case. This study used a mixed methods approach that combined desk review and interviews. The paper reveals the role of ICT in HE as central in the teaching-learning process, on the learner and learning and on the academic staff and teaching while the challenges as; learners, economy, equipment and academic staff which poses as a drawback in the teaching –learning process. The paper concludes that ICT is central in the teaching-learning process as well as in the management of HE institutions. The way forward rests majorly in the newly created ICT Ministry with effective implementation of ICT Policy 2014 to improve the livelihoods of Ugandans by ensuring the availability of accessible, efficient, reliable and affordable ICT services in which HE will benefit automatically hence its effective application and use in the teaching-learning process.

Politicians shirk when their performance is obscure to constituents. We theorize that when politician performance information is disseminated early in the electoral term, politicians will subsequently improve their performance in anticipation of changes in citizens’ evaluative criteria and possible challenger entry in the next election. However, politicians may only respond in constituencies where opposition has previously mounted. We test these predictions in partnership with a Ugandan civil society organization in a multiyear field experiment conducted in 20 district governments between the 2011 and 2016 elections. While the organization published yearly job duty performance scorecards for all incumbents, it disseminated the scorecards to constituents for randomly selected politicians. These dissemination efforts induced politicians to improve performance across a range of measures, butonly in competitive constituencies. Service delivery was unaffected. We conclude that, conditional on electoral pressure, transparency can improve politicians’ performance between elections but not outcomes outside of their control.

Purpose In view of the consensus that climate change is happening, scientists have documented several findings about Uganda’s recent climate, as well as its variability and change. The purpose of this study is to review what has been documented, thus it gives an overview of what is known and seeks to explain the implications of a changing climate, hence what ought to be known to create a climate resilient environment. Design/methodology/approach Terms such as “climate”, “climate change” and “climate variability” were identified in recent peer-reviewed published literature to find recent climate-related literature on Uganda. Findings from independent researchers and consultants are incorporated. Data obtained from rainfall and temperature observations and from COSMO-CLM Regional Climate Model-Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment (CCLM CORDEX) data, European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) Interim Re-Analysis (ERA-Interim) data and Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) have been used to generate spatial maps, seasonal outputs and projections using GrADS 2.02 and Geographic Information System (GIS) software for visualization. Findings The climate of Uganda is tropical in nature and influenced by the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), varied relief, geo-location and inland lakes, among other factors. The impacts of severe weather and climate trends and variability have been documented substantially in the past 20-30 years. Most studies indicated a rainfall decline. Daily maximum and minimum temperatures are on the rise, while projections indicate a decrease in rainfall and increase in temperature both in the near and far future. The implication of these changes on society and the economy are discussed herein. Cost of inaction is expected to become huge, given factors like, the growing rate of the population and the slow expanding economy experienced in Uganda. Varied forms of adaptation to the impacts of climate change are being implemented, especially in the agricultural sector and at house hold level, though not systematically. Originality/value This review of scientific research findings aims to create a better understanding of the recent climate change and variability in Uganda and provides a baseline of summarized information for use in future research and actions.

In today's public and private sectors, corporate governance is a key focus, and management of libraries, records, archives, and information centers is an increasingly important preoccupation. This implies that the issue of LIS education should not be taken lightly. As the economy grows, the demand for information will propel the demand for LIS professionals because of the need to manage different kinds of documents. This paper, based on relevant literature review and the authors' experience as LIS practitioners and educators, aims at discussing this subject and highlights important issues to be addressed. The paper makes a brief exploration of LIS education in Uganda, identifies the challenges, and proposes strategies as the way forward. It recommends that as LIS education and training seeks a wider role in society, there is a need to prepare students for careers in a rapidly changing world. This requires multidisciplinary education, greater emphasis on core knowledge, and fully well-articulated graduate programmes to meet the requisite of LIS professionals.

Abstract Sanitation is a major global challenge that is often addressed at national and international levels, while community opinions and beliefs are neglected. To promote water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) we organized a cross-cultural knowledge exchange workshop to assess participatory methods for engaging local stakeholders. The workshop included 22 participants from all sectors of society. Practical solutions to sanitation challenges were identified and later shared with a local community. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were used to assess impact and showed participatory methods were highly valued to encourage information sharing among widely varied stakeholders, and that video was a particularly successful approach when engaging with local communities. An 8-month follow-up survey of village members revealed excellent information recall, positive behaviour changes and a desire for future visits. Our evidence suggests that community-based participation helped identify solutions to WASH issues affecting rural communities in resource-poor settings. Engaging in a multicultural knowledge-share was particularly valuable as it enabled participants to recognize they have common challenges and allowed them to share low-cost solutions from their different communities. Our use of video was widely viewed as an ideal means of circulating findings, as it communicated information to people with a wide variety of community roles and to all age groups. Its relevance was increased by adopting a culturally appropriate context by involving local communities in workshop activities. We recommend that research in low- and middle-income countries should be mindful of the environmental context in which WASH is implemented, and encourage acceptance by engaging with communities through the use of varied participatory methods.

The media play an essential role of informing and mobilising voters as well as facilitating a two-way communication process between citizens and those vying for electoral offices during elections. This allows citizens to get information on various issues from the contenders, which largely informs their electoral decisions. In most less democratic societies however, this media function is increasingly becoming difficult to fulfil due to challenges journalists encounter during electoral processes. Using Uganda’s last general elections in 2016 as a case study, this article discusses the safety of journalists during elections basing on findings from a bigger study on the media coverage of the 2016 elections, supplemented by in-depth interviews with 10 journalists who covered the elections. In addition, the analysis makes reference to the 2016 Uganda Press Freedom Index. Findings of this research show that journalists face more safety and security risks during elections particularly perpetuated by state security agencies. Compared to previous elections, the 2016 elections also recorded the highest number of victims who were female journalists. This article highlights key challenges journalists face during elections, which include: state harassment and intimidation, arrest of those considered critical to the state, and denial of access to important information. Due to concerns of their own safety, journalists have responded to the insecure work environment by engaging in self-censorship, thereby giving biased or limited information to the public. The article identifies gaps that media development agencies can help to close if the media are to play their rightful role in a democratic society, especially during the electoral process.

Background and context: Cultural norms, beliefs and practices are great hindrance to efforts toward early detection and treatment of cancer in Uganda as most of the individuals believe its witchcraft, curse or bad luck. Working with organized groups such as churches, cultural associations, women associations, is key in changing such beliefs. HealthAid Uganda (HAU) for the last 3 years has worked in partnership with Watoto Church among other groups to deliver cancer awareness, screening and screening for other health problems in the districts of Mukono, Kampala and Wakiso. Aim: To mobilize organized groups within the community to raise awareness about cancer to correct prevailing myths, misconceptions and negative cultural beliefs, norms and practices. Strategy/Tactics: HAU built a strong partnership with its target groups one of which being Watoto church with whom joint planning activities were carried out. It involved the review of HAU's previous community health outreaches as a source of experience. The review also gave insight into the development of the activity plan; including the services to be rendered, the community leaders to be involved and the day in which the events would be conducted. The event included health talks on HPV, cervical and breast cancer, testimonies by the survivors, practical demonstration for self-breast examination, cervical cancer screening and distribution of cancer education materials. Program/Policy process: Involvement of community groups and champions in changing beliefs toward cancer epidemic is key. Outcomes: There was increased spirit of partnership which attracted various civil society organizations with Watoto church being the key partner. The government health center administration recognized efforts and pledged to offer further support in mobilizing the community. The awareness walk attracted public participation and need for the services. It demonstrated need to further work with organized groups within the community to form cancer task force groups to bring cancer information to every household. The events were covered by media, leading to increased demand for the services provided, with estimated 1500 individuals who received with both awareness, screening and consultative services. What was learned: HAU-Watoto partnership involvement showed that working with organized groups produces better results in cancer control and treatment in Uganda. Indeed changing cultural beliefs, norms and practices toward cancer prevention and control can be a success story if working with organized local groups is taken into consideration as a tool to reaching out to individuals and the approach during this year showed much more results than 2016.

This study brings out circumcision dilemmas and conflicts among the Xhosa people of Lortondale area in the Matabeleland North province of Zimbabwe. The problem befell this community immediately after 2009 when Zimbabwe adopted results from Kenya, Uganda and South Africa in Orange farm that circumcision can curb HIV transmission by 60% from female to male and thus attention was given to medical circumcision, which is known as ‘smart’. Family disunity and disintegration are some of the results of conflicts, within some families whose members shunned the traditional practice. Interviews and focus group discussions were employed in gathering primary data for this study. They allowed access to first-hand information from the Xhosa people themselves. On the same note, one of the researchers has worked closely with this community for a year in other HIV/AIDS programs. This counteracted the element of secrecy associated with the subject of circumcision among the Xhosa people which a number of scholars and news reporters fail to tackle and finally produce general results. Finally, a synergy is proposed as a way that restores peace and order in the society under study.