During a meeting with Members of Parliament on April 17, 2023, the Vice Chancellor of Makerere University, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, requested the Committee on Education and Sports to provide a budget of Shs 52.9 billion for the renovation of facilities at the Colleges of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine.
According to Nawangwe, graduate students in veterinary medicine have been suspended from the Uganda Veterinary Board due to inadequate training facilities at the college. He also stated that the Medical and Dental Practitioners Council has warned that it would halt the registration of medical graduates due to inadequate staffing at the colleges of medicine.
Nawangwe requested the Committee to pay special attention to these issues and help the University to resolve them by providing phased funding of Shs 10 billion annually and maintaining the base for five years.
The committee chairperson, Hon. John Twesigye, observed that funding to support the College of Medicine at Makerere University had previously been catered for, and tasked the university to set up an infrastructure sustainability plan to ensure that the renovated facilities remain well maintained.
Hon. Phiona Nyamutoro (NRM, Youth National Representative) asked the university to present a detailed utilization plan for the Shs52.9 billion to enable the committee to appreciate the task at hand.
Hon. Agnes Acibu (NRM, Nebbi District Woman Representative) alluded to the country’s economy, saying that the university ought to prioritize while budgeting for the institution in the new financial year.
Kashari County South MP, Hon. Nathan Twesigye, emphasized the need to carry out field visits to the university to understand the challenges faced by Makerere University. He also questioned the outputs of discussions from the Uganda Vice Chancellors’ Forum.
During the presentation of the university budget estimates for Financial Year 2023/2024, the University Secretary, Yusuf Kiranda, called on Parliament to approve a budget of Shs 367.8 billion and off-the-budget financing estimates of Shs 187.37 billion.
He said this will enable an increase in the rate of food and living-out allowances for government-sponsored students, protection of university land, as well as promotion of academic staff.
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