The DELM Beneficiaries in a group photo with Aga Khan University and Muni University staff. Photo by Godwin Abedican.

By Godwin Abedican

Arua city

Muni University and Aga Khan University have concluded the first program for one of the newly introduced Diploma programs at the university.

Aga Khan University’s Institute for Educational Development, East Africa (AKU-IED EA), in partnership with Muni University, on March 25, 2022 signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the implementation of the Diploma in Educational Leadership and Management (DELM), in which a scholarship was offered for 35 head teachers and deputies in West Nile, fully funded by Global Affairs Canada implemented in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

Drawn from Arua city and the districts of Koboko, Yumbe and Arua, the head teachers and deputies had a 2 years course geared towards improving management in schools across the region.

Speaking during the closure of the two 2 two years DELM program at Muni University on September 7, 2024, Polycarp Omara, the DELM Coordinator Muni university called upon the head teachers to ensure they translate what they learnt into practice to improve on management of their schools and coordinate a regional improvement in schools management in West Nile.

” We want them to find out what is happening in their schools in the aspects of management and leadership. We intend that, at the end of the course they should go back and continue implementing the strategies that they could have identified in aspects of school management. What I want to encourage and ask my colleagues the head teachers is, after this what next? How will your schools continue benefiting from this? How will the entire district continue benefiting from this? And how will the entire region and Uganda as a country continue benefiting from this? You have to ensure that the fruits of your efforts during the course is seen,” Omara encouraged.

The 35 beneficiary head teachers and deputies from Arua city, Yumbe, Koboko and Arua districts are part of a cohort of 108 school leaders from Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania who were sponsored by the Aga Khan University’s Institute for Education development East Africa, funded by the Foundation for Learning (F4L) Project with support from Global Affairs Canada.

Associate prof Clement Okia, from the faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at Muni University while representing the Vice-chancellor of the University said, the University is ready to use the DELM program as a stepping stone towards ensuring teachers in the region get the opportunity to upgrade from within.

“If we want to build the education in this part of the country and in this part of the world, we need to build from primary and that is why this program is very critical and we look forward that this program is not going to end.  There was some challenge in the transitioning, but what we are going to do is that, in the beginning it is going to be part of the private programs and we are going to look for  possible funding that can make other teachers come to take it,” he said in a statement.

“The faculty of education is also working on upgrading it to postgraduate level because of the changes in the education system and required qualification for teachers and headteachers,” Assoc. Prof. Okia assured in a statement.  

Dr. Mweru Mwingi, the team leader in the implementation of the DELM program and one of the program designers from Aga Khan University Institute of Education Development calls upon Muni University to sustain the follow-up of the first cohort members to design a pathway for improvement.

“I would like to say, please, maintain it as it is. I know we are living in hard times and sometimes there are cost cutting measures that need to be made, but do not cost cut on the follow-up. The follow up is at the heart of the learning, because it’s a practice-based course and it is very dependent on experiential learning,” Mwingi appealed.

In part of his message read by Associate Prof. Clement Okia, Assoc. Prof. Anguma Simon Katrini, the Vice Chancellor Muni University promised the University’s commitment to ensuring that from the foundation laid by the first cohort of the DELM program, a multiplier effect is seen in the improvement of school management in the region.

“According to the Vice Chancellor, as a University, we want to pledge commitment in working with the local governments to ensure that, the knowledge and skills gained by the course participants  are scaled to the rest of the head teachers and their deputies through workshops, networking and benchmarking of best practices,” part of the VC’s message read.

The closure of this program concludes the successful completion of all diploma programs for first cohorts under this project across the East African region.

The beneficiaries are expected to graduate together with the rest of the Muni University students in November.

Uganda will become the second country in East Africa after Kenya to graduate students under the DELM program for the first cohort as Tanzania is set to hold her graduation for the first cohort later this year in December.