The EfD Uganda participants in the Inclusive Green Economy Program, IGE Fellows, cohort of 2024-25, were officially enrolled in a yearlong capacity-building program at Makerere University on May 15, 2024.
The fellows will review policy instruments to promote green growth in Uganda through virtual and physical classes. In early October, they will travel to Nairobi to share experiences with peers from Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Rwanda.
Facilitated by the EfD Global Hub at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and sponsored by Sida, the program focuses on Energy Efficiency for 2024. The cohort includes members from various Ugandan government ministries and agencies.
Edward Bbaale, Director of the EfD-Mak Centre and Makerere University's Director of Research and Graduate Studies emphasized the importance of energy efficiency and an energy transition for Uganda's green economy. He urged fellows to explore the effective implementation of energy subsidies and ensure the quality of energy-efficient cooking gadgets.
“How can the government of Uganda best implement the energy subsidy for e-cooking? How can we ensure that it is made popular so that people are in a position to cook using electricity? How about cooking gadgets? How can the government ensure the standards and quality of these cooking gadgets so that they do not consume all the electricity units of a Ugandan? How can we rule out counterfeits?” Edward Bbaale said.
He implored the fellows to propose strategies for greening the economy in Uganda's National Development Plan IV.
“Uganda has fossil fuel and is looking forward to it to address revenue and infrastructural problems. So how can we attain a green economy while interacting with the extraction of oil, which is considered a main source of energy?” Edward Bbaale asked.
The IGE program aims to bridge the gap between research and policy, fostering long-term collaboration between researchers and policymakers. By the end of the program, fellows will join an alumni network advocating for green economy initiatives.
By Jane Anyango
EfD-Uganda