Today, Friday, 29th August 2025, ARU held the 13th Annual Reflection Session at Jevine Hotel, Rubaga – Kampala, Uganda. The Annual Reflection provides ARU Council and staff with an opportunity to reflect on different topics based on ARU’s Education Model.

In his remarks, Professor Samuel Kyamanywa, ARU Council Chairman, together with ARU Council and staff empathized with the ARU Vice Chancellor for his recent predicament where he almost lost his life. He thanked ARU staff for their unwavering commitment to ARU and implored participants to always reflect the ARU visionary approach in all activities: “Whatever we do should reflect the ARU Education Model.” noted Professor Kyamanywa.

Professor Samuel Kyamanywa, ARU Council Chairman sharing his remarks

The Vice Chancellor of African Rural University, Dr. Mwalimu Musheshe, in his address, thanked staff and council members for continuously serving ARU. He also shared briefly about ARU’s background and its unique approach to teaching, learning, research, and community engagement all aimed at achieving rural transformation.

In today’s session, the main focus was on community engagement. In his presentation, the Head of Community Engagement, Mr. John Tusiime, provided a clear overview of ARU’s community engagement its approaches, actors, activities, and how it is conducted.

He noted that the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) mandates all higher education institutions to integrate community engagement into teaching, research, and service. Section 3(2)(b) of the Universities and Other Tertiary Institutions Act requires universities to “provide accessible and relevant higher education to meet individual and national aspirations.” In line with this mandate, Mr. Tusiime emphasized that community engagement is at the heart of ARU’s Education Model, rooted in the Ubuntu philosophy: “I am because we are.”

Night Theopista and Mr John Tusiime making a presentation of ARU Community Engagement during the Annual Reflection

Mr. Tusiime explained that ARU students undertake rural community engagements including practicum, community action planning, community-based participatory action research, internships, and validation exercises, among others. He highlighted that this year’s community engagement contributed to the construction of two boreholes through Irene Tusiime’s participatory action research. He further noted that in all community engagement work, students are mentored by Epicentre Managers during field practice in rural communities.

In his remarks, Mr. Robert Katabazi, Director of Education and Training at the Uganda Rural Development Training Programme (URDT), applauded ARU for producing effective change agents within the African context. As the employer of ARU graduates, he shared that ARU graduates have trained 70,000 youth in four years in collaboration with 703 artisans and agri-business practitioners, of whom 43,873 are young women.

Mr Robert Katabazi noted that ARU’s visionary approach is attracting vast interest from Uganda to India

Of these, 28,336 youth have transitioned to “learn, work, and earn,” with incomes above UGX 250,000 per month placing them above the poverty line. He further noted that ARU graduates working under the two-generation approach are currently engaged with 10 schools in the Bunyoro region, reaching 1,200 homes and 6,000 household members. Of these, 74% now earn at least USD 2.15 per day.

More presentations were made by ARU staff, faculty, and traditional wisdom specialists. Discussions revolved around ARU and Sustainable Development, ARU’s new approaches to teaching, learning, research, and community engagement, continuum of education, ARU’s community impact and assessment, reflections on Uganda’s curriculum shift, and the work of traditional wisdom specialists.