Islamic University in Uganda (IUIU) through its staff development programme is to sponsor more academic staff for doctoral studies in various programs. The Vice Rector in charge of Academic Affairs Professor Ismail Simbwa Gyagenda revealed that IUIU has patterned with various international organizations to sponsor its staff for PhD studies.

“Ideally 70% of our academic staffs must have PhDs in the next five years. We are working to support all our staffs to acquire PhD in all fields but with much focus on sciences”, he emphasized. 

IUIU’s staff development programme that started over 20 years ago has so far benefited over 180 staff at different levels including diploma, bachelors, masters and PhD respectively.

The Vice rector  acknowledged the enormous support from the governments of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Malaysia, Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Brunei, South Africa, and United Kingdom, geared towards sponsoring IUIU staff in different programs.

 “With support from the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), we are also involved in exchange programs where our staff are trained in different African Universities like the Muslim University of Morogoro in Tanzania and Bayero University in Nigeria” he  added.

Remarkably, the Professor Gyagenda noted that the staff development program has been so beneficial to the University since its inauguration.

He highlighted that in institutions of higher learning like IUIU, staff development programme ensures that at least majority of the staffs have a consistent level of skills, knowledge and experience either at masters or PhD level.

Dr. SSali Bisaso Muhammad, one of the fellows of staff development program at both his Masters and PhD level from Malaysia and Turkey respectively attributed his accomplishment to IUIU’s sponsorship.

Currently, Dr. Bisaso is the Director Centre for Postgraduate and a lecturer in the faculty of education at the Islamic University in Uganda.

“The training and development I got during my study a broad helped me to acquire relevant and up to date knowledge. This program enhanced my professional development, skills and it increased on my experience and flexibility in conducting university businesses.” He testified.