Dr Thulani Dlamini, CSIR team and Prof Charles Kwesiga at MoU briefing.
Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) Executive Director, Prof Charles Kwesiga, met with a CSIR delegation led by Group Manager: CSIR Strategic Contract R&D and International Funding Streams Berenice Lue Marais on 20 January 2011 as part of preparations for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two organisations.
The delegates used the opportunity to brief each other on their research activities and priorities. Prof Kwesiga was particularly interested in the CSIR’s impact areas and how the organisation communicated its focus to stakeholders. He explained that defining the CSIR’s work was useful and would allow for focused collaboration between the organisation and UIRI, subject to the availability of resources.
The MoU between the two organisations was signed at the Presidential Guest House on 21 January 2011 by Dr Sibusiso Sibisi and Prof Kwesiga. This signing was observed by Presidents Jacob Zuma and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda.
The CSIR and UIRI project collaboration will initially focus on business incubation and in community-based projects. “I am pleased that we are finally collaborating with ‘big brother CSIR’,” said Prof Kwesiga. “We are standing on the shoulders of a giant.”
Berenice Lue Marais explained that the success of collaboration is hinged on institutional arrangements. UIRI has been in existence since 2002 and has grown from 24 staff members to 180.
