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Visiting Ugandan Government Official Focuses Williams College's Attention on World Agriculture and Development
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., April 10, 2009 -- Bringing real world voices and experiences to Williams College is an important part of providing a balanced education.
"We want to break down the barrier between learning and doing by learning from those who have been doing in the areas of international relations and economic development," explained Williams Professor William Darrow of the International Studies Program. Williams College's first appointment to the Class of 1955 Visiting Professor in International Studies, Dr. Wilberforce Kisamba Mugerwa, brings plenty of both from his native Uganda.
"Dr. Mugerwa exemplifies the kind of person I am thrilled can be available to Williams students and faculty," Darrow said, "and to have the opportunity to share real world experience of the global challenges we face."
As a high-level government official in a Sub-Saharan nation, Mugerwa has hands-on experience with development issues. As a smallholder farmer, he has turned his farm into an experimental laboratory for his new techniques and methods for his neighbors. As a politician, he knows how governments get things done (and don't get things done), and as a scholar, he has stepped back to study how all these threads are interwoven.
Mugerwa divides his life between his three major interests -- as an academic, a civil servant, and as a farmer.
He studied agriculture and planning at Makerere University in Kampala. He went on to serve as a member of parliament for 23 years. As a member of the opposition and later a Minister of State holding various portfolios including that of finance and planning and later as a Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries. Later, he worked for an international development agency. He is currently the chairperson of the National Planning Authority, but has taken a leave of absence for his time at Williams College.
Throughout his career, Mugerwa has focused on the role of agriculture in Ugandan life. About 80 percent of the population still lives in rural areas, and 78 percent are involved in agriculture, with most working on sustenance level.
At first, as a sort of retirement plan, Mugerwa purchased a small plot of land about 60 kilometers from the capital and grew food he would bring to his home in the city. He eventually expanded to include cash crops like coffee, cocoa, and vanilla.
It was an educational experience for him, and for his neighbors. When he arrived, they were having trouble growing "matooke," a variety of banana similar to a plantain, the staple dish in Uganda. The farmers blamed it on land that "had grown old." Using modern techniques of fertilization and management, Mugerwa was able to show his neighbors how to do it.
He is very interested in finding ways to help. In Uganda, transactional costs are very high because of poor rural transportation infrastructure. He believes that teaching farmers about sustainable agriculture, giving them access to markets, and helping with equipment and seed stock are among the challenges that policy makers must address.
Professor of Economics Douglas Gollin and Dr. Mugerwa are co-teaching a 200-level course at Williams this spring, which is cross-listed in environmental studies, economics, and international relations. The course's 25 students come from a variety of disciplines, including those interested in development and social justice, economics, globalization, and sustainability.
END
Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college's 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students' educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student's financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted. To visit the college on the Internet:www.williams.edu
News: Chris Marcisz
"We want to break down the barrier between learning and doing by learning from those who have been doing in the areas of international relations and economic development," explained Williams Professor William Darrow of the International Studies Program. Williams College's first appointment to the Class of 1955 Visiting Professor in International Studies, Dr. Wilberforce Kisamba Mugerwa, brings plenty of both from his native Uganda.
"Dr. Mugerwa exemplifies the kind of person I am thrilled can be available to Williams students and faculty," Darrow said, "and to have the opportunity to share real world experience of the global challenges we face."
As a high-level government official in a Sub-Saharan nation, Mugerwa has hands-on experience with development issues. As a smallholder farmer, he has turned his farm into an experimental laboratory for his new techniques and methods for his neighbors. As a politician, he knows how governments get things done (and don't get things done), and as a scholar, he has stepped back to study how all these threads are interwoven.
Mugerwa divides his life between his three major interests -- as an academic, a civil servant, and as a farmer.
He studied agriculture and planning at Makerere University in Kampala. He went on to serve as a member of parliament for 23 years. As a member of the opposition and later a Minister of State holding various portfolios including that of finance and planning and later as a Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries. Later, he worked for an international development agency. He is currently the chairperson of the National Planning Authority, but has taken a leave of absence for his time at Williams College.
Throughout his career, Mugerwa has focused on the role of agriculture in Ugandan life. About 80 percent of the population still lives in rural areas, and 78 percent are involved in agriculture, with most working on sustenance level.
At first, as a sort of retirement plan, Mugerwa purchased a small plot of land about 60 kilometers from the capital and grew food he would bring to his home in the city. He eventually expanded to include cash crops like coffee, cocoa, and vanilla.
It was an educational experience for him, and for his neighbors. When he arrived, they were having trouble growing "matooke," a variety of banana similar to a plantain, the staple dish in Uganda. The farmers blamed it on land that "had grown old." Using modern techniques of fertilization and management, Mugerwa was able to show his neighbors how to do it.
He is very interested in finding ways to help. In Uganda, transactional costs are very high because of poor rural transportation infrastructure. He believes that teaching farmers about sustainable agriculture, giving them access to markets, and helping with equipment and seed stock are among the challenges that policy makers must address.
Professor of Economics Douglas Gollin and Dr. Mugerwa are co-teaching a 200-level course at Williams this spring, which is cross-listed in environmental studies, economics, and international relations. The course's 25 students come from a variety of disciplines, including those interested in development and social justice, economics, globalization, and sustainability.
END
Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college's 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students' educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student's financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted. To visit the college on the Internet:www.williams.edu
News: Chris Marcisz
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