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ItemLe rôle de l'anglais et du français dans la promotion du commerce transfrontalier entre l'Ouganda et la République démocratique du Congo : une étude de cas des postes-frontières de Mpondwe et Lhubiriha(Makerere University, 2025)This study examines the role of English and French in promoting cross-border trade between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), focusing on the Mpondwe and Lhubiriha border crossings. It explores how language use affects communication, trade efficiency, and cooperation, emphasizing the importance of multilingual competence for smoother trade relations. Language is essential for cross-border trade, serving as both a communication tool and a catalyst for regional integration and economic development. Uganda is predominantly English-speaking, while the DRC is French-speaking, creating potential barriers at border points. Traders often face misunderstandings, translation errors, and delays, although bilingual traders and interpreters help bridge these gaps (Okombo & Rubagumya, 2013). Regional organizations like the East African Community (EAC) and COMESA advocate multilingualism as a means of facilitating trade (EAC, 2018). Understanding how English and French are used in negotiations, documentation, and relationship-building can inform policies to improve cross-border commerce (Mazrui & Mazrui, 1998). Despite regional integration initiatives, the role of language in trade facilitation remains under- explored. Communication barriers, limited bilingual skills among officials, and the vulnerability of small-scale traders hinder efficient trade processes (Ndhlovu, 2013; OECD, 2019). There is limited empirical evidence on how English and French influence trade dynamics at Mpondwe and Lhubiriha, creating a knowledge gap this study seeks to address.
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ItemAffordances of 𝕏 to civil society organisations for social mobilisation: a case study of Actionaid Uganda(Makerere University, 2025)Social Network Sites have in recent times, increased in numbers and have attracted large numbers of subscribers. It is even highly projected that the numbers of subscribers are most likely to grow multifold in the near future, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) inclusive. The networks have improved service delivery to CSOs and therefore, many CSOs in Uganda are anticipated to open accounts on SNS to reap the dividends. Despite this notable trend, the affordances of SNS to CSOs in Uganda for social mobilisation are not known. Thus, the purpose of the study was to explore the affordances of SNS to CSOs in Uganda for social mobilisation. The study was contextualised on use of 𝕏 by ActionAid Uganda. The study sought to achieve the following specific objectives: to investigate how CSOs use 𝕏 for social mobilisation; to examine the affordances that CSOs benefit from using 𝕏 as a social mobilisation platform; and to examine the challenges that CSOs face while using 𝕏 for social mobilisation. A qualitative research approach was adopted to enhance the achievement of the stated objectives and this entailed following a descriptive case study design. Qualitative data were collected from staff and management of ActionAid Uganda, officials from Uganda Communication Commission and one media scholar. These were selected using purposive sampling. Results revealed that ActionAid Uganda used 𝕏 in social mobilisation by publishing topical discussions, providing updates about performance of programmes, sharing opinion, dissemination of information, direct engagement of participants; and to upload visual and audio-visual content. The findings also showed that 𝕏 provides CSOs with several affordances including: ease in assessing programme performance, real time publishing and dissemination of information, information curation, access to whistle blown content, consolidation of related information; and information optimization. However, ActionAid Uganda faced challenges such as one-way communication, lack of representivity, malicious information, lapses in internet connection and difficulty in posting visual information while using 𝕏 for social mobilisation. In conclusion, the use of 𝕏 is veritable for ActionAid Uganda and therefore, management of ActionAid Uganda are implored by this study to work out ways and means of enhancing the continued use of 𝕏 in social mobilisation by formulating interventions for mitigating the challenges reported by this study. Among others, capacity building of staff operating the 𝕏 handle of ActionAid Uganda is important, as well as tagging social mobilisation campaigns on influential persons in the communities in particular, and nation-wide, generally.
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ItemThe portrayal of the dynamics of identity in the selected novels of Henry Rufus Ole Kulet(Makerere University, 2025)The dynamics of identity in the Maasai community, as depicted in Henry Rufus Ole Kulet's Bandits of Kibi, Daughter of Maa, and Moran No More, are explored in this study. To assess the extent to which the promotion of Western values has shifted Maasai identity and created a dichotomy in Maasai culture, a library study has been used as the research methodology. The research was guided by the post-colonial literary theoretical framework as advanced by Rajeswari Mohan, Edward Said, Bill Ashcroft et al., and Homi K. Bhabha. Post- colonial theory places greater emphasis on the effects of the interaction between indigenous cultures and a Western way of life during colonialism and ongoing imperialism. The interaction produces a hybrid identity marked by uncertainties and a fusion of cultures. The study primarily focuses on the impact of Western values on the Maasai identity. A reduction in their own Maasai cultural identity occurs among the Maasai people who adopt Western cultures. Furthermore, the study highlights the difficulties of achieving the status of Moranhood. The complexity of achieving Moranhood is a result of the traditional criteria for defining Moranhood becoming obsolete in today's Maasai people. Finally, the study demonstrates how the invasion of Western culture into the native Maasai culture leads to a shift in their identity, as Western values continue to erode the Maasai man's masculinity.
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ItemPortrayal of domestic violence in selected Ugandan short stories(Makerere University, 2025)This study explores the portrayal of domestic violence in selected Ugandan short stories, a genre that, despite its frequent engagement with the theme, remains significantly under-explored compared to novels, poetry, and drama. Its brevity, intensity, and episodic structure allow short stories to capture sudden eruptions of violence, daily humiliations, and fleeting moments of resistance with an immediacy that longer forms cannot replicate. The study defines domestic violence as a pattern of harmful and controlling behaviour, including physical, sexual, financial/economic, and emotional/psychological harm. It highlights the recurrence of the theme in short fiction, arguing for its importance in reflecting Uganda’s socio-cultural struggles. It analyzes six short stories: Doreen Baingana’s “Green Stones” and “Hunger” (Tropical Fish, 2005); Austin Ejiet’s “Aida” and “Meat for Breakfast” (Aida, Hurray for Somo and Other Stories, 2005); and Jennifer Makumbi’s “Manchester Happened” and “Let’s Tell This Story Properly” (Manchester Happened, 2019). The study explores the types of domestic violence portrayed, analyses the authors’ stylistic choices, and examines social, cultural, and economic factors contributing to abuse in the depicted society. The analysis is guided by the feminist theory, particularly Simone de Beauvoir’s notion of woman as the “Other,” constructed as secondary and subordinate to man, to interpret Ejiet’s portrayal of gender relations. Through this lens, Aida’s experiences reveal how her marginalisation is not incidental but symptomatic of the broader, structural oppression produced by patriarchal systems. Adrienne Rich and Audre Lorde’s concept of intersectionality informs the analysis of Makumbi’s stories, which portray women with agency amid migration and cultural displacement. Kate Millett’s Sexual Politics provides insight into Baingana’s depiction of women’s subjugation through traditional genderroles, especially in Christine’s mother’s experience. The study advocates greater academicfocus on Ugandan short stories as critical to understanding gender-based violence. It calls for their inclusion in literary discourse and urges policy interventions that address the cultural andeconomic roots of domestic abuse represented in literature.
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ItemUse of social media metrics in newsworthiness determination and bulletin structuring in mainstream television journalism at nation television Uganda(Makerere University, 2025)Communication and journalism research on the use of social media has been voluminously rising over the last two decades, but its focus has largely been on how social media has weakened its users’ expectancy for mainstream media news, gatekeeping, agenda-setting, and scooping roles. The use of social media metrics in determining the newsworthiness of content posted on networking platforms such as X and how this use influences application of news values and structuring of news bulletins are understudied, especially in the context of Uganda’s mainstream television industry. With particular focus on NTVU, this study’s specific objectives were thus: To analyse NTVU’s use of X metrics to determine its newsworthiness of post content; To explore how NTVU’s use of X metrics influences application of mainstream news values in selecting news items to include in news bulletins and To determine how NTVU’s use of X metrics influences the structuring of its telecast bulletins. The study was underpinned by the intermedia agenda setting theory, the social networks as knowledge markets theory and news values framework, and was designed as a qualitative single case study. Data were collected using face-to-face interviews held with 13 news journalists and analysed using Yin’s (2015) framework of thematic analysis. Corroborative secondary data from the X platform was collected by scrolling the platform and analysis using qualitative content analysis. Findings indicate that engagement and impressions were the social media metrics mostly used by NTVU to determine the newsworthiness of X posts. The more viral a post’s views, retweets, shares, likes and comments were, the more its content was considered newsworthy. The metrics also influenced NTVU’s application of news values by making this media station emphasise interestingness more than eliteness, prominence and conflict. However, NTVU’s application of credibility and verification, and its emphasis on exclusiveness remained uninfluenced. The metrics further influenced the structuring of NTVU’s news bulletins by making it replace predetermined headlines with viral shocking stories, complementing their content, and interrupting their airing to include breaking news, updates and live feeds of newsworthy events on social media. The study concluded by underscoring the need for NTVU to balance rather than replace eliteness, conflict and prominence with interestingness, not to replace its headlines considered impactful with viral shocking stories since virality makes the latter stale news. NTVU can continue with its exclusiveness and interruption of its bulletin structure with breaking news and newsworthy updates. Recommendations were made urging NTVU, particularly it news department to address this need. The study was qualitative, which limited generalisation of its findings. Its replica using a quantitative approach was thus recommended.