Representatives of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in July traveled to Uganda, a landlocked country in East Africa that relies on agriculture at the small holder level as a major source of employment and income, to explore opportunities for collaboration by educators and researchers from the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA).
The delegation from UT included David Ader, Associate Director for the UTIA Smith Center for International Sustainable Agriculture; Denita Hadziabdic-Guerry, Associate Professor in the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology; and Sean Lawrie, Assistant Director of Global Research, Innovation, and Partnerships in UT’s Center for Global Engagement. The goal of the trip was to strengthen current networks and establish relationships with new collaborators, primarily in the areas of agricultural, environmental, and veterinary sciences.
The program began in and near the capital city of Kampala where much of the time was spent with collaborators from Makerere University (MU), considered to be one of the premier institutions of higher education in East Africa. During the program at MU, the UT delegation met with and gave presentations to faculty from the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences and College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Bio Security. Discussions focused on vanilla and cacao value chain research and education, including a new UT faculty led study abroad program that aims to launch in 2026 and feature researchers from MU. The research-oriented program will take UT undergraduate students to Uganda for a comprehensive value chain program that will see them interact with vanilla and cacao growers, processors, exporters, and policy makers.
In addition, the delegation participated in presentations and discussions with representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries and a visit to a women-operated farmers group along with colleagues from Sasakawa Africa Association, an organization that aims to increase farmers’ income and food and nutrition security by promoting agricultural innovations and building the capacity of Extension Agents and farmers.
The delegation also interacted with nearby vanilla and cacao farmers, including touring a vanilla processing facility, owned and operated by Enimiro, in full operation. Other program highlights included meetings with the Association of Vanilla Exporters of Uganda and the VINES project leadership team, which is a USDA Food for Progress project being implemented by Catholic Relief Services. The project aims to increase vanilla production, improve quality, strengthen compliance with food safety standards and develop sustainable market linkages with both U.S. and global vanilla companies.
During the second part of the trip, the delegation traveled outside Kampala for visits to two non-profit organizations: Raise the Roof Academy near Masaka, which is a non-profit organization that provides education, health, and empowerment programs for children and families in rural areas, and the Nyaka Vocational Secondary School located in Kanungu District, which provides education and support to children who have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS. Both organizations prominently feature agriculture in their educational programming and the delegation had a chance to spend time presenting to the children and hearing from them during a tour of the agricultural farms. Nyaka will be included in the aforementioned study abroad program, and UT students will have the chance to directly interact with the students and collectively work on projects like installing a drip irrigation system or building a chicken coop.
The visit to Uganda was extremely successful and will no doubt lead to many successful collaborations in education and research for UT faculty. Please contact Sean Lawrie at slawrie@utk.edu if you would like to learn more about the trip as well as potential opportunities to collaborate with partners in Uganda.