The Cross-Cultural Foundation of Uganda (CCFU) has received support (mostly from UNESCO) for a 3-year project (2018-2020). The project aims at raising awareness of the management and academic staff in 4 universities in Uganda (Uganda Martyrs University, Kabale University, Kyambogo University and the Islamic University in Uganda) on the relevance of intangible cultural heritage in Uganda’s current development context.
CCFU is working in partnership with the Uganda National Commission for UNESCO and these participating universities (through a project Steering Committee with representatives from relevant stakeholders, including academia, the National Council for Higher Education, representatives of student bodies, relevant ministries, and civil society organisations). The project proposes to produce training materials and a course outline on ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage and Development’ in Uganda and to train a cadre of academic staff in delivering such a course. The project conforms with the objectives of the National Culture Policy which stipulates the importance of intangible cultural heritage and the need to safeguard it. Currently, a report on Cultural Heritage Education in Uganda: a focus on intangible cultural heritage has been finalised and the process to develop a degree programme on Intangible Cultural Heritage is in progress.
The project is expected to have an impact within and beyond the four universities through a symposium and public lectures, in addition to widely available teaching materials. This will result in a higher degree of appreciation of the importance of ICH in relation to development challenges by academic staff and in their increased competence in delivering course on ICH and Development. The project is being coordinated by CCFU, a local NGO with several years of experience in the field of ICH and in supporting course development in Ugandan universities.
