By Dr Enock Sithole
Two years after the launch of an ambitious initiative to strengthen journalism, media and communication research in East Africa, the project is beginning to produce tangible results, including scholarly publications, innovative research and strengthened regional collaboration among universities.
The initiative, funded by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) with approximately US$1.8 million, was launched in Durban during a meeting of academics from Norway’s NLA University College, Uganda Christian University (UCU), the University of Rwanda (UR) and the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN).
At the time, the partners described the programme as the first major collaborative initiative dedicated to strengthening journalism and communication research in Uganda and Rwanda while expanding research capacity across East and Sub-Saharan Africa.
The project was organised around four thematic research areas: Media, Democracy and Development; Media, Gender and Representation; Media, Risk and Crisis Communication; and Media, Science and Health Communication.
Providing an update on the initiative, Professor Monica Chibita, Dean of the Faculty of Communication Studies at Uganda Christian University (UCU), said all four research streams remain active and are beginning to generate significant scholarly outputs.
“Our four thematic research areas continue to make progress,” Prof Chibita said. “Area One, Media, Democracy and Development, is currently preparing a special issue for the Journal of African Media Studies focusing on the theme of media and resilience.”
The special issue reflects one of the central objectives established when the initiative was launched, to generate African scholarship capable of advancing understanding of how media institutions respond to political, technological and social change.
Another major milestone has already been achieved under the second research theme.
“Area Two has published a book on Media, Gender and Representation,” Prof Chibita said.
The publication, Gender and Media Representation: Perspectives from Sub-Saharan Africa – Diverse Perspectives on Creating a Fairer Society, edited by Margaret Jjuuko, Solveig Omland and Carol Azungi Dralega, was published by Emerald Publishing in 2025.
Bringing together scholars from across the region, the 274-page volume examines gender representation in African media and contributes new perspectives to debates on equality, inclusion and media practice.
Beyond academic publishing, the initiative has also generated applied research with direct social impact.
Prof Chibita said the Media, Science and Health Communication research group has recently completed an innovative project titled “Olutindo”, the Luganda word for “bridge.”
Funded by UCU, the project explores communication between parents and teenagers on the sensitive issue of teenage pregnancy.
“The project focuses on communication between teenagers and their parents around teenage pregnancy,” Prof Chibita explained. “It has also developed a game to facilitate this communication, and the team is now in the process of registering intellectual property rights.”
Although financed directly by UCU, she noted that the researchers are affiliated with the broader Norad-supported programme, illustrating how the regional initiative continues to stimulate new research beyond its original funding framework.
When the initiative was launched, Professor Terje Skjerdal of NLA University College said the programme sought to address the longstanding shortage of journalism and communication research in East Africa by bringing together researchers from Uganda, Rwanda, South Africa and Norway.
He said the project would focus not only on Uganda and Rwanda but also on East Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa and, where appropriate, the African continent as a whole.
The original vision also envisaged PhD and master’s students contributing to collaborative research while scholars from other African universities would be invited to contribute chapters to books and articles for special journal editions.
That collaborative model remains central to the programme.
“We continue to benefit from teaching and supervision support from our partners, NLA University College, the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the University of Rwanda,” Chibita said.
The partnership has strengthened doctoral supervision, curriculum development and collaborative research while creating opportunities for academic exchange among participating institutions.
The initiative has also contributed to the growth of advanced journalism and communication education in East Africa through the establishment of master’s and PhD programmes at UCU and the University of Rwanda.
Those programmes are expected to produce a new generation of researchers capable of expanding African scholarship in journalism, media and communication while strengthening university teaching and professional practice.
From the outset, the project’s architects envisaged research outputs that would extend beyond academic journals.
Research findings are intended to be publicly accessible and available for use in higher education, policymaking and future research, ensuring that the knowledge generated benefits both academia and the wider communication sector.
With a major scholarly book already published, a special journal issue in preparation and innovative health communication research producing practical tools for communities, the initiative is demonstrating how regional collaboration can strengthen Africa’s research capacity.
As the project enters its next phase, the emphasis is increasingly shifting from building institutional partnerships to producing research that addresses African communication challenges and contributes new knowledge to global debates on journalism, media and communication.