 INTRODUCING CENTRE FOR BASIC RESEARCH
Centre for Basic Research (CBR) was established in 1987, registered as an educational trust, and later as a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) in 1988. CBR was established with the emphasis on carrying out basic research on issues of national importance at a time when university academics were increasingly being drawn into short-term consultancies to cater for immediate financial needs, thus making long term research and critical intellectual discourse a prerogative of non-national academics and agencies. CBR has since conducted a significant amount of research and disseminated its research results through publications (books, working papers, occasional papers, workshop proceedings, policy briefs) available in CBR library; workshops, seminars and training.
CBR’s research has been most notable in the areas of democracy and governance, land tenure, environmental issues, agrarian changes, pastoralism, livelihoods, social and economic conditions of Ugandans, including labour, economic reforms and policies, industrialisation, informal sector challenges, and the impact of globalisation. Gender and development, social movements and processes, civil society dynamics, and cultural studies have received particular attention in CBR’s research work.
From 2006, CBR has embarked on a process of expanding its mandate and activities to include postgraduate training in research methods and writing skills. Over 700 postgraduate students have received training in a one month skills enhancement course leading to the award of a Postgraduate Certificate in Research Methods and Writing Skills. In the near future, CBR intends to build on this practical experience to conduct postgraduate degree programmes, that put a premium on research, research methodology and critical thinking, with a view to producing graduates who are capable of producing research results and new knowledge relevant to our society..
These graduates will acquire skills that will enable them to produce and disseminate research results and also act as independent academics, researchers and consultants as well as more effective policy makers and actors within the state, civil society arena and society generally.
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