03/09/2026
Hekima University College Called to Become a “Construction Site” for a New Africa: Prof. Emmanuel Katongole challenges HUC community to move beyond quick fixes and dare to reinvent the future.
As Hekima University College (HUC) ushered in a new academic Year, HUC@43, (Academic Year 2026–2027) on August 15, Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Katongole, Ugandan Catholic priest, political theologian and professor at the University of Notre Dame, challenged the Hekima community to become more than an institution that transmits knowledge and calls it to reimagine the purpose of higher education and its responsibility to Africa. Delivering the keynote address at the inauguration, Prof Katongole called Hekima to become a “construction site” for a new society, another humanity, another system of production, another vision of politics and another imagination of life together.
Speaking on the theme “From Quick Fixes to Prophetic Interruption: On Daring to Reinvent the Future,” Prof. Katongole argued that the world is experiencing a profound “poly-crisis” in which multiple crises are unfolding simultaneously and reinforcing one another. Wars, political instability, climate change, economic inequality and the weakening of institutions, he said, point to a deeper crisis in the foundations of contemporary society. “We stand at a very, very critical time of history,” Prof. Katongole told the HUC community. He connected his reflection to the HUC@43 theme, Expanding Horizons, Empowering Futures, and asked a fundamental question: What kind of future are we building, and how should we build a new future in Africa?
Read more: https://hekima.ac.ke/hekima-university-college-called-to-become-a-construction-site-for-a-new-africa-prof-emmanuel-katongole-challenges-huc-community-to-move-beyond-quick-fixes-and-dare-to-reinvent-the/
~_ By Pamela Adinda, HUC Communications and International Office Coordinator
Marcel Uwineza
